Three weeks ago, Jaguar sent shockwaves through the automotive world when it teased its reinvention with a controversial video showcasing its rebrand. The conversation continued last week with the unveiling of the Type 00 concept car, which perhaps presented more questions than answers, but as the Formula E season got underway in Sao Paulo last week, there was an air of familiarity around the Jaguar camp. Not pretty in pink like the radical new EV concept, the Formula E team continues to have a somewhat similar look to previous seasons.
“It’s an incredibly exciting time for the Jaguar brand as we reimagine this incredible, iconic car brand in a bold and disruptive way, and that’s without a doubt,” Jaguar TCS Racing team principal James Barclay told RACER. “I think for us as a team we are really, really proud to be part of that.
“And then obviously, from a team identity point of view, you see the adoption of the new Jaguar device mark, which is exciting. We’ve been looking forward to bringing this into the team, and the reaction seems to be amazing since we revealed the livery. It’s exciting times.
“It’s nice to be part of this journey. Jaguar is the most talked-about brand in the world right now, not just car brand, and I think that has a lot of exciting opportunities for us as a team.”
That team will play an integral part as the company enters its own electric-only era, too. While 89-year-old Jaguar appears to be changing from top to bottom, having racing as a key part of its make-up will remain.
“We are developing the technology that will flow into our future Jaguar electric vehicles,” said Barclay. “That’s one element of it, but it’s also the DNA of racing is embedded in Jaguar, and what we are doing here is driving passion and excitement for electric vehicle technology as the world transitions towards that.
“Our role is really important in that transition, and we really feel a big responsibility to do that in a really exciting and informative, but also really productive way in terms of technology.”
The Jaguar road car business’ reimagining comes at a time where the entire JLR business — now known just by the three-letter designation rather than Jaguar Land Rover as it was before — is undergoing change. Another part of that is splitting Land Rover into individual marques named after the company’s products.
One of those, Defender, will be taking on the Dakar Rally in 2026, marking the first time the off-road icon has taken part in the world’s most grueling contest in an official capacity. Little had been revealed about the project so far, but Barclay expressed his pride and helming the program.
“We’ll reveal more in January, so can’t say much more than what we’ve shared at the moment, but what I can say is I’m really very excited, very honored, very proud to bring this program to a reality in my role as managing director for JLR Motorsport,” said Barclay.
“Formula E is our pinnacle of electric racing — it’s our Formula 1 as an electric car company with Jaguar. On the Defender side, the most iconic off-road vehicle in the world, and the most iconic off-road event in the world is Dakar, so to bring those two icons together is honestly a career defining moment.”
With the Defender’s reputation as a market-leading off-road vehicle and the known challenge of the Dakar, Barclay is under no illusions about the challenge that lies ahead.
“It’s an experience making memories as a team, which we’re going to absolutely look forward to, and we really feel the accountability and responsibility to do that really well,” he said. “It’s a test of human and machine, and what a great way to demonstrate the capability of Defender.
“It’s something which has never happened officially as a works team, believe it or not. The first car to ever win that was a Range Rover, and that’s kind of a great lineage. We’ve never been as a full factory team to Dakar, so yes, it’s a very exciting time, and we’re looking forward to getting underway. A lot of work to do — we’ll be there in 2026 but getting into the thick of it now.”
While the specifics of the Dakar program remain undisclosed, Barclay did reveal that Defender would be working with a partner, much like its OEM counterparts Ford and Dacia which are aligned with M-Sport and Prodrive respectively.
“We will be working with a partner, but we’ll share more of that info in January,” he said. “But we’ll definitely look to bring expertise from Dakar, which is really important. We have great capability with our group, but actually sometimes you also need a little bit of that expertise.”