The legendary Ralliart brand name, Mitsubishi's in-house high performance, and motorsports division, returns to off-road racing this week at the Asia Cross Country Rally 2022. Armed with three Mitsubishi Triton, locally known as the Strada, rally-prepped pickups, Team Mitsubishi Ralliart has prepared for the cross-country even the rally cars to a total of 1,900 kilometers of endurance testing.

In Leg 0, a total of 56 machines – 21 vehicles in the motorcycle category, 2 in the sidecar category, 32 in the car category, and 1 in the truck category – will run in an opening SS in the city and then participate in the ceremonial start to be held at the Chang Arena, in Thailand.

The rally proper begins on the 22nd with Leg 1, and will be competed over courses in the area around Buriram, until Leg 3 on the 24th. Leg 4 on the November 25th takes the rally close to the Thailand and Cambodian border before crossing into Cambodia for the final Leg 5 on the 26th, to the finish line near the World Heritage site of Angkor Wat in Cambodia. 

"The accomplished engineers of our development team, who had supported the team in winning numerous victories in the World Rally Championship and Dakar Rally, passed down the technology to our mid-career and younger generations and prepared the rally cars for the grueling AXCR," said Hiroshi Nagaoka, executive vice president of Mitsubishi Motors. "Under the leadership of team director Hiroshi Masuoka, who has won the Dakar Rally two times in a row, I am confident that the team will come together to deliver a strong performance with Mitsubishi Motors-ness. Please look forward to a great showing from Team Mitsubishi Ralliart."

"To lead the team to victory as team director, I have drawn on my rallying know-how and experience, built the team organization, and worked to hone our cars," adds Hiroshi Masuoka, team director of Team Mitsubishi Ralliart. "The Triton rally cars have improved with every running, and they are now faster, stronger, and tougher. We have a great service organization in place to support the team, allowing the drivers to apply 100 percent of their own potential. The whole team is ready for this tough challenge."

For those who have followed the Ralliart brand from its first competitive win in the early 1970s, and culminating in the pinnacle of its successes with four World Rally Championship drivers titles by Tommi Mäkinen in the late-1990s, this week's cross-country rally will be something to keep an eye on.

Starting on November 21st, the first day of the rally, and continuing to the last leg on November 26th, Mitsubishi Motors will post daily reports on the company's AXCR special website - https://www.mitsubishi-motors.com/en/innovation/motorsports/axcr2022/.