BP Ultimate Portugal Cross Country 2021 postponed.

ACP - Automovel Club de Portugal,  organizer of Portugal Cross Country 2021, announced just a few days ago the postponement of the race that was originally scheduled to take place from 8 to 13 of April.

According to the race organizer, the intensity of the pandemic, both in Portugal and all over the world, as well as the necessary measures to combat the spread of the COVID-19 virus, and the necessary restrictions that are in place, the reduction or softening of which are not expected soon, make it impossible to prepare a calendar that could ensure that the race is prepared adequately or that the race could be run in the chosen date.  

Due to this situation, the organizers, in conjunction with all the federations involved;  FIA - Federation International de l'Automobile and FIM - International Motorcycling Federation and the locals FPAK - Federação Portuguesa de Automobilismo e Karting and FMP - Federação de Motociclismo de Portugal decided to postpone the race to a future date that should be announced soon.

The COVID situation in Portugal is quite severe at the moment, with lockdown in place to control an extremely severe third wave of the virus that is raging in the country. The measures in place appear to be working, with a sharp decrease in the number of infections in recent days, but still far from a situation that can be considered under control.  

Portugal Cross Country Rally follows on the path of the former Baja 1000, a one-day race with almost 1000 km non-stop, that later became Rally Transibérico, a multiple-day event with stages both in Portugal and Spain.  The last incarnation was Rally Estoril Marrakech back in 2010, a one-week long race that started in Portugal and finished in Morocco.

For the new race, ACP prepared a route that should take the participants to travel across a great part of the south of Portugal, either in brand new tracks or in tracks already known from other events. This particular race has the "power to surprise" not only for the variety of the terrain but also by the quality of the tracks that will very likely pose a very interesting and demanding challenge to the participants.

The teams that usually race in Portugal, either nationals or foreigners are used to an extremely precise terrain marking, with signs, arrows, plastic tapes, barriers, and other elements to mark the road and ensure that the participants will always follow the right route, but for Portugal Cross Country Rally, the organizers prepared an event focused on roadbook navigation, where most of the roads will have no markings at all, except in areas where they are needed for security reasons.

Rally-Raid Network
Photos: Rally-Raid Network / H. Custodio / C. Gonçalves