Erfoud, Morocco – October 16, 2025 – The fourth and penultimate stage of the Rallye du Maroc proved once again to be a real challenge for competitors, with limited visibility and demanding navigation.
The Repsol Toyota Rally Team, with Isidre Esteve and Txema Villalobos aboard their Toyota Hilux T1+, completed the third loop around Erfoud in 3 hours, 7 minutes, and 13 seconds, finishing 26 minutes and 58 seconds behind the day’s winner.
The route had fewer dunes than previous stages but still pushed crews and machines to their limits.
Starting 39th on the road, behind several Challenger and SSV vehicles, Esteve faced the additional challenge of overtaking slower cars amid heavy dust and cloudy skies, which severely reduced visibility and made it difficult to maintain a consistent pace. At one point, the Spanish duo temporarily lost the track and had to regain several positions.
Despite these difficulties, the Toyota Hilux T1+ ran flawlessly, allowing the team to complete the day without major issues and continue accumulating experience and mileage ahead of the Dakar Rally.
At the end of the stage, Esteve ranked 26th in Ultimate and 31st overall, results that keep him 21st in his class and lift him to 24th in the general classification.
“Today was a difficult day. From the start, there was very little visibility and a lot of dust, which made navigation even harder. In some areas, the terrain was very rough, and I found it hard to get into a rhythm. At one point, we lost the track and a few cars passed us, but we managed to recover later on. It wasn’t an easy stage, but the car performed perfectly. We’re continuing to gain kilometres and experience — that’s the main goal,”
said Isidre Esteve.
The Rallye du Maroc concludes tomorrow with its final stage, which also marks the end of the 2025 FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC).
The fifth stage will cover 347 km in total, including a 216 km timed section, plus the new 31 km Power Selective Sector.
It will be the final competitive outing for the Repsol Toyota Rally Team before the 2026 Dakar Rally.
Source: Repsol Toyota Rally Team
Translation and adaptation Rally-Raid Network
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