After the season opener in Saudi Arabia, the FIM Bajas World Cup switches continents and arrives in Portugal for the Baja Escuderia Castelo Branco from 21 to 23 March.
The quaint little town of Castelo Branco, located northeast of Lisbon, will host the riders, technical staff and the ever-increasing crowd for three days of racing.
Young British rider Alex McInnes led after the opening round but is absent from the Portuguese event. That leaves the way open for the reigning champion, Mohammed Al-Balooshi (KTM), to score as many points as possible. The Dubai rider was born to ride across the UAE’s vast desert landscapes and isn’t a big fan of Portugal’s winding tracks, but he enters the event every year to improve and valiantly defend his title.
He races with his brother Sultan and will be joined in Castelo Branco by Pedro Bianchi Prata (Honda) and Rafic Eid (Honda), who scored 11 points in Saudi Arabia. Barry Howe will also take part.
In total, 15 riders are registered for the FIM section, including only one single female entrant – Maria Taranto on a Husqvarna.
In the quad category, there will be three FIM contenders and the only one to have scored points at the Saudi Baja is the defending champion, Hani Al-Noumesi (16 points), on a Yamaha. He will have to battle it out with Jorge Sampaio (Yamaha) and Tiago Teixeira (Can-Am).
The race will take place over three days with administration and scrutineering checks taking place during the morning of Friday, March 21st.
Riders will then tackle a 9.27km Prologue in the afternoon to determine starting positions for the 188km opening stage on Saturday. Sunday’s second stage of 169km brings the action to a close.
PROVISIONAL ENTRY LIST HERE
Join us for the weekend to follow Baja Escuderia Castelo Branco on the FIM Bajas & Cross-Country Rallies Facebook page and on Sportity (code BECB25-BIKE).