Seth Quintero

Last updated
Seth Quintero
Nationality Flag of the United States.svg American
Born (2002-09-12) September 12, 2002 (age 22) [1]
California
Current team Toyota Gazoo Racing

Seth Quintero (born September 12, 2002) is an American off-road racing driver. He is currently part of Red Bull's rallying team for rally raid events and competes in the World Rally-Raid Championship. [1]

Contents

He holds the record for the most number of stage wins in a single Dakar, with 12 stage victories in the 2022 Dakar.

Career

Quintero grew up in San Marcos, California, where by age four he was already riding ATVs. [2] Quintero began competing in SSV racing at age 10, and at age 11 won the Junior UTV World Championship. [1] In 2015, Quintero won the Junior UTV World Championship again as well as winning the World Off Road Championship Series. [1]

In 2018, Quintero moved up to the professional ranks with backing from energy drink company Red Bull. [1] [3] Quintero finished second at the Mint 400 and the Vegas to Reno events during his debut season. In 2019, Quintero won the Best in the Desert championship in the UTV Pro category, winning six events including the Mint 400. [4]

In 2020, Quintero began competing internationally, and one year later, in 2021, began competing at the top level of SSV racing, including making his debut at the Dakar Rally and making two appearances in the 2021 FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies. In the 2021 Dakar Rally, Quintero won six stages, in the process setting a new record for youngest stage winner in Dakar history. [2] At the 2022 Dakar Rally, Quintero set a new record for most stage wins in a single running of the event, claiming 12 stage victories out of 13 total. However, in the only stage he failed to win, Quintero lost over 17 hours due to mechanical failures, resulting in a distant 16th place finish in the overall rankings. [4] Besides the Dakar, Quintero also contested the full season of the inaugural World Rally-Raid Championship, where he finished second in points with an event win at the Rallye du Maroc.

At the 2023 Dakar Rally, Quintero secured his first podium in the event with a second place finish overall and two stage victories, finishing only behind his teammate Austin Jones. [1] After winning the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, the American went on to clinch the T3 title by taking the runner-up spot at the final round in Morocco, narrowly beating Mitch Guthrie and Austin Jones. [5]

For 2024, it was announced that Quintero would be stepping up to the Car/T1+ class with Toyota Gazoo Racing. He would be taking part in the 2024 Dakar Rally and the 2024 World Rally-Raid Championship, alongside his navigator/co-driver of multiple past campaigns, Dennis Zenz. [6] After experiencing troubles at the Dakar, the American would impress in Abu Dhabi, winning stage 3 and coming third overall, scoring his first podium in the top class. [7] [8] Though an early issue with his car's engine drive belt took Quintero out of contention in Portugal, he described the event as "the most fun rally I've ever done". [9] Quintero and Zenz then got stuck on a cliff while trying to overtake Christian Baumgart in stage 1 of the Desafío Ruta 40; they later won stage 3 of the rally but fell behind with multiple stops in stage 4 thanks to a broken damper and finished 11th. [10] Despite further mechanical issues in Morocco, Quintero finished fifth, which secured him sixth place in the overall drivers' standings. [11]

To start off his 2025 W2RC campaign, Quintero won the opening stake at the 2025 Dakar Rally. [12] Having lost time during the two-day endurance stage and dropped further due to punctures in stage 4, Quintero also won stage 5 by one second after inheriting first place from Nasser Al-Attiyah, who had been penalised for losing a spare wheel. [13] [14]

Rally results

Dakar Rally results

YearClassVehiclePositionStages won
2021 Light Prototype Flag of Belgium (civil).svg OT318th6
2022 16th12
2023 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Can-Am 2nd2
2024 Car Flag of Japan.svg Toyota GR DKR Hilux EVO T1U 101st0
2025 9th2

Complete World Rally-Raid Championship results

(key)

YearTeamCarClass12345Pos.Points
2022 Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team USAOverdrive Racing OT3T3 DAK
963		 ABU
334		 MOR
147		 AND
215		2nd169
2023 Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team USA by BFG BRP Can-Am Maverick XRST3 DAK
277		 ABU
150		 SON
918		 DES
820		 MOR
236		1st201
2024 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota GR DKR Hilux EVO T1U T1U DAK
1015		 ABU
330		 PRT
434		 DES
1116		 MOR
526		6th81
2025 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota GR DKR Hilux EVO T1U T1+ DAK
928		 ABU ZAF PRT MOR 6th*28*

