Toyota Gazoo Racing continue 2024 W2RC campaign in Portugal and Spain

• Seth Quintero and Dennis Zenz back in action
• Lucas Moraes and Armand Monleon return after round 2 fire
• Toyota Gazoo Racing top W2RC manufacturer standings after round 2

The 2024 World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) moves to Portugal and Spain for round three, the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid, which kicks off with a ceremonial start on Tuesday (2 April). Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) will again be fielding two official entries: Seth Quintero and Lucas Moraes, both driving the GR DKR Hilux. Moraes and co-driver Armand Monleon, will be back in action after losing their car to a fire during stage three of the 2024 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.

The BP Ultimate Rally-Raid is the only event in the five-round 2024 W2RC to take place in Europe and will offer roughly 620 miles (1,000km) of competitive racing over varied terrain, including sandy beaches and rough tracks, traversing parts of both Portugal and Spain. The bivouac for the opening stages will be in the city of Grandola, about 62 miles south of the Portuguese capital, Lisbon. Stage three will see the rally cross into Spain, with the bivouac moving to Badajoz, before returning to Grandola on stage four.

There are five competitive stages, with a prologue to determine the starting order for the opening stage taking place on Wednesday morning (3 April). From there, the crews will venture into the rural Portuguese and Spanish areas, returning to the central bivouac at the end of each day.

For TGR, round three offers another opportunity to score valuable points. As it stands, the Toyota has a commanding lead of 31 points in the Manufacturer Standings, while both Moraes and Quintero, who is partnered with Dennis Zenz as co-driver, will be looking to make up ground on the leaders.

Quintero and Zenz suffered a setback after damaging their car during the 2024 Dakar Rally, the opening round of the 2024 W2RC. This precluded them from scoring meaningful points towards the championship, but they drove a steady and mature race during the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge to bring their GR DKR Hilux EVO home in third place overall. This elevated them to eighth place in the overall W2RC standings, with three rounds to go.

Moraes and Monleon were well-placed throughout the Dakar Rally, running in a solid third until the penultimate stage where they lost significant time due to a damaged suspension. They tumbled down the order to finish ninth overall. They pushed hard at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, running in the top five over the two opening stages. But a fire at the end of stage three destroyed their car.

Both crews are hungry for success in Round 3 of the W2RC, and will be aiming to make the most of the terrain offered in Portugal and Spain. Round four of the season will see the W2RC move to South America for the Desafio Ruta 40 in Argentina, before shifting to Morocco for the final round, the Rally of Morocco, which will take place in October.

Team quotes

Alain Dujardyn, W2RC Team Principal: “I am extremely pleased that we are leading the W2RC manufacturer standings and hope we will be able to build on our advantage during the only European round of the year. This rally is not to be underestimated, and while I know that both our crews are hungry for championship points, we need to respect the terrain as well as our competitors. We will be aiming for a clean run in both cars, and taking as many points from the event as we can.”

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.”

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 in Abu Dhabi, which was devastating for us. But we’re ready for the next round and hoping for better luck, as well as a clean run.”

WORLD RALLY-RAID RESULTS AFTER ADDC – DRIVER’S CHAMPIONSHIP

WORLD RALLY-RAID RESULTS AFTER ADDC – MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP

ENDS