Martim Ventura will represent the Portuguese team in the second round of the W2RC championship
The bp Ultimate Adventure Team will be present at the 34th edition of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, the second round of the World Rally Raid Championship taking place between February 21 and 27 in the United Arab Emirates, and will be represented by the young driver Martim Ventura, who is starting his goal of qualifying for the 2026 Dakar Rally in this event.
The young Portuguese driver, current National Cross-Country Champion, is ready to take on one of the most demanding races on the world rally-raid championship calendar, which will bring together some of the best drivers and teams in the world. The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge will once again be a challenging competition that promises to test the endurance and skill of the participants by presenting complex routes between the immense dunes of the Rub'Al Khali and sandy terrain.
Martim Ventura, the young promise of Portuguese off-road racing, has shown remarkable growth in the sport and is taking part in this competition with the aim of consolidating his international sports project for the 2025 season.
“This will be my first race in the desert. Although I have little experience of competing on sandy terrain, I feel I'm more trained in both driving and navigation and I think I'll be well prepared. The aim for this race is to finish and get a good feel for desert racing in order to prepare for the future, where the main goal is to qualify for the Dakar 2026. That's why I'm going to try to finish the race and if possible get a good result, but the focus isn't on the standings,” said Martim Ventura.
The second stage of the World Rally Raid Championship, the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is one of the oldest and most prestigious international cross-country races in the world. The competition brings together many of the best international drivers and the 2025 edition will cover a total of 1920 km, 1189 of which will be timed, spread over six days of competition on a route that will feature the dunes of the Rub'Al Khali desert in the United Arab Emirates, the largest sand desert in the world. In terms of sport, the race kicks off on the 22nd with the prologue, followed by five more stages.
Automatic translation of the Portuguese version available on www.todoterreno.pt
Source: bp Ultimate Adventure Team
