Baja Portalegre 2019: Baja season Grand Final countdown underway in the Portugal

On the dusty and twisty roads of Portugal's Alentejo Region, the organizers of Baja Portalegre have already done a big part of the preparations for the 2019 edition of Portugal’s most emblematic race.  This year's event is scheduled for 24 to 26 October and will follow a program similar to last year's edition.  On Thursday, 24 October, all the participants will have to complete the usual pre-race formalities – the technical and administrative checks.  On the same day, but in the evening, it's time to present them to the fans in the Ceremonial Start that will take place in the downtown of Portalegre.

The most fun part of Baja Portalegre – the race itself – will  start on Friday, 25 October in the morning with the famous Prologue, that have undergone some minor changes for this edition. After the Prologue, all participants will have to drive to Ponte de Sor, located west of Portalegre before racing the 99 km SS2, that will bring them back to the host city.

On Saturday, 26 October, there will be 2 different races:  One for the car category, and another for all the others - SxS, Bikes and Quads. The cars will race two long specials: SS3 with almost 192 km and SS4 with near 212 km.  In total, they will have to cover 766 km, from which 598 km will be against the clock.

The "other race" will have only one very long stage, with several assistance points along the way for repairs and refuelling.  This stage is expected to have a total distance close to 400 km but the exact length is not yet known for the moment.

Baja Portalegre will once again be the last race of the season, acting as the Grand Finale of FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas, and for all the Portuguese championships, including cars, bikes, quads and SxS. It's quite normal for Baja Portalegre to attract the biggest number of entries in the whole season, both national and international, with nearly 100 cars at the start and more than 150 motorbikes in the different categories.  In the Quad category, the entry list has gradually shrunk in the recent years, but still presents around 50 participants. On the other hand, among the SxS (SSV) the trend is exactly the opposite and once again more than 100 starters are expected. The SxS (SSV) category is a huge success in Portugal, a very competitive championship with dozens of extremely fast participants.  Also, Portugal is the birthplace of many racing SxS that are now a common sight in races all over the world.

As usual, Rally-Raid Network is following the developments about the Portuguese race closely and will publish more news as soon as they are available. But we don’t stop at just news: we’ll be there at the track during the rally and happy to provide help for all those who are looking for solutions for their first time in the legendary Baja Portalegre – or planning to return to the Alentejo tracks.

The Auto regulations are already available at the official website:  www.bajaportalegre.com  or pressing this link: Baja Portalegre AUTO regulations 2019