BahrainRaidXtreme.com | The Official Site of Bahrain Raid Xtreme

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The most exciting players in motorsport have united to compete in the most extraordinary endurance adventure on earth. Together, we have the skill, speed and staying power to leave a legacy behind.

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Prestige Unleashed

We are the people’s team. Built from HRH the Crown Prince of Bahrain’s vision, BRX represents the nation of Bahrain and its people. We may be a new team, but we are not new players. Our foundation is built on years of hard work, skill and determination.

Pioneers Unleashed

We are ambitious trailblazers. We are embarking on new territory and ready to break down all boundaries. We want to challenge the convention. We are rugged. We have guts. We are unapologetic.

Precision Unleashed

We are modern redefined. Our skill and speed are matched by science. The very best in innovation and technology is at our core. It is our backbone. We design vehicles to anticipate, adapt and handle any challenge.

Back

Bahrain raid xtreme

We are Bahrain Raid Xtreme (BRX), an exciting new team competing in the Dakar Rally 2021.

BRX is founded by Prodrive International, a partnership between Prodrive and Mumtalakat, the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Bahrain.

About the team

Prodrive International builds on Prodrive’s extensive experience in developing championship-winning race and rally cars and has been established with the aim of designing and manufacturing cars to compete and win in the Dakar Rally from 2021, and beyond.

David Richards CBE, founder and chairman of Prodrive, leads BRX. David organized the first international rallies in the Middle East during the 1970s and the Prodrive Porsche rally team won the Middle East Rally Championship on numerous occasions.

Since then, David has led many global motorsport teams securing six World Rally Championships, five Le Mans titles and finished runners-up in the Formula One Constructors’ Championship with BAR in 2004. Prodrive teams have contested in more than 1,200 international motorsport events, winning over 300 of them. In 2005, David was awarded a CBE for his services to the motorsport industry.
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The new Prodrive International cars will compete in the top level T1 class. Two rally cars will be manufactured and operated annually by Prodrive International, who will also produce other commercial cars and offer a range of performance parts and body kits as accessories.

The nation of Bahrain brings together some of the brightest individuals from across motorsport to create a team with the ambition and drive to win the Dakar Rally 2021. BRX also aims to set a foundation for future innovation and motorsport evolution in the region.

Bahrain raid xtreme

About the team

Prodrive International builds on Prodrive’s extensive experience in developing championship-winning race and rally cars and has been established with the aim of designing and manufacturing cars to compete and win in the Dakar Rally from 2021, and beyond.

David Richards CBE, founder and chairman of Prodrive, leads Team BRX. David organized the first international rallies in the Middle East during the 1970s and the Prodrive Porsche rally team won the Middle East Rally Championship on numerous occasions.

Since then, David has led many global motorsport teams securing six World Rally Championships, five Le Mans titles and finished runners-up in the Formula One Constructors’ Championship with BAR in 2004. Prodrive teams have contested in more than 1,200 international motorsport events, winning over 300 of them. In 2005, David was awarded a CBE for his services to the motorsport industry.
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The new Prodrive International cars will compete in the top level T1 class. Two rally cars will be manufactured and operated annually by Prodrive International, who will also produce other commercial cars and offer a range of performance parts and body kits as accessories.

The nation of Bahrain brings together some of the brightest individuals from across motorsport to create a team with the ambition and drive to win the Dakar Rally 2021. Team BRX also aims to set a foundation for future innovation and motorsport evolution in the region.

Bahrain Raid Xtreme

Bahrain Raid Xtreme will put some of the greatest drivers from around the world behind the wheel of the most advanced Dakar T1 cars, specifically designed by Prodrive to adapt to any challenge and across any terrain. Together, we have the ambition to push the boundaries of what is possible and break the mould of rally racing. Forever.

Engine

3.5L V6 Twin turbo

Power

400 BHP

Torque

700 NM

Weight

1850 KG

about the car

Our 4-wheel drive car has a high tensile steel structure and a lightweight carbon fibre body, combined with a powerful V6 turbo charged engine to allow it to traverse the toughest terrain at high speed. To travel the vast distances across the longest stages of the Dakar Rally, the car carries up to 500 litres of fuel.

Overview

It takes a lot more than just drivers to get the car across the finish line, behind them is huge team of experienced personnel with bespoke support vehicles and equipment, which follows the cars through the stages.

