TOYOTA GAZOO Racing W2RC takes the lead on Stage 3 in Portugal

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing W2RC (TGR W2RC) took the overall lead of BP Ultimate Rally Raid Portugal after a strong team performance on Stage 3 of the penultimate round of the 2025 FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC).

A strong showing on Stage 3 — with second, third and fourth place finishes — earned valuable World Championship points and moved two GR Hilux EVOs in front in the overall standings with two days and 378 km of competition remaining.

Stage 3 featured a challenging 308 km of competition through the countryside east of Badajoz and saw an epic battle for victory between TGR W2RC’s three GR Hilux EVOs. After a fast opening 130 km, a slower section passed between olive trees and included narrow gates and bridges. The stage was briefly paused to deal with a fire, before the crews headed back to Badajoz via a very twisty final two kilometres to end the timed section.

Lucas Moraes and navigator Armand Monleón were third overall going into Friday’s stage and they produced another display of pace and consistency. Their #203 GR Hilux EVO was in the fight for stage victory throughout and finished third. However, the time gained on Stage 3 was enough to move them into the overall lead.

Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings started the day in fifth in their #202 GR Hilux EVO and were the early leaders on the stage but faced challenging conditions driving in the dust of fellow competitors. They missed victory by just 33 seconds but are well placed in the overall rankings, only 57 seconds off the lead in second.

Completing a commanding team performance, Seth Quintero and Andrew Short finished Stage 3 in fourth in their #204 GR Hilux EVO. Although still out of podium contention due to a brake disc issue on Stage 1, their rapid performances since have recovered some ground and they are 20th overall in the Ultimate class.

TGR W2RC will defend its position at the front when Saturday’s action takes the crews back across the border into Portugal. Stage 4 features a 274 km timed section on the way to a service park on the outskirts of Lisbon, base for the remainder of the event and the podium ceremony on Sunday.

Quotes:

Henk Lategan:

“It was another really tricky stage, like all of them here, but we had a decent day. Today was faster; high speed and high risk. The road got narrow very quickly with rocks and trees on the side. At high speed, it is easy to take off a wheel. We had one small moment when we caught a rock but we got away with it then later we had a slow puncture. A lot of the day we were driving in the dust of cars ahead and it’s really difficult to close in and pass because the roads were so narrow, with crests and corners that you can’t see through the dust. Eventually we got past and could carry on at our pace. Overall, I am quite happy because we are back in contention and hopefully we can maintain that tomorrow.”

Lucas Moraes:

“We are really happy to be leading the race. It was another hard stage, and it would have been very easy to throw everything away. I decided to keep a nice pace, not doing anything risky and to drive smart. Thanks to the whole TOYOTA GAZOO Racing W2RC team for another great day. Third on the stage and leading the race, with Henk in second, is great for the team. Let’s keep fighting now.”

Seth Quintero:

“It was an amazing day for us and TOYOTA GAZOO Racing W2RC. We had a great team strategy which we executed perfectly. It was a bit tough being second on the road, which meant we had to clean the road for the guys behind us. But we still put down some amazing times. Everything is working really with Andrew and the whole TGR W2RC team, so I’m proud of everybody’s performance. Our pace just keeps getting better and better so I have a lot of confidence right now. I feel ready for the next couple of days.”

BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal 2025 – Stage 3 Results*

BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal 2025 – Standings after Stage 3*

*results correct at the time of publication

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