TOYOTA GAZOO Racing W2RC (TGR W2RC) is battling at the front of the third round of the 2026 FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) with two DKR GR Hilux in the top six after a hard-fought opening day on the Desafío Ruta 40 in Argentina.
Stage 1 took place north of San Juan on Monday. It included 340 km of timed action on dried riverbeds, salt flats and gravel plains through the spectacular Andes mountains. As well as the rugged off-road conditions, crews also had to contend with altitudes of up to 988 metres.
Seth Quintero and navigator Andrew Short – runners-up on the last event in Portugal in March – are third in the drivers’ and navigators’ World Championships. Despite the handicap of being among the first cars on the stage, their #203 DKR GR Hilux was fastest early on Stage 1. They kept up a strong pace and ended the day part of an intense fight for the overall podium. They finished fourth, 1 min 37 secs behind the leaders, Eryk Goczal and Szymon Gospadarczyk, in a Toyota Hilux from Energylandia Rally Team.
A strong performance in the second half of the stage saw Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings move into the top six in their #202 DKR GR Hilux. An early puncture had dropped them out of the top 10, but they soon showed their speed, despite running in the dust of competitors ahead, and finished sixth, 3 mins 22 secs behind.
Akira Miura, in just his second rally with TGR W2RC, showed consistency alongside navigator Armand Monleón in the #204 DKR GR Hilux. Despite a puncture and damaged windscreen, they gained positions during the stage and reached the end of Stage 1 in 17th in the Ultimate class, less than five minutes away from the top 10.
Tuesday sees the second of five stages on the Desafío Ruta 40, taking crews on a route south from San Juan. In addition to a 128 km special stage, it includes 506 km of driving on public roads to reach the city of San Rafael.
Quotes:
Henk Lategan: “This was my first experience of rally-raid in Argentina, and it was really nice. The roads here are awesome. I didn’t get off to the best start with the puncture early on, but we got going from there. We were a bit cautious in the beginning, but started picking up the pace. Unfortunately, we caught up the guys in front, and we sat in their dust for quite a long time. You can almost see the car in front, but you can’t get close enough to overtake.”
Seth Quintero: “It was a good day for me and TGR W2RC. It was very difficult to start up front in a field with this much talent, and to finish fourth was not easy. I am proud of Andrew and the team for what we accomplished today. The DKR GR Hilux was absolutely amazing, with zero issues and no flat tyres. The car allowed me to drive how I wanted to, so I am thankful for the team’s hard work. Andrew and I are working hard to fight for this championship; today was good and we’ll keep pushing for the rest of the rally.”
Akira Miura: “The TGR W2RC team worked hard to prepare for this rally and they gave us a strong car. I started the stage feeling like we were in good shape, but there were some tricky moments for us today. We lost some time with a flat tyre, and I also lost the windscreen which made it harder. But we’ll push hard to have a better day on Stage 2.”
Desafío Ruta 40 – Provisional Stage 1 result*
| 1st | #205 | E. Goczal / S. Gospodarczyk (Energylandia Rally Team) | 3 hours 33 minutes 59 seconds |
| 2nd | #228 | M. Guthrie / K. Walch (Ford Racing) | +0:50 |
| 3rd | #225 | C. Sainz / D. Oliveras (Ford Racing) | +0:56 |
| 4th | #203 | S. Quintero / A. Short (TGR W2RC) | +1:37 |
| 5th | #240 | J. Ferreira / F. Palmeiro (TGR South Africa) | +1:49 |
| 6th | #202 | H. Lategan / B. Cummings (TGR W2RC) | +3:11 |
| 17th | #204 | A. Miura / A. Monleón (TGR W2RC) | +15:19 |
*Ultimate class, correct at time of publication
