Dani Oliveras will be Carlos Sainz's co-driver at Ford for the 2026 W2RC

Carlos Sainz has a new co-driver for the World Rally-Raid Championship. Dani Oliveras, champion of the 2025 FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas, will take the right-hand seat in the Ford Raptor T1+ starting from the Baja Portugal, scheduled for March 17-22, which will be the second round of the 2026 W2RC calendar.

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Who is Dani Oliveras and why he makes sense for Sainz

The Catalan, born in 1987, competed on motorcycles before switching to the right-hand seat. He raced several editions of the Dakar on two wheels, with a ninth place as his best result. Starting in 2019, he began his career as a navigator, working with Gerard Farrés, Nani Roma, and Orly Terranova. Last year, he won the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas alongside Argentine Juan Cruz Yacopini in a Toyota, securing victories in Qatar and Jordan. He also has a seventh-place overall finish in the Dakar as a co-driver.

Oliveras was entered for the 2026 Dakar with Yacopini but never took the start. On December 19, 2025, Yacopini suffered a serious accident while diving in a shallow area at the El Carrizal Dam in Mendoza, resulting in severe damage to his C1 and C2 cervical vertebrae. Yacopini remains in rehabilitation, and his return to competition has no set date. With Yacopini's absence, Oliveras became available in the navigator market just when Sainz needed one.

The end of 14 years alongside Lucas Cruz

Oliveras's arrival fills the vacancy left by Lucas Cruz, who navigated for Sainz for 14 years and with whom he won four Dakar editions: 2010 with Volkswagen, 2018 with Peugeot, 2020 with Mini, and 2024 with Audi. The split was mutual following the 2026 Dakar, where they finished fifth overall after a navigation error on the tenth stage cost them a shot at victory when they still had genuine winning chances.

Cruz posted "The last dance" on Instagram upon crossing the finish line in Saudi Arabia, hinting at the end before it was officially confirmed. The last two editions as a duo did not yield the expected results, with the 2025 retirement and that fifth-place finish in 2026.

Sainz is the only driver to have won the Dakar with four different manufacturers, a record that ties him with Stéphane Peterhansel in terms of total victories in the car category.

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Two Raptors in Portugal and the focus on the 2027 Dakar

Ford will maintain its usual structure with two Raptor units for the Baja Portugal, where Sainz will race with Oliveras and Mattias Ekström retains his lineup in the second car. The Portuguese event will be the first real test for the new duo ahead of the Bajas in South Africa and Morocco, which will serve to build synchronization for the 2027 Dakar.

Sainz arrives in Portugal fifth in the 2026 W2RC standings with 27 points, 46 behind Nasser Al-Attiyah, but the season has just begun. Ford Racing is already second in the manufacturers' championship with 127 points compared to Dacia's 160. His teammate Ekström holds second place individually with 52 points, so the Raptor T1+ proved in the Dakar that it can compete with anyone. Now Sainz needs the partnership with Oliveras to click quickly.