* Season still in progress

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dakar Rally</span> Off-road rally raid

The Dakar Rally or simply "The Dakar", formerly known as the "Paris–Dakar Rally", is an annual rally raid organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation. The rally is an off-road endurance event. The terrain that the competitors traverse is much tougher than that used in conventional rallying, and the vehicles used are typically true off-road vehicles and motorcycles, rather than modified on-road vehicles. Most of the competitive special sections are off-road, crossing dunes, mud, camel grass, rocks, and erg among others. The distances of each stage covered vary from short distances up to 800–900 kilometres (500–560 mi) per day. The rough terrain, driver fatigue, and lack of skill usually results in accidents and serious injuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sébastien Loeb</span> French rally driver (born 1974)

Sébastien Loeb is a French professional rally, racing and rallycross driver. He is the most successful driver in the World Rally Championship (WRC), having won the world championship a record nine times in a row. He holds several other WRC records, including most event wins, most podium finishes and most stage wins. Loeb retired from full time WRC participation at the end of 2012. He currently drives part time in the WRC for M-Sport Ford World Rally Team, and full time in the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) for Bahrain Raid Xtreme.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nasser Al-Attiyah</span> Qatari rally driver and sport shooter (born 1970)

Nasser Salih Nasser Abdullah Al-Attiyah is a Qatari rally driver and sport shooter. He was the 2006 Production World Rally Champion, 2014 and 2015 WRC-2 champion, an 18 time Middle East Rally Champion, a five-time FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies champion, a three-time World Rally-Raid Champion, and a five-time Dakar Rally winner. His five victories in the Dakar Rally make him the only Middle Easterner and West Asian to win the competition more than once.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toby Price</span> Australian motorcycle racer

Toby Joseph Price OAM is an Australian off-road and enduro motorcycle racing world champion. He lives in Gold Coast, Queensland, and rode for the KTM Off-Road Racing Team until October 2015, then the Red Bull Factory KTM Rally Team until 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Dakar Rally</span>

The 2015 Dakar Rally was the 37th running of the event and the seventh successive year that the event was held in South America. The event started in Buenos Aires, Argentina on January 4, then ran through Argentina, Chile and Bolivia, before returning to Buenos Aires on January 17 after 13 stages of competition, for a total distance of 9,000 km (5,600 mi). For the first time, organizers reserved separate rest days for different categories so that at least two classes raced on each day.

Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) is a motorsport division of the Japanese car manufacturer Toyota. Alongside competition activities, the division develops technologies for the Gazoo Racing (GR) sub-brand of Toyota's sports and performance-oriented production road cars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mini All4 Racing</span> Motor vehicle

The Mini All4 Racing is an off-road competition car, built by X-raid between 2011 and 2015, specially designed to take part in the rally raids with the main objective of winning the Dakar Rally. In 2017 Mini All4 Racing was succeeded by Mini John Cooper Works Rally.

Ricky Brabec is an American professional off-road and rally raid motorcycle racer. He is prominent for being the first American competitor to win the motorcycle division of the Dakar Rally in 2020. He won the Dakar again in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toyota Hilux Dakar</span> Motor vehicle

The Toyota Hilux Dakar is an off-road competition car based on the Hilux. It has won the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies in 2016, 2017 and 2021, the Dakar Rally in 2019, 2022, 2023 and 2025, and the World Rally-Raid Championship in 2022 and 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World Rally-Raid Championship</span> World rally raid motorsport series

The World Rally-Raid Championship is a rally raid series co-sanctioned by the FIA and FIM and promoted by the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO). The championship's seasons culminate with world championship titles in both automobile and motorcycle categories.

Bahrain Raid Xtreme also known as BRX is a rally raid team that participates in the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) and the Dakar Rally.

