The World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) lands in Europe this week as the BP Ultimate Rally Raid Portugal makes its series debut. Not only will the championship witness a new race, but there’s also some seat-swapping for a clutch of high-profile drivers to look out for. Round 3 of the five-race W2RC gets underway on the Iberian Peninsula on Wednesday, April 3.
When the BP Ultimate Rally Raid Portugal departs from Santiago do Cacém it will test the W2RC convoy on a race course of over 1,000 kilometres spread across five timed special stages, concluding on Sunday, April 7. As well as plenty of fast, dusty sections that characterise the W2RC, there will also be tight and technical driving along narrow paths that cut through olive groves. Four of the five rally stages plus the Prologue take place in Portugal while the penultimate stage is hosted across the border in Spain’s Extremadura region.
It’s Spain’s Carlos Sainz who tops the W2RC’s driver rankings thanks to his fourth Dakar Rally win earlier this year. Sainz scored his latest Dakar win behind the wheel of an Audi RS Q e-tron alongside co-driver Lucas Cruz. However, when the Spaniard races the BP Ultimate Rally Raid Portugal he’ll be in an X-Raid Mini JCW Rally Plus and it’ll be Alex Haro reading his pacenotes. Sainz won the Dakar Rally in 2020 in a MINI so he should adapt to his new ride pretty quickly in Portugal.
Winning last month’s Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge (Round 2) propelled Nasser Al-Attiyah up to second place in the driver rankings as he hunts a third consecutive W2RC title. The gap between the Qatari and his Spanish rival now stands at nine points. Al-Attiyah will once again be driving the Prodrive Hunter he steered to victory in Abu Dhabi with Edouard Boulanger alongside him as co-driver.
The BP Ultimate Rally Raid Portugal represents a great chance for one of the new generation of drivers to step up and claim their first series win. Guillaume de Mevius surprised the bivouac with his runner-up result at the Dakar in January and the Belgian races this week in his Toyota Hilux Overdrive with co-driver Xavier Panseri.
Round 3 of the championship is also being targeted by the Toyota Gazoo Racing pair of the Lucas Moraes and Seth Quintero. Along with co-drivers Armand Monleon and Dennis Zenz, there’s every chance that Moraes and Quintero can reach the final podium in Portugal. 21-year-old Quintero could even make it back-to-back W2RC podiums after taking third place in Abu Dhabi last month.
« My last outing in the GR DKR Hilux EVO was a good one, finishing third in Abu Dhabi. I’ve been getting more comfortable with the car over every passing kilometre and I can’t wait to get back in the cockpit. » – Seth Quintero
It’s a change of gear for Sébastien Loeb this week as he takes charge of a Taurus T3 Max in the Challenger class. The three-time runner-up in the Ultimate class at the Dakar Rally will race his Taurus alongside co-driver Fabian Lurquin during Round 3 of the championship. Loeb is sure to ask Cristina Gutiérrez’s advice on how to get the best out of the car that she drove to victory at this year’s Dakar with co-driver Pablo Moreno.
« This will be my first time in Taurus so when I have questions of course I will ask Cristina for her opinion. This rally is 1,000 kilometres long so I will have to ask questions about how to best manage the car as we go through the five timed special stages. » – Sébastien Loeb
Gutierrez and Loeb will be Dacia team-mates at the next Dakar, but in Portugal the master and apprentice dynamic will be turned on its head when they cross the start line. Loeb has stated that he intends to outpace the entire field, including his rivals in the Ultimate class, when he runs his Taurus T3 Max this week.
Also behind the wheel of a Taurus T3 Max in Portugal is Dania Akeel with co-driver Stephane Duple. The Saudi Arabian driver finished third among W2RC competitors in the Challenger class in Abu Dhabi and she’ll be out to chase down another podium finish at Round 3.
« I’m very happy to be here in Portugal. We had a lovely sunny morning before the rally to test some things. We tested the set-up of the car for the twisty, narrow roads that we’re going to race on this week. » – Dania Akeel
The W2RC Challenger class rankings are currently topped by Rokas Baciuška on 114 points with fellow Can-Am driver Austin ‘AJ’ Jones in second place on 100 points. Baciuška and co-driver Oriol Vidal won last year’s W2RC T4 title while Jones and co-driver Oriol Mena won last time out in Abu Dhabi. As always the Challenger class promises fireworks from start to finish.
In an innovative twist the BP Ultimate Rally Raid Portugal will hold both its Prologue and Stage 1 on the opening day, Wednesday, April 3. The following four days see a further four timed special stages contested as the rally moves through contrasting terrain and striking landscapes. Once 1,000 kilometres of racing has been contested, the chequered flag will fly in the Portuguese town of Grândola.
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W2RC STANDINGS
World Rally-Raid Championship – Top 3 – Ultimate class : 1. C. Sainz – 76 points ; 2. N. Al-Attiyah – 67 pts ; 3. G. Chicherit – 64 pts…
World Rally-Raid Championship – Top 3 – Challenger class : 1. R. Baciuska – 114 points ; 2. A. Jones – 100 pts ; 3. M. Guthrie JR – 85 pts…
QUOTES
Lucas Moraes: « The 2024 W2RC has been pretty wild so far. Finishing ninth in the Dakar Rally wasn’t a bad result for us, but we were a bit disappointed after running so high up the order for the bulk of the race. Then there was the fire after Stage 3 of Abu Dhabi, which was truly devastating for us. But we’re ready for the next round and will be hoping for some better luck, as well as a clean run. »
Seth Quintero: « My last outing in the GR DKR Hilux EVO was a good one, finishing third in Abu Dhabi. I’ve been getting more comfortable with the car over every passing kilometre and I can’t wait to get back in the cockpit. I’m also looking forward to the varied terrain of the upcoming event and will be pushing as hard as conditions allow in order to grab maximum points. »
Sébastien Loeb: « This will be my first time in Taurus so when I have questions of course I will ask Cristina for her opinion. This rally is 1,000 kilometres long so I will have to ask questions about how to best manage the car as we go through the five timed special stages. I want to finish the rally so I need to know where the limit is. »
Cristina Gutiérrez: « It’s fun to see Seb competing in the same category, I think he will be surprised at the level that the Taurus has. In one of the stages at the last Dakar he came to ask me about the Taurus and wanted me to show it to him. For me it is an honour that someone like him asks me and he is interested in my car. »
Dania Akeel: « I’m very happy to be here in Portugal. We had a lovely sunny morning before the rally to test some things. We tested the set-up of the car for the twisty, narrow roads that we’re going to race on this week. The feeling is good and I’m looking forward to enjoying myself this week. »