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AXCR 2024: TGR Thailand's Mana comes out on top in the four-wheel race!
Trouble for several teams at the beginning of the race.
For a while after the start, the terrain changed elevation, climbing up and down small hills and the track surface was dry, hard and uneven, The narrow track width made it difficult to go fast. Yuichi Iijima, who is competing in a 300 series Land Cruiser, commented that there were places where he had to scrape both sides of the car to get through.
Here, several cars, including the Toyota Fortuner of Tubagus Adhi MOERINSYAHDI (Indonesia) and Jatuporn BURAKITPACHA (Thailand) in the #102 TOYOTA GAZOO RACING INDONESIA, which finished 2nd overall last year, had car problems resulting in lost time.
The Suzuki Jimny of #136 Roslyn SHEN (Taiwan) and Nada SIMARAKS (Thailand) got stuck in the mud just after they took a wrong turn. When they tried to use the winch, they could not find the remote control cable and had to use a wire to short-circuit the remote control terminal to escape. They also lost drive to the front wheels from this point on.
The Suzuki Escudo of #125 Team BANDIT Thailand's Bandit PANTHITA (Thailand) and Phairote PONGSAPAN (Thailand) went off course and fell into a lake. They went in so deep that not only the floor but also the cargo area was flooded with water. They were able to escape with a winch and after finishing the stage, the driver said: 'Everything is OK! No trouble!" He was quite cheerful and he is fully enjoying his extreme adventure.
Mana Moves to the Top of the Class, Aims for Longed-For First Win!
In the 4-wheel category, TOYOTA GAZOO RACING THAILAND's #105 Mana PORNSIRICHERD (Thailand) and Kittisak KLINCHAN (Thailand) in the Toyota Hilux Revo came out on top. The pair of Mana PORNSIRICHERD and Kittisak KLINCHAN (Thailand) took the top position with a speed of 1 hour and 26 minutes, despite being troubled by the challenging course that was difficult to navigate.
In second place was the Isuzu SUPHAN EXPLORER LIQUI MOLY RALLY TEAM's #106 Thongchai KLINKATE (Thailand) and Banpoth AMPORNMAHA (Thailand) in the Isuzu D-MAX. The D-MAX, which is smaller and lighter than the Hilux, moved like a fish in water on the narrow course, finishing 2 minutes behind the leader.
In third place was the Mitsubishi Triton of Team MITSUBISHI RALLIART #103 Chayapon YOTHA (Thailand) and Peerapong SOMBUTWONG (Thailand), the champion from 2022.
Chayapon was one of the Mitsubishi RALLIART teams that were in serious mode this year to win the championship and was cheerful and relaxed at the ceremonial start. He showed solid results at the critical moment and was only 3 minutes behind the leader.
Team MITSUBISHI RALLIART's Triton was also in 5th place, with the #130 Sakchai HANTRAKUL (Thailand)/Jumpon DOUNGTHIP (Thailand) team 6 minutes behind the leader.
In 4th place was the #115 team of Ikuo HANAWA (JPN) and Hirokazu SOMIYA (JPN), who were among the TOYOTA GAZOO RACING INDONESIA team that finished 1st and 2nd overall in 2023. They had to retire due to vehicle problems, which was a frustrating experience for them. I got lost a little too much where everyone else was making mistakes, but the car is in great shape, and it's still going strong!
The first day was a rather difficult course, and it was more of a "navigation course." At the end of the day, the top four AUTO cars were the Toyota Hilux, Isuzu D-MAX, Mitsubishi Triton, and Toyota Fortuner. The results were consistent with the teams and vehicles that were expected to be likely to win the race. The four-wheelers did not seem to have as much chaos and confusion on the stage as the two-wheelers.
Tomorrow, the teams will leave their hotels earlier than usual and head to Cha-am, a city in central Thailand. The distance to be covered is 553 km, the longest of this year's event. Although the 121-km race section has been shortened due to the cancellation of the second half of the race after the PC stop.
Regardless, the day will include long travel distances and the slightest issues could be disastrous. It is going to be a very tough day not only for the competitors but also for the service staff. Please look forward to the next report!
Source: AXCR
Photo: Manabu Takahashi, Text: Dai Kawamura
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