The 2023 World Rally-Raid Championship was the second season of the annual competition for rally raid events sanctioned by both the FIA and FIM. The Amaury Sport Organization is in the second of a five-year contract to promote the championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rokas Baciuška</span> Lithuanian rally driver

Rokas Baciuška is a professional rally driver from Lithuania. He has won the Lithuania Kart racing championship, the European Rallycross Championship in the Super1600 class, and the World Rally-Raid Championship in the T4 SSV class.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rebecca Busi</span> Italian rally driver

Rebecca Busi is an Italian rally driver. She is the youngest Italian female competitor to finish the 2022 Dakar Rally. She finished her first year of World Rally-Raid Championship in fourth position in the overall T4 classification.

The 2024 World Rally-Raid Championship was the third season of the annual competition for rally raid events sanctioned by both the FIA and FIM. The Amaury Sport Organization is in the third of a five-year contract to promote the championship.

Lucas Moraes is a Brazilian off-road racing driver. He is currently driving for Toyota in the World Rally-Raid Championship as part of Red Bull's rallying team for rally raid events. Moraes has achieved multiple accolades throughout his career, including winning the South American Mitsubishi Cup on two occasions, the Brazilian championship three times, as well as finishing third on his Dakar Rally debut in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dacia Sandrider</span> Motor vehicle

The Dacia Sandrider is an off-road competition car, built by Dacia together with Prodrive to participate in various competitions in the rally raid. It has been used in the FIA Ultimate T1+ class since the end of 2023.

The 2025 World Rally-Raid Championship is the fourth season of the annual competition for rally raid events sanctioned by both the FIA and FIM. The Amaury Sport Organization is in the fourth of a five-year contract to promote the championship. The season started with the 2025 Dakar Rally, which was won in cars by Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk and by Daniel Sanders on bikes.

Daniel Sanders is an Australian professional off-road and rally raid motorcycle racer. Known by the nickname "Chucky", he is most famous for winning the 2025 Dakar Rally.

Tosha Schareina Marzal is a Spanish motorcycle racer, whose achievements include notable performances in the Dakar Rally and other international rally raid and enduro events. Since 2023, he has been part of the official Honda team, with whom he competes in international rallies.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Seth Quintero". redbull.com. Red Bull. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Profile of Seth Quintero". dakar.com. ASO. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  3. ↑ "San Marcos teen Seth Quintero sets world rally racing record". thecoastnews.com. The Coast News. March 1, 2022. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  4. 1 2 Ryan, Nate (January 9, 2022). "Seth Quintero aiming for Dakar win record: 'I've learned giving up is not in my vocabulary'". nbcsports.com. NBC Sports . Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  5. ↑ UTVUnderground (2023-10-20). "World Rally-Raid Championship crowns winners at Rallye du Maroc after stunning season". UTVUnderground.com. Retrieved 2024-01-10.
  6. ↑ Bowen, James (2023-12-13). "Toyota confirms five crews for Dakar 2024". DirtFish. Retrieved 2023-12-22.
  7. ↑ Nguyen, Justin (2024-02-29). "2024 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge: Quintero blazes to Stage 3 win, Moraes goes down in blaze". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 2024-03-03.
  8. ↑ "Podium finish for TGR's Seth and Dennis at 2024 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge". Podium finish for TGR's Seth and Dennis at 2024 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Retrieved 2024-03-03.
  9. ↑ "Victory on final stage of Rally-Raid Portugal for Lucas and Armand". Victory on final stage of Rally-Raid Portugal for Lucas and Armand. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  10. ↑ Brunsdon, Stephen (2024-06-08). "Al Rajhi wins Argentina while Al-Attiyah eyes W2RC title". DirtFish. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  11. ↑ "Strong Rally of Morocco finish for TGR as 2024 W2RC season ends". Strong Rally of Morocco finish for TGR as 2024 W2RC season ends. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  12. ↑ Ledbitter, David (2025-01-04). "Seth Quintero and Toyota Gazoo Racing win Dakar Stage 1". Motorsport Week. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
  13. ↑ "Dakar 2025 | Stage 5 - Quintero inspired by his elders - WRRC 2025". www.worldrallyraidchampionship.com. Retrieved 2025-01-09.
  14. ↑ Galán, Mario (9 January 2025). "Al-Attiyah stripped of Dakar Rally Stage 5 win after spare wheel mishap". autosport.com. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.