- Seth Quintero and Dennis Zenz finish in 3rd place overall
- 13th on Stage 5 for Seth and Dennis after missed waypoint
- Two Toyota Hilux in Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge Top 3
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing recorded a third-place finish overall at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, which served as Round 2 of this year’s World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC). Seth Quintero and Dennis Zenz initially completed the 206 km long final stage in a time of 2hr 26min 02sec, just 3min 25 behind the stage winners, but a missed waypoint resulted in a 15min penalty. While this dropped them down to 13th place on the stage, they lost only one position in the overall standings, finishing in third place, 27min 46sec adrift of the leaders.
The GR DKR Hilux EVO T1U crew started the day as the fourth car into the stage, having opened the route on two previous occasions. This gave them a solid attacking position, but they elected to drive at a measured pace to seal their podium position, rather than risk everything in a futile chase for victory. As a result, they had a clean run, bringing their car home without any problems, and scoring valuable points in the W2RC in the process.
At the same time, privateer Yazeed Al Rajhi and co-driver, Timo Gottschalk, recorded the third-fastest time on the stage, giving Toyota two spots on the overall podium – a power performance, which once again underscores the speed and reliability of the GR DKR Hilux EVO T1U.
In terms of the W2RC, Seth has catapulted into 8th overall, after a tough start to his campaign at the Dakar Rally (Round 1 of the championship), which left him in 19th place overall. He is just ten points behind teammate Lucas Moraes, who was forced to withdraw from the 2024 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge after his car caught fire at the end of Stage 3. In terms of the Manufacturer’s Championship, TGR has moved to the top of the standings on 108 points, 31 points clear of the second-placed team.
Next up is the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid, which is set to be contested in Portugal and Spain on April 2-7. This will be Round 3 of the 2024 W2RC, and will be the only race in Europe for the year. With more than 1,000 km of timed stages, and much varied terrain, Round 3 of the season promises to be another tough one. Round 4, the Desafio Ruta 40, will take place in Argentina at the start of June; with the season-ending Rally of Morocco following in October.
2024 ABU DHABI DESERT CHALLENGE – STAGE 5
| 1. | #206 | N. Al-Attiyah / E. Boulanger | (Nasser Racing by Prodrive) | 02H 22min 37sec |
| 2. | #204 | M. Prokop / V. Chytka | (Orlen Jipocar Team) | +03:17 |
| 3. | #209 | Y. Al Rajhi / T. Gottschalk | (Overdrive Racing) | +04:18 |
| 4. | #205 | D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov | (Overdrive Racing) | +06:33 |
| 5. | #212 | M. Baumgart / K. Cincea | (X Rally Team Motorsports) | +07:33 |
| 6. | #306 | C. Gutierrez Herrero / P. Moreno Huete | (BBR) | +12:35 |
| 7. | #303 | N. Cavigliasso / V. Pertegarini | (Taurus Factory Wevers) | +14:05 |
| 8. | #301 | R. Baciuska / O. Vidal | (CAN-AM Factory Team) | +15:31 |
| 9. | #411 | M. Al Helei / K. Alkendi | (RX-Sport) | +16:48 |
| 10 | #213 | P. Navarro / A. Schulz | (X-Raid MINI JCW Team) | +16:48 |
| 13. | #211 | S. Quintero / D. Zenz | (Toyota GAZOO Racing) | +18:25 |
2024 ABU DHABI DESERT CHALLENGE – STANDINGS AFTER STAGE 5
| 1. | #206 | N. Al-Attiyah / E. Boulanger | (Nasser Racing by Prodrive) | 16H 20min 09sec |
| 2. | #209 | Y. Al Rajhi / T. Gottschalk | (Overdrive Racing) | +16:25 |
| 3. | #211 | S. Quintero / D. Zenz | (Toyota GAZOO Racing) | +27:46 |
| 4. | #304 | A. Jones / O. Mena | (CAN-AM Factory Team) | +50:41 |
| 5. | #301 | R. Baciuska / O. Vidal | (CAN-AM Factory Team) | +55:19 |
| 6. | #211 | M. Baumgart / K. Cincea | (X Rally Team Motorsports) | +01:12:30 |
| 7. | #411 | M. Al Helei / K. Alkendi | (RX-Sport) | +01:22:28 |
| 8. | #400 | Y. Seaidan / M. Metge | (MMP) | +01:25:10 |
| 9. | #213 | P. Navarro / A. Schulz | (X-Raid Mini JCW Team) | +01:27:02 |
| 10. | #208 | S. Variawa / F. Cazalet | (Toyota GAZOO Racing) | +01:29:49 |
WORLD RALLY-RAID RESULTS AFTER ADDC – DRIVER’S CHAMPIONSHIP
| 1. | C. Sainz | Team Audi Sport | 76 |
| 2. | N. Al-Attiyah | Nasser Racing by Pro Drive | 67 |
| 3. | G. Chicherit | Overdrive Racing | 64 |
| 4. | G. de Mevius | Overdrive Racing | 62 |
| 5. | Y. Al Rajhi | Overdrive Racing | 45 |
| 6. | L. Moraes | Toyota GAZOO Racing | 45 |
| 7. | M. Prokop | Orlen Jipocar Team | 36 |
| 8. | S. Quintero | Toyota GAZOO Racing | 35 |
| 9. | M. Serradori | Century Racing Factory Team | 32 |
| 10. | A. Jones | CAN-AM Factory Team | 26 |
WORLD RALLY-RAID RESULTS AFTER ADDC – MANIFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP
| 1. | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 108 |
| 2. | Nasser Racing by Prodrive | 77 |
| 3. | Team Audi Sport | 76 |
| 4. | X-Raid MINI JCW Team | 35 |
