Fausto Mota will give up his hopes of winning the World Rally-Raid Championship to help Rokas Baciuška earn his own title. On Tuesday, Baciuška announced Mota will be his co-driver for the season-ending Rallye du Maroc, marking Mota’s début in the Challenger class in relief duty for the injured Oriol Vidal.
Entering Morocco, Mota was leading the W2RC’s SSV co-driver’s standings, holding an eleven-point advantage over Fernando Acosta with back-to-back. Mota began the 2024 season as the partner for Cristiano de Sousa Batista, who finished seventh at the Dakar Rally. He partnered up with Ricardo Ramilo for the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge onwards, finishing eleventh there before stringing back-to-back wins at the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid and Desafío Ruta 40 (he and Ramilo finished runner-up at the former, but were the highest placing points-eligible competitors and earned the maximum fifty points).
Acosta is the navigator for SSV driver’s championship leader Sebastián Guayasamín, meaning he will win the co-driver title unless they have an extremely poor showing or retire before they can make up the points gap. Besides Mota, he is the only other co-driver in mathematical contention as third-placed Sergio Lafuente is fifty-two points back.
Although Mota is so close to the title, he opted to make the switch to gain experience in a higher category; a week prior, the Spaniard entered his maiden race in the premier Ultimate category at the FIA European Baja Cup’s Baja TT Sharish Gin, where he and Helder Oliveira finished second. Mota will also work to secure Baciuška’s Challenger championship as he is currently ahead of Nicolás Cavigliasso by forty-four points.
Before co-driving, Mota did five Dakar Rallies on a bike.
“Unfortunately, Oriol Vidal Montijano won’t be able to race alongside me in the 5th round of the World Rally-Raid Championship at Rallye du Maroc due to recurring back pain, so he won’t be able to compete for the championship title,” wrote Baciuška. “Oriol aims to recover fully and be ready for the Dakar Rally. Brother, I wish you a speedy recovery and hope to see you back on the track soon! I’d like to introduce my new co-driver for Morocco rally – the experienced Portuguese co-driver Fausto Mota. Welcome to the team, Fausto! His achievements include 8 Dakar rallies (3 stage wins), 4 Rally dos Sertões, 4 Red Bull Romaniacs, and 2 World Cup Baja titles. I’m hopeful the Morocco Rally will work in our favour!”
Vidal had hurt his back during the Dakar Rally in January. He continued to race anyway and won the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid to pull ahead in the Challenger co-driver’s points, but the pain from the injury forced him to skip the Desafío Ruta 40. A return came at the Baja España Aragón in July where he and Baciuška finished second overall, but the symptoms returned while testing in Morocco. Sébastien Delaunay won the DR 40 as a substitute navigator alongside Baciuška. With Vidal unavailable for the finale, Cavigliasso’s co-driver Valentina Pertegarini is in position to clinch the title; she is ahead of Vidal by five points.
The Rallye du Maroc will take place on 6–11 October.
