Quintero Claims Back-to-Back ARA Wins at Rally Colorado

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team (TGR-WRT) extended its winning run in the American Rally Association (ARA) National Championship at Rally Colorado (July 18–19), where Seth Quintero and co-driver Topi Luhtinen claimed their second consecutive victory in the GR Corolla Rally RC2.

Quintero and Luhtinen won all but two of the 11 contested stages and finished 4:18.5 clear of their nearest rivals, underlining the pace they showed throughout the weekend.

After finishing third on Saturday’s opening stage, Quintero responded by winning SS2 and moving into the lead on SS3. From there, he and Luhtinen controlled the rally, steadily extending their advantage across both days.

In its first year as a round of the ARA National Championship, Rally Colorado provided one of the most demanding tests of the season, with embedded rocks, big compressions, exposed sections, and changing road conditions following heavy overnight rain before Sunday’s stages. The rough, technical and rutted stages suited Quintero’s background in off-road racing, while the event caused punctures, delays and retirements across the field. Quintero and Luhtinen avoided major trouble and kept the GR Corolla Rally RC2 at the front, taking victory in the event’s inaugural National running.

The result also adds to what has been a strong opening run for the GR Corolla Rally RC2 program. Following Jari-Matti Latvala’s victory at Olympus Rally and Quintero’s first rally win at SOFR, Rally Colorado marks TGR-WRT’s third consecutive ARA victory and Quintero’s second win in as many events.

On roads the crew and team compared during recce to the rougher characteristics of WRC events such as Sardinia and Portugal, the GR Corolla Rally RC2 showed rally-winning pace and durability throughout the weekend, further underlining its competitiveness across a wide range of North American rally conditions.

The victory also keeps the crew firmly in the ARA National Championship fight, with the crew now second in the standings and just two points behind leader Lia Block.

Quotes:
Seth Quintero (Driver, car No. 103)
“Colorado was a lot of fun for me. It was more like my home turf: it got super rough, super technical, rutted, and everything in between, so it felt a bit like being back in my truck. We ended up grabbing the win and a bunch of stage wins, so I couldn’t be more proud of the team and the Corolla. I think I’m really starting to figure out this little car, and the team and engineers have been putting a lot of work into me, so I’m grateful for their support. I’m going to keep getting better.”

What’s next?
Quintero and Luhtinen return for the next round of the ARA National Championship at Ojibwe Forests Rally (August 27–29), where they will face the loose, sandy forest stages of Minnesota.

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