The Desafío Ruta 40 (English: Route 40 Challenge) is an annual rally raid held in Argentina held intermittently since 2010, and organized by the Argentine Automobile Club (ACA), with the sponsorship of the FIA and the Dakar Rally. The competition constituted the main date of the Argentine Cross Country Rally Championship (CARCC) and was part of the Dakar Series. The race resumed its activity in 2023, being part of the second season of the World Rally-Raid Championship and forming the fourth round within it.

Desafío Ruta 40
RegionArgentina
Inaugural season2010
Official websitedesafioruta40.ar/home/

As its name indicated, the test was made up of a variable number of stages along National Route 40, the longest in that country, with more than 5,000 kilometers in length. The competition was held in different categories for cars, motorcycles, ATVs and trucks.

History

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In 2010, on the occasion of the Argentina Bicentennial, the Desafío Ruta 40 was organized for the first time, with a complete route of National Route 40, from Cabo Virgenes (Santa Cruz) to La Quiaca (Jujuy), for a total of 5,194 kilometers in nine stages.[1] The success of the competition led to its reiteration in 2011, also with a complete route of the route. The 2012 edition shortened the total route to five stages, starting in San Juan and ending in San Salvador de Jujuy.[1] In 2013, the competition became one of the Dakar Series, consolidating its appeal with more than 125 participants. The route once again joined San Salvador de Jujuy and San Juan, but in a north–south direction.[1] The 2014 edition returned to the south–north format, but starting in Bariloche and ending in San Juan. However, the first two stages were suspended at the last minute due to heavy rain. Catamarca and La Rioja hosted the 2015 edition of the test, while Mendoza, San Juan and La Rioja did so in 2016. In 2017, two independent races were held: the Desafío Route 40 Sur, connecting Neuquén with the Las Grutas de Río Negro resort, and the Desafío Ruta 40 Norte, with a route between San Juan and Tucumán. The race continued in northwest Argentina in 2018, this time from Tucumán to San Juan.

Return

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The competition was not held for the following four years, until it was revived as a round of the World Rally-Raid Championship in 2023.[2][3] The Desafío Ruta 40 was retained for the 2024 season.[4]

Winners by edition

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Year Moto Auto Quad 4x2 Quad 4x4 UTV / SxS Moto FIM Quad FIM
2010   Laurent Lazard   Hernán Kim
Luciano Gennoni
  Juan de la Colina   Adrián Isola   Ernesto Marengo
2011   Javier Pizzolito   Atilio Carignano
Alicia Rava
  Lucas Bonetto   Daniel Mazzucco   Omar Yoma
2012   Pablo Rodríguez   Orlando Terranova
  Paulo Fuiza
  Lucas Bonetto   Daniel Mazzucco   Luciano Gennoni
2013   Kurt Caselli   Nani Roma
  Michel Périn
  Lucas Bonetto   Daniel Mazzucco   Francisco López   Rafał Sonik
2014   Javier Pizzolito   Juan Manuel Silva
  Rubén García
  Sergio Lafuente   Daniel Mazzucco
2015   Paulo Gonçalves   Orlando Terranova
  Bernardo Graue
  Lucas Bonetto   Daniel Mazzucco
2016   Kevin Benavides   Sebastián Halpern
  Sergio Lafuente
  Jeremías González   Pablo Novara   Hernán Bradas
  Juan José Spinella
2017
Sur
  Felipe Ellis   Emiliano Spataro
  Santiago Hansen
  Sergio Lafuente   Daniel Mazzucco   Hernán Bradas
  Juan José Spinella
2017
Norte
  Kevin Benavides   Orlando Terranova
  Bernardo Graue
  Jeremías González   Daniel Mazzucco
2018   Paulo Gonçalves   Sebastián Halpern
  Eduardo Pulenta
  Nicolás Cavigliasso   Julio Estanguet   Juan Manuel Silva
2023[5]   Tosha Schareina   Nasser Al-Attiyah
  Mathieu Baumel
  Manuel Andújar   Mitchell Guthrie
  Kellon Walch
2024   Ricky Brabec   Yazeed Al-Rajhi
  Timo Gottschalk
  Manuel Andújar   Rokas Baciuška
  Sébastien Delaunay

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Historia". Página oficial de Desafío Ruta 40. Archived from the original on 7 April 2015. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  2. ^ "El espíritu del Dakar vuelve a la Argentina en 2023". AUTOMUNDO (in Spanish). 2022-10-19. Retrieved 2022-10-21.
  3. ^ "W2RC 2023: FIA-FIM World Rally-Raid Championship 2023 Calendar: Via the Americas". ralyraidnetwork.com. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  4. ^ "This is the 2024 World Rally Championship calendar". www.speedweek.com. Retrieved 2024-01-11.
  5. ^ "Argentina y Qatar un solo corazón". Página 12. 4 September 2023.
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