34th Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge

February 21st-27th, 2025 

2025 FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC), round 2

THREE TOYOTAS IN THE TOP FOUR AFTER DRAMATIC FINAL DAY OF THE 34th ABU DHABI DESERT CHALLENGE

ABU DHABI (UAE) – Thursday, February 27: Overdrive Racing and Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) cars filled three of the top four places in the final classification after a dramatic final day of the 34th Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, round two of the 2025 FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC).

The fifth stage between the remote desert camp in Mzeer’ah and the finish on Hudayriyat Island in Abu Dhabi saw the loss of two Overdrive Racing crews from the top 10, but Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Lucas Moraes/Armand Monleón and Seth Quintero/Dennis Zenz secured second and third places in the overall standings behind Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah. Those results kept Toyota Gazoo Racing firmly at the top of the standings as the team bids to retain the W2RC Manufacturers’ Championship.

Moraes said: “This was my second time here. It was a nice race for us. We started off really well and it was a great fight with Nasser (Al-Attiyah). It was my first time actually fighting for the win of a World Championship as a whole and not just stage wins. The car was unbelievable, really nice to drive. I hope we can keep this fight going throughout the championship.”

Yazeed Al-Rajhi and his German navigator Timo Gottschalk came into the event as leaders of the W2RC but suffered engine overheating issues after 13km of the final stage. They now hold second positions in the Drivers’ and Co-drivers’ Championships.

Young Eryk Goczal had earned a sensational maiden stage win the previous day on his first event with Overdrive Racing in the Energylandia Rally Team car but he and navigator Oriol Mena suffered a fire in their Toyota after 37km and lost out on a potential fourth overall. They were able to bring the fire-damaged Hilux to the finish in 27th place.

“We finished the rally and we finished the stage,” said Goczal. “We had a really good pace. Unfortunately, when we won the stage a day ago, we damaged the shock absorbers. We switched the shockers from my father’s car but I think he also had damaged ones. So, at km37 today, the left shock exploded and the whole back of the car caught fire because the oil went on the exhaust. Thankfully, we managed to stop the fire with extinguishers and sand. Lucas (Moraes) also stopped to lend a hand. I am really happy and we gained more and more experience in the car.”

The demise of the two Overdrive Racing crews was beneficial to their team-mates, Juan Cruz Yacopini and Dani Oliveras. The Argentine had been the model of consistency throughout the five days and climbed to fourth overall in the final standings.

The South African duo of Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings had been replaced at the 11th hour by Guy Botterill and Dennis Murphy in one of the TGR entries. Botterill brought his car to the finish in sixth overall.

Overdrive Racing ran a Toyota Hilux for Denis Krotov and Konstantin Zhiltsov and provide full logistical and service support to Saood Variawa and François Cazalet in their TGR entry.  They finished in 33rd and 31st overall.

The Belgium-based team also fielded a Toyota Hilux for the Chilean privateer Hernan Garces and his navigator Juan Pablo Latrach. They were classified in 15th place.

Marek Goczal teamed up with Maciej Marton in the second of the Energylandia Rally Team cars but incurred a maximum time penalty on the first stage. The Pole then suffered a back compression injury over a cut dune shortly after the start of the third stage and was forced to retire on medical grounds. He was taken by helicopter to hospital and was then transferred to Poland for surgery, although the prognosis is good and he hopes to be rallying again soon.

Lithuania’s Rokas Baciuška was a non-starter with Spaniard Pablo Moreno.

Organised by the Emirates Motorsports Organisation (EMSO, the opening Prologue of 11.19km took place at the Jebel Hafit Desert Park before the ceremonial start in nearby Al-Ain. As per the W2RC regulations, it did not count towards the general classification but was used to determine the starting order for the opening 243km desert stage between Al-Ain and the bivouac camp at Mzeer’ah to the southwest.

Moraes topped the Toyota times in second place, with Variawa, Eryk Goczal, Botterill, Al-Rajhi and Quintero finishing fourth, fifth, eighth, ninth and 10th. The Brazilian then went one better on the first stage and clocked the quickest time to lead the event by 1min 01sec from Sébastien Loeb. Quintero came home in fourth with Variawa and Eryk Goczal in fifth and 10th, the latter taking a tyre off the rim in the stage. Yacopini and Al-Rajhi were 13th and 14th. Marek Goczal was not able to finish the stage.

