Stage 1 Victory for TGR as home heroes triumph in South Africa

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing (TGR) has taken an early lead in the 2025 Safari Rally, Round 3 of the FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC), with South African duo Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings (#205) topping the standings after Stage 1. The pair, competing on home soil, set a fastest time of 2h 26m 08s, establishing a 2min 38sec lead over their nearest rivals, after going 3rd-fastest in the short Prologue.

The opening stage of the Safari Rally followed the Prologue held on 19 May around the famed Sun City resort, where the W2RC made its long-awaited debut in Southern Africa. Crews tackled a stage of 260 km, with a further 295 km of liaisons, as they raced westward from Sun City, located in South Africa’s North West Province, before returning to the bivouac at the resort. The terrain offered a true taste of African rally-raid: dry and dusty tracks with stretches of slippery mud, narrow bushveld paths, and countless sharp corners. Navigation proved particularly challenging near the front of the field, especially for crews opening the road.

Following their strong Prologue performance, Lategan and Cummings started Stage 1 from an advantageous road position and capitalised fully. Navigating the tricky conditions with precision, they kept their GR Hilux EVO in the sweet spot all day, avoiding errors and delivering a clean, fast run to seize the overall lead of the rally.

Behind them, teammates Lucas Moraes and his Spanish co-driver Armand Monleon (#203) faced a challenging day. After a measured performance in the Prologue, where they finished in 9th place, the duo were caught out in the fast-changing surface conditions on Stage 1. The slippery spots made it hard for the crew to judge their braking points accurately, resulting in multiple overshoots. Despite the setbacks, they reached the end of the stage without incident, trailing Lategan/Cummings home by 4min 57sec.

Seth Quintero and his co-driver, Dennis Zenz (#204) endured a more complicated outing. After a solid showing in the Prologue (13th), the American-German pairing hit trouble in Stage 1 after two mid-stage mistakes. They lost time during the opening kilometres but pushed on to complete the stage and remain in the hunt overall, 5min 44sec adrift of the lead.

All three crews reported flawless performances from their GR Hilux EVOs, which handled the South African conditions with aplomb. Developed in South Africa and refined for the world stage, the car’s proven durability and all-terrain capability played a key role in helping the crews navigate the variety of conditions encountered on Stage 1.

Looking ahead to Stage 2, competitors will leave from Sun City again take on the first part of the Marathon Stage. This stern test will see the crews race to a remote bivouac near the rural town of Stella, where they will have to repair and prepare their cars without the aid of the usual technical crews. The stage itself is 357 km in distance, and may well prove pivotal in the outcome of the race, as the crews will have to brave the 246 km of Stage 3 before they are reunited with their technical crews at Sun City.

With the Safari Rally now fully underway, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing leads both the event and the W2RC Manufacturer’s Championship. The team will be looking to build on its momentum as the rally continues to unfold across the rugged landscapes of South Africa.

QUOTES:

Henk Lategan: 

"We had a really nice start to the race - a good first stage. Honestly, we weren't trying to win the stage because I don't think it's the best thing to open the road tomorrow. But it is what it is and in this type of racing you don't really know what your pace is until you get to the finish line. It's definitely not a really big margin and nothing comfortable. The trick today was to stay in the car and keep it clean. That will definitely be the goal for tomorrow and the rest of the race."

Lucas Moraes: 

"Well, it's tougher than I thought to be honest. Very slippery in some areas, it was hard to judge where to brake. Of course it was like that for everybody, but I think I was just wanting too much and I was overshooting."

Seth Quintero: 

"Two mistakes on our end that shouldn't have happened. Cost us about four minutes, which is a bummer. But honestly, overall, where we finished isn't too bad. Three, four minutes down in the overall, and then we're in 10th position for tomorrow, which is a great starting position. I think we'll be able to make up some of that time tomorrow. The car was great, and the team's doing an amazing job."

South Africa Safari Rally 2025 – Prologue Results

South Africa Safari Rally 2025 – Stage 1 Results

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