Alexandre Pinto and Bernardo Oliveira have entered a new phase in their motorsport journey. After numerous achievements driving a Can-Am, the Old Friends Rally Team has made a new bet on the Portuguese duo, who currently lead the SSV category in the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC), by placing them at the helm of a Polaris. The powerful and highly reliable Polaris RZR Pro was the chosen machine for the current championship leaders to face the final two rounds of this season's W2RC, with the next event set to take place in Portugal.
“We’re announcing a new direction for the team. We’ll be driving a Polaris in the remaining races of the World Championship. This decision was made in order to have a higher-performing and more robust car, one that has already proven its potential. It was time for a change. The Can-Am X3 is a very reliable and solid car, but it could no longer match the level of the new-generation vehicles from Can-Am or Polaris. In our case, we chose Polaris, and I truly believe it was the right choice. Now it's time to get to work. We need to put in the mileage, we need to understand how the car behaves, and build the confidence I already had with the Can-Am. I hope this move leads to even more victories. Thanks to the Old Friends Rally Team for the outstanding job they’ve done,” said Alexandre Pinto.
This change comes as part of a partnership with Santag Racing, which will take on the responsibility of importing the FIA-homologated Polaris CAP model to Portugal. Santag Racing now joins this young duo, who have been standing out thanks to their strong competitive potential. The vehicle was unveiled earlier this June in Barcelona, during the presentation of the flagship event of cross-country rallying, the Dakar Rally 2026. Its competition debut is scheduled for the Baja Aragón, one of the most important events on the international rally calendar, to be held in Spain from July 25 to 27.
Participation in the Spanish round will serve as a test for the new machine ahead of the final two rounds of the World Championship: the first on home soil, BP Ultimate Rally Raid Portugal, taking place in September, and the final round in Morocco, the Rally du Maroc, scheduled for mid-October, which will conclude the season.
Automatic translation of the Portuguese version which is available on our other website www.todoterreno.pt
Source: Alexandre Pinto / Old Friends Rally Team
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