- 425 teams from 22 nationalities will be competing in the 35 years of Baja Portalegre 500, one of the most emblematic off-road races in Europe and the only one of the FIA Bajas and FIM Bajas World Cup in Portugal.
Among Cars, Motorcycles, Quads, SSV, Promotion / Hobby and Mini Baja, the 36th edition of Baja Portalegre 500 has 425 participants, with the Automobile Club of Portugal being forced to limit the entries to ensure safety conditions. For the starting ceremony, on Thursday night, in the center of Portalegre, 100 competitors from cars, 115 from motorcycles, 90 of which SSV, 41 quads, 55 from Promotion / Hobby and 24 from Mini Baja will pass through.
In a year of historical drought, the rains of the last few days may bring back some mud to the 473.50 kilometers of track for the cars (a total of 668.27 kilometers) and 425 kilometers for the motorcycles, SSVs and quads (a total of 587.71 kilometers). The competition begins with the Prologue at Herdade das Coutadas, on Friday morning, before a selective sector with 70 timed kilometers. On Saturday, the cars have two more selective sectors (200 kilometers each), while the motorcycles, SSVs and quads cover a single sector, 335 kilometers long. NERPOR will continue to be the race's operational center and the venue for the final press conference (scheduled for 6pm on Saturday) and the awards ceremony (8:30pm).
Year after year, the Baja Portalegre 500 is framed by thousands of fans, who transform the Alentejo event into a genuine off-road party. And the international elite is not insensitive to Portalegre's charisma which, throughout the years, has attracted several iconic names of motorized sport, from Vatanen to McRae, from Sainz to Peterhansel, from Masuoka to Holowczyc, from Castera to Magnaldi or Sainct, among many other stars who, every year, join the best Portuguese TT, two-wheeled and four-wheeled drivers.
A tradition that will continue in 2023, as the FIA has already confirmed the Baja Portalegre 500 in next season's World Cup calendar, with the ACP race taking place between October 26th and 28th.
Portuguese among the favorites
This year, Baja Portalegre 500 will be punctuated for a total of 12 categories of the FIA Bajas World Cup and the FIM Bajas World Cup, besides the national championships under the aegis of the FPAK and the FMP. In cars, the Portuguese race will be the antepenultimate round of the World Cup, where Yazeed Al-Rajhi tries to dethrone the Czech Miroslav Zapletal from the lead, with the Saudi Arabian taking the number 1 spot in his Toyota Hilux in Portalegre. Dutchman Kees Koolen and Spaniard Fernando Alvarez, both with South Racing Can Am's, will also be in Portugal to discuss the third place in the World Cup, where they are separated by two points.
In this year's edition, there are several Portuguese in the role of favorites for victory in cars. First of all, João Ferreira, the young revelation of the national TT, who became the Bajas European Champion and also won the Portuguese TT Championship. It will be the MINI JCW driver's fourth participation in Portalegre, the second with a T1. Ricardo Porém, the only driver to win the Baja Portalegre 500 four times in a row (between 2014 and 2017), will be at the wheel of a Volkswagen Amarok. The Leiria driver has another opportunity to equal Filipe Campos' record of five wins in the Alentejo classic. Another former national champion, Tiago Reis (Toyota Hilux), has also shown he can discuss victory in Portalegre, the same applying to João Ramos (Toyota Hilux), Alejandro Martins (MINI JCW) and Miguel Barbosa, who debuts the Overdrive Toyota Hilux with which Nasser Al-Attiyah became World Rally-Raids champion.
Title decider in SSVs
In the bikes, António Maio made history in last year's edition, by reaching his seventh triumph in Portalegre, and the Yamaha rider is again the favorite this year, after having conquered another national champion title. Martim Ventura and Micael Simão arrive in Portalegre separated by five points and will decide who is the vice-champion.
João Vale also competes in Alentejo motivated by the national title in Quads, while the SSV race promises to be one of the most exciting in recent years. Roberto Borrego (101 points), Gonçalo Guerreiro (93) and João Monteiro (81) are in the discussion for the 2022 absolute title. Among the navigators, the dispute involves Nuno Abrantes (115 points) and Nuno Morais (104), while in the Stock category José Morgado (106 points) and Nelson Saramago (97) will discuss this season's title. Armindo Araújo (seven times national rally champion), Alexandre Ré, Luís Portela de Morais, among other names, will also be at the wheel of the always spectacular Can Am.
A place for the young ones
Portugal has a long tradition of excellent cross-country and enduro bikers, almost all of whom are also connected to the history of the Baja Portalegre 500. In an initiative that aims to discover and prepare the next generation of talents on two wheels, the ACP and the FMP are once again betting on the Mini Baja, aimed at young drivers between 10 and 16 years of age. A glimpse of the modality's future.
Commitment to the Environment
Increasingly present in the ACP competitions, Baja Portalegre 500's environmental plan involves all the organization's staff and the municipalities of Portalegre, Ponte de Sor, Nisa, Gavião, Crato, Chamusca, Alter do Chão and Abrantes. Together they will implement measures to minimize the event's ecological footprint, such as reducing the use of paper by the organization (with a reinforcement of digital platforms), the collection and separation of waste through eco-points in the public and assistance areas, awareness-raising actions among the race public, the use of equipment to control small oil spills, and the monitoring and reduction of noise and CO2 emissions. Because there are races we all have to win.
Baja Portalegre's 35 years
In April 1987, the 1st Portalegre Marathon Rally inaugurated a new era in off-road racing in Portugal and Europe. That year, António Bayona endured the incredible Portalegre odyssey, winning the car race with a standard Mitsubishi Pajero, while Paulo Marques and Marcos Carvalho shared the driving of an Aprilia RX 250, triumphing in the motorcycles.
Thirty-five years later, the Baja Portalegre 500's appeal continues to be irresistible to many hundreds of pilots of all ages and backgrounds, who make a point of facing the hardness and challenge of the 'classic of classics'.
Source Baja Portalegre
Automatic translation from the original press release
Photos Rally-Raid Network / Imagensdesportivas.com