“I was happy to deliver the stage win for the team,” said Moraes. “The guys have been working so hard ever since we finished Dakar and I’m glad we managed to pick up where he left off, winning the last stage there and the first stage here. The times are going to be very close, so no strategy, just full attack to the end.”

Stage two looped through the dunes around Mzeer’ah for 227.71km. Loeb won from Al-Attiyah and Moraes and the Brazilian slipped 41 seconds behind the Frenchman in the general classification. Quintero retained fourth place, Eryk Goczal climbed to sixth and Yacopini, Al-Rajhi and Botterill moved into eighth, ninth and 10th. Variawa suffered gearbox issues after 138km.

Yacopini said: “The stage was nice and very demanding, like yesterday. We started in 13th and were able to pass Guy (Botterill) and (Mattias) Ekström. We had one tyre off the rim and lost around three minutes. The navigation is not too difficult. We just have to follow the lines.”

Days three and four constituted a new Marathon stage between Mzeer’ah and the Al-Qoua Marathon camp. Al-Attiyah won the opening weather-interrupted section of 237.31km by just under four minutes from Quintero to seize the overall lead.

Moraes was third and Eryl Goczal, Al-Rajhi and Yacopini came home in sixth, seventh and 11th. In the general classification, Moraes and Quintero held third and fourth and Goczal, Al-Rajhi, Yacopini and Botterill were sixth, eighth, ninth and 10th. Marek Goczal crashed out of contention.

Eryk Goczal then became one of the youngest ever winners of the stage in Abu Dhabi when he beat Moraes by 2min 29sec to claim the fastest time on stage four. That success lifted the Pole into fourth in the general classification behind Al-Attiyah, Moraes and Quintero. Al-Rajhi, Yacopini and Botterill climbed to sixth, seventh and ninth.

Goczal said: “After my dad’s accident, he had to return to Poland with my mom. We decided that we should stay here and continue fighting. This win is for my dad. He taught me everything I know and can do today.”

A mere 41 seconds separated Moraes from Al-Attiyah before the final stage between Mzeer’ah and the finish on Hudayriyat Island in Abu Dhabi. The Qatari held on to claim the laurels with the stage win and Moraes and Quintero sealed second and third overall. But there was disappointment for both Al-Rajhi and Goczal with their technical issues.

Round three of the FIA World Rally-Raid Championship takes teams to South Africa for the first time for the new South African Safari Rally on May 18th-24th.

2025 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge – provisional results:

  1. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Edouard Boulanger (FRA) Dacia Sandrider 14hr 26min 55sec
  2. Lucas Moraes (BRA)/Armand Monleón (ESP) Toyota GR DKR Hilux 14hr 29min 23sec
  3. Seth Quintero (USA)/Dennis Zenz (GER) Toyota GR DKR Hilux 14hr 38min 51sec
  4. Juan Cruz Yacopini (ARG)/Daniel Oliveras (ESP) Toyota Hilux Overdrive 14hr 56min 48sec
  5. Mitch Guthrie (USA)/Kellon Walch (USA) Ford Raptor 14hr 57min 57sec
  6. Guy Botterill (RSA)/Dennis Murphy (RSA) Toyota Hilux IMT Evo 15hr 05min 47sec*
  7. João Ferreira (POR)/Filipe Palmeiro (POR) Mini JCW Rally 3.0D 15hr 13min 35sec
  8. Dania Akeel (KSA)/Stéphane Duplé (FRA) Taurus T3 Max 15hr 44min 25sec
  9. Pau Navarro (ESP)/Jan Rosa Vinas (ESP) Taurus T3 Max 15hr 47min 53sec
  10. Marcus Baumgart (BRA)/Kleber Cincea (BRA) Taurus T3 Max 15hr 56min 06sec*

*denotes not registered for the W2RC

Ends

For further information:

Jean-Marc Fortin (E-mail: jmf@overdriveracing.be), Overdrive S.A., rue de L’Enterprise 1, 4530 Villers-le-Bouillet, Belgium, Tel: + 32 475 762 391. www.overdriveracing.be, Facebook: Overdrive Racing, Twitter: @OverdriveToyota

 

 

 

Published On: 27 February 2025