2x T1 works cars
3x T5 MAN support trucks (Geidobler Conversion)
3x MAN 4x4 crew bus
3x motorhomes
1x T4.3 competing support truck
1x MAN Artic truck
3x 4x4 management cars
48x team personnel

Car specs

Brakes

Ventilated disc brakes

Length

4.5m

Steering

Hydraulic power assisted steering

Suspension

Double wishbone

The team

Team Director

David Richards cBE

Team Principal

Paul Howarth

Chief Marketing & Partnership Development Director

Chris long

Technical Director

David lapworth

Chief Designer

Paul Doe

Chief Powertrain Designer

Arthur shaw

Chief Engineer

Richard Thompson

Driver

To be announced

Co-driver

To be announced

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Driver 1

Carlos Sainz Sr

Nationality

Spanish

Dakar rallies

Career start

1980

Fact about them

Carlos Sainz Sr has made more WRC rally starts than any other driver in history. His nickname within the sport is ‘El Matador’.

Racing pedigree

3x Dakar Rally wins

2x WRC Championships

757X WRC stage wins

26x Overall WRC wins

97x WRC podiums

About them

Carlos Sainz Sr is currently the reining Dakar Rally champion after winning in convincing style in 2020. Carlos’s son is currently racing for McLaren on the F1 circuit, so driving must be in their DNA!

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Co-driver 1

XXX

Nationality

XXX

Dakar rallies

XXX

Career start

XXX

Fact about them

XXX

Racing pedigree

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About them

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Team Director

David Richards CBE

Nationality

English

Motorsport credentials

Chairman of Prodrive

Chairman of Motorsport UK

WRC Champion 1981

Former team principal BAR F1

Former chairman of Aston Martin

Inductee into the Motorsport Hall of Fame

Fact about them

At 17 years of age, he became the youngest person in the UK to hold a private pilot's license at the time.

About them

David led the development of motorsport in the Middle East, organizing the very first rally in the region in Kuwait in 1976. After winning the World Rally Championship as a co-driver in 1981, he retired from active competition and devoted his attention to develop his motorsport business. He founded Prodrive in 1984 and today, it is one of the world’s leading motorsport business.

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Team Principal

Paul Howarth

Nationality

English

Motorsport credentials

Team Principal, Aston Martin Racing,

Team Manager, Subaru World Rally Team

Team Manager, MINI WRC

FIA World Rally Championship winners; Richard Burns 2001 and Petter Solberg 2003

3 x FIA World Rally Championship podiums

Team principal, Aston Martin Racing FIA WEC Team, responsible for three Le Mans 24 Hour victories (2007, 2008 and 2017) and three World Championships (2014, 2016 and 2017).

Fact about them

Paul is a passionate skier and also enjoys many forms of motorsport, including enduro riding, competing in events either driving or co-driving, regularly attends Goodwood FOS driving ex-factory rally cars. Always enjoys the competitive environment.

About them

Paul Howarth is one of the most experienced team managers in motorsport having run the Subaru World Rally team, MINI WRC team and the Aston Martin racing team. He has been with Prodrive for over 30 years and manages all aspects of the teams on and off event operation.

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Chief Marketing & Partnership Development Director

Chris Long

Nationality

British

Motorsport credentials

Managing Director of CSM Motorsport

SVP Client Services JMI

Fact about them

Played competitive rugby for London Scottish FC and Nottingham RFC

About them

Chris has worked in various commercial and client servicing roles in sports and brand marketing for the last 21 years. Chris joined JMI in 2013 to work specifically in motorsports and head up the client services team, overseeing client accounts in F1, Formula E and MotoGP.

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Technical Director

David Lapworth

About them

David Lapworth is one of the world's most respected rally engineers. In 35 years at Prodrive, he has engineered world championship-winning cars for Colin McRae, Richard Burns and Petter Solberg. He works closely with the design and engineering teams, bringing invaluable experience to the development of the BRX T1 car.

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Chief Designer

Paul Doe

About them

Paul Doe is responsible for the design and development of the new BRX T1 car. He leads a team of engineers, which has completed the ground up design of this all-new four wheel drive car. Most recently he was responsible for what is the most technologically advanced rallycross car ever created, the Megane R.S. RX. He was also head of design on the MINI WRC and has worked on a number of championship-winning race and rally cars.

