Round three of the 2024 Defender Rally Series European Baja Championship took place in Spain from 24-25 May at Baja Lorca.

Five Defender crews took on the event which – with its dry and dusty conditions, high temperatures and long stages – provided a stark contrast to the previous rounds of the championship at Rallye Terres du Gâtinais, France, and Walters Arena, UK.

Victory went to Fraser Parish and co-driver Philipp ‘Barney’ Gillespie, who were deputising for Dan Beecroft and co-driver Lee Caroline, the joint championship leaders coming to the event. Second place went to Tom Bell – the other joint championship leader – with a new co-driver for the event in Patrick McMurren. The Finnish duo of Jorman Jokela and Janne Jokela completed the podium.

Winning driver, Fraser Parish, said: “Baja Lorca was a fantastic event. It's the first time I’ve driven competitively in a couple of years and the first time Barney and I have competed together. The main aim was to just enjoy the experience, so for us to come away with the class win is just fantastic. Huge thanks must go to Dave Beecroft for giving us the opportunity to use his Defender for the event.”

The 11^th “Baja Lorca” event featured nearly 70 competition vehicles, including the five Defender Rally Series Defender 90s. It posed the hardest challenge competitors have faced in the Championship so far, with two stages covering just under 400km to be completed in only one day. Following a ceremonial start on Friday evening, a short prologue decided starting positions, with the following day’s rallying demanding a steady pace across challenging terrain.

With multiple Dakar rallies on his CV, Tom Bell showed his experience by topping the timesheets on the Friday Prologue. Only time penalties prevented him from claiming victory on race day, but his second-place finish in Spain ensures he heads into the final round of the championship, at the Icelandic Hill Rally in August, in the outright lead of the championship.

Vanessa Ruck used her rally raid experience on two wheels to finish in fourth place, with co-driver Chris Hammond, while Andrew Burgess and co-driver Daniel Hutchings finished fifth.

In the face of temperatures exceeding 28 degrees Celsius, each Defender was installed with camel bags for the event. Feeding directly into the helmets, they allowed crews to rehydrate on the move. Teams could even use Defender’s production climate control system to cool the cabin, which remains operative amid the host of Bowler modifications.

Calum McKechnie, General Manager, Bowler Motors, said: “Baja Lorca has demonstrated the exceptional capabilities of the Defender. The excitement and enjoyment experienced by all participants highlight the vehicle’s dynamic performance, durability and reliability in challenging conditions. This is why we love to come back and add another challenge of endurance in one day to our driver development plans.   

We extend our gratitude to our outstanding teams, whose expertise and dedication made this event a truly memorable experience for our customers. To see our support team awarded the Spirit of the Rally trophy highlights the professionalism of our works outfit and seeing all five of the Defenders entered come home safely at such an arduous event is testament to our technicians’ skill and expertise.

We are now opening space in our 2025 season and look forward to showing more customers what an amazing match the Defender rally series and Baja Lorca can be.”

For its next round, the European Baja Championship travels to Iceland, from 8 to 12 August. Round three of the UK Championship, at the Summer Scottish Hill Rally, gets underway from 31 May to 1 June.

Bowler is now offering limited spots in its UK and Ireland Year One program for 2025. Interested clients can purchase a rally-prepared new Defender and embark on a thrilling selection of rallying events, all designed to systematically build the rally skills of individual crews. The series caters for novice rally drivers and those who already possess relevant experience and licences.

For pricing and information and to register for the 2025 season, visit bowlermotors.com.

Defender Rally Series – European Baja Championship Round 3 Results

Defender Rally Series – Provisional* European Baja Championship Standings

*Championship standings are provisional. One point is awarded for event entry, plus 60 points for 1^st, 54 points for 2^nd, 48 points for 3^rd, 46 points for 4^th, minus two points per position thereafter. The lowest scoring round for each competitor will be dropped for the final Championship results, the ‘drop round’.