Rally Raid
Desafío Ruta 40 finish provides World Rally-Raid Championship fireworks
Elite rally-raid’s return to Argentina for Desafío Ruta 40 provided pulsating action from start to finish as the penultimate round of the World Rally-Raid Championship played out.
Big names rose and fell in the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) rankings as the dunes between La Rioja and Salta laid their traps. Let’s find out which racers dealt with the unique challenges of Desafío Ruta 40 better than the rest…
Watch the highlights from the racing in the player above.
That winning feeling
Seeing Nasser Al-Attiyah taking victory in the T1 car class of the W2RC is nothing new, but the Qatari didn’t have things all his own way in Argentina. Five punctures on Stage 2 put the reigning Dakar and W2RC champion’s rally in serious doubt. However, the sand racing expert was able to bring his Toyota GR DKR Hilux T1+ to the finish line that day. Then it was back to business for Al-Attiyah and co-driver Mathieu Baumel who won the remaining three stages to claim victory at Desafío Ruta 40 for the first time. Al-Attiyah now leads the championship by 51 points after three wins from four rounds as he plots his next assault on the Dakar Rally.
“It’s always a good feeling to win and now I only need a few more points in Morocco for the championship,” Al-Attiyah said after the rally. “It was great to be racing here in Argentina again and I’m already looking forward to coming back next year to defend the title.”
Riding shotgun brings its rewards
While Al-Attiyah still needs four more points in Morocco next month to confirm his W2RC driver's title, Baumel has already done enough this season to retain his W2RC co-driver's crown.
“The rally is done and we’ve got first place!” Baumel beamed. “We picked up lots of points for the championship and made some more great memories of racing here in Argentina. The landscape was amazing!"
W2RC standings after Round Four – T1 Class
Things go without a hitch for Mitch
It’s now back-to-back wins for Mitch Guthrie Jr. in the T3 class of the W2RC. The Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team USA presented by BFGoodrich driver led in Argentina from start to finish to add Desafío Ruta 40 victory to his win at Mexico’s Sonora Rally in April. Guthrie Jr. and co-driver Kellon Walch had the pace in their MCE5 machine, prepped by Wevers Sports, to get ahead of their rivals on the prologue stage and maintain top spot through to the finish line.
“It was a great rally. We had our ups and downs for sure, but we kept it together all the way.” Guthrie Jr. said at the finish line. “We’re stoked with the overall win, that’s two in a row now. It was my first time racing here so we were learning a lot as we went.”
It's a three-way fight for the T3 title
Guthrie Jr. now finds himself leading the hunt for overall W2RC glory ahead of team-mates Seth Quintero and Austin ‘AJ’ Jones. A broken intercooler on Stage 4 took Quintero and co-driver Dennis Zenz out of the running for the Desafío Ruta 40 podium, but a win on Stage 5 saw useful points added to their W2RC total. Jones and co-driver Gustavo Gugelmin also put points on the board thanks to their third-place finish in the T3 category in Argentina. The points difference between the three American drivers is now just nine points, meaning everything is still all to play for at next month's Rallye du Maroc.
W2RC standings after Round Four – T3 Class
The battle for the podium goes deep in T3
Cristina Gutiérrez and co-driver Pablo Moreno of the Red Bull Can-Am Factory Team clinched overall second spot in T3 class while the duo’s team-mates Chaleco López/Juan Pablo Latrach finished fourth overall.
Mattias Ekström and co-driver Emil Bergkvist added to their T3 experience in Argentina and would have surely finished on the overall podium if not for a mechanical mishap on Stage 3.
Heavy Price to be paid in the dunes
Two-time Dakar winner Toby Price arrived in Argentina leading the bike category of the W2RC, but leaves having slipped down into second place overall. A broken shock absorber on Stage 2 threatened to take Price out of the race completely. It was the Esprit de Cour of team-mate Matthias Walkner that allowed Price to continue as the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing riders carried out repairs on the track. Price was able to carry on and finish the stage, but Walkner’s race was run. Sam Sunderland of Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing was another high profile rider who was unable to complete Desafío Ruta 40.
“It’s been a rough week.” Price said at the end of a long week. “Unfortunately day two was a really big hindrance to us. It’s not a great result and it’s not great for the championship. All in all, we’re happy to get the rally done and get out in one piece.”
The brothers work it out
Despite losing more than an hour on Stage 2, Price battled back and even ended the rally on a high as he set the fastest time on the fifth and final stage. The Australian now trails Husqvarna rider Luciano Benavides in the W2RC rankings by nine points. Luciano claimed a crucial 25 points by being the first W2RC rider to reach Salta and the hometown hero was congratulated on the finish line by his big brother Kevin Benavides.
W2RC standings after Round Four – Bike Class
Where next for the World Rally-Raid Championship?
Next up for the World Rally-Raid Championship convoy is the fifth and final round of the season. The 2023 Rallye du Maroc gets going on Friday, October 13 with a Prologue Stage before the chequered flag flies on Wednesday, October 18. Champions will crowned in Merzouga.
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