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Chief Powertrain Designer

Arthur Shaw

About them

Arthur is leading the development of the new 3.5 litre V6 turbo petrol engine for the car. He heads all engine development projects at Prodrive for its race and rally car programmes. Most recently, he created the new V8 turbo for the Aston Martin Vantage GTE and the fully bespoke 2 litre turbo engine for the Megane R.S. RX rallycross car.

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Chief Engineer

Richard Thompson

About them

Richard is a hugely experienced rally engineer, who has worked with some of the leading drivers in world rallying. He is chief engineer on the BRX team overseeing all technical aspects of the car while competing at Dakar. While at Prodrive, he has led the development of the VW Golf SCRC, overseen the record breaking projects with the Subaru WRX STI; as well as running the GCK Team in the FIA World Rallycross Championship

A preview of the

Dakar 2021 route

The Dakar Rally is one of the most gruelling rally races in the world with only 69% of vehicles that started the race making it across the finish line. BRX can look forward to an entirely new route across Saudi Arabia for the 2021 Dakar Rally. Full route details coming soon!

Take a look back on the 2020 route

Stage 1

Jeddah – Al Waih

In 2020, stage 1 was a surprise for both drivers and fans alike. A mix of terrains with huge rocky sections caused tyre issues and time lost for a lot of the teams. Wind off the coast also pushed the teams back even further.

Stage 2

Al Wajh – Neom

The second stage of the rally between Al Wajh and Neom hugs the coastline of the country. Travelling North, the key to this stage is navigation- to manoeuvre and avoid the bumps and turns across the varying terrains.

Stage 3

Neom – Neom

In this stage, the competitors do a loop from the city borders out into the desert and back again. The first section is full of twists and turns through natural rock features. The drivers then head along the border of Jordan and past the Shifa mountains, a beautiful backdrop for the drivers as they re-enter Neom.

Stage 4

Neom – Al-'Ula

The drivers head into the desert towards one of the wonders of the world, the Nabatean temples. This stage starts at an extreme altitude which can affect both the drivers and co-pilots. They then head into a volcanic region which is where the drivers rely heavily on their co-pilots, as one slips up can cost hours of time.

Stage 5

Al -'Ula – Ha'il

This stage goes 150km further into the sandy desert to reach an impressive altitude of almost 1500 meters. This mainly sandy terrain isn't without a few hidden surprises such as tricky rocks. The end of this stage is Ha’il which is the home of the oldest rally in Bahrain.

Stage 6

Ha'il – Riyadh

Stage 6 is the midway point of the Dakar Rally and is the farthest distance into the desert. The terrain is mainly sand dunes so this stage is where drivers can pick up a lot of speed. In 2020, too much speed caused a lot of teams to suffer car damage. The end of this stage has the teams enter Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.

Stage 7

Riyadh – Wadi Al-Dawasir

Stage 7 is one of the longer stages of the event at a staggering 214km. The dunes and trails led this to be a very exciting race in the car category. In 2020, stage 7 was over shadowed by the tragic passing of one of the Dakar greats Paulo Goncalves, who was loved throughout the sport.

Stage 8

Wadi Al-Dawasir – Wadi Al-Dawasir

Stage 8 is the second looped section of the Dakar Rally as the driver’s head into the valleys of Saudi Arabia. The terrain in this stage is extremely challenging and the drivers have very little respite in a section that spans over 100km.

Stage 9

Waid Al-Dawasir – Haradh

Stage 9 is marked with 150km of rocky, Stoney terrain. The drivers daringly navigate along cliffs until they hit sand towards the end of this section.

Stage 10

Haradh – Shubaytah

Stage 10 and Stage 11 are the marathon sections of the Dakar Rally. Stage 10 takes the competitors across 524km of sandy dunes and vast desert. This stage was cut short in 2020 due to extremely high winds, which made for some epic racing and saw two-time F1 world champion Fernando Alonso rolling his car.

Stage 11

Shubaytah – Haradh

This second stage in the marathon section boasts some of the longest, most epic scenes with dunes upon dunes stretching for almost 80 km.

Stage 12

Haradh – Qiddiya

The 12th and final stage of the 2020 Dakar saw the competitors end their journey in the city of Qiddiya. Teams drive along the shores of the Red Sea through canyons and mountains of the beautiful Saudi desert, finally ending up in the bustling city just outside Riyadh.