Rallye du Maroc: Strong performance goes unrewarded
10/04/2026
- De Mévius stopped while on course for clear Top 10 finish
- Sebastian Halpern finishes 45th
Guillaume de Mévius and Mathieu Baumel showed a very strong performance right from the start of the Rallye du Maroc in their MINI JCW Rally 3.0i. The duo picked up speed day by day, steadily climbing the overall standings. On the extremely difficult third stage—which pushed many competitors to the brink of despair—they achieved a sensational fourth-place finish. As a result, they headed into the final special stage sitting in seventh place overall. However, bad luck struck on the final day: a technical issue forced De Mévius and Baumel to leave the track and return to the bivouac early. The resulting time penalty dropped them far down the overall classification.
Sebastian Halpern and Edu Pulenta struggled to find their rhythm in Morocco. This was partly due to the regulations governing the starting order this year. From Stage two onwards, the starting order is no longer determined solely by the previous day's results. Drivers in the Ultimate and Stock categories who finish within 110 percent of the fastest overall time on the previous stage form the front starting block. The remaining drivers are then seeded based on their FIA priority, category, and achieved times. This creates a challenge for crews: once starting further back, heavy traffic from slower vehicles and frequent overtaking maneuvers make it difficult to hit the 110 percent threshold, forcing them to start near the back day after day.
The pace remains high for the X-raid team: in two weeks, the team from Trebur will compete in the Baja Portalegre. The driver lineup will be announced in due course.
Statements
Sven Quandt, X-raid team principal: “A strong start with good results was unfortunately not crowned by a good finish. The final day ruined everything. With seventh place overall in sight, the technical devil struck in the very first dunes today. At this point, we do not know exactly what happened as the vehicles are still in Parc Fermé. However, we can already confirm that it is not a driveshaft issue, as those are in good condition.”
Sebastian Halpern (MINI JCW Rally 3.0i): “We are happy to have completed the Rallye du Maroc. It was a very, very tough rally, but we are pleased with the car and are getting a better feel for it. The car runs really well, and we are very happy with the speed and the sense of security it provides. We only had one issue on Day 3 when a jack broke. Stage 4 was the best for me—the most fun and the one with the best flow. We started from further back in the dust every day. We are really dissatisfied with the FIA system of placing all priority drivers at the front, regardless of how you performed the previous day. You can never escape the dust that way, and we started behind P40 every single day. I am glad to be at the finish line and to have learned a lot during this race. Thanks to the entire X-raid team, my co-driver Edu.”
Guillaume de Mévius (MINI JCW Rally 3.0i): “Overall, we had a good race—with a few highs and lows along the way. We fought for seventh place until the very end, showing strong performance. The route layout this year was fantastic and presented new challenges in Morocco even for experienced drivers like Mathieu. It was a demanding but very successful rally. Unfortunately, we were unable to finish today's final stage regularly, had to accept a penalty, and dropped back in the overall standings. The main thing is that we reached the finish line and successfully completed the rally. We take away many positive insights and know exactly where we can improve. Our focus is now firmly set on the future.”
Overall standings
1. S. Quintero / A. Short – Toyota – 16h 34m 05s
2. J. Ferreira / F. Palmeiro – Toyota – 16h 38m 28s
3. H. Lategan / B. Cummings – Toyota – 16h 38m 47s
4. N. Roma / A. Haro – Ford – 16h 41m 06s
5. M. Guthrie / K. Walch – Ford – 16h 42m 28s
…
45. S. Halpern / E. Pulenta – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 22h 02m 47s
…
60. G. de Mévius / M. Baumel – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 31h 27m 33s
