Comeback is Real: Mitsubishi Ralliart wins AXCR 2022

After 1,700 kilometers of grueling competitive rally stages from Thailand to Cambodia, Mitsubishi Ralliart has successfully returned to competition by claiming overall victory at the 2022 Asia Cross-Country Rally.

Against rivals with larger engine displacements, the #105 Triton Rally Truck driven by Chayapon Yotha took the overall win in AXCR on his first attempt and finished the rally with a commanding 8-minute lead over its closest competitor.

Rifat Sungkar, who usually drives in sprint rallies, overcame an early accident in Leg 1 and brought the sister #118 Triton Rally Truck home in 5th place overall – much to the delight of Team Mitsubishi Ralliart's team director, Hiroshi Masuoka.

"This was our first attempt to return to the motorsports scene under the name of Ralliart, and it was a very important rally for Mitsubishi Motors. I thought that it would be good enough for us to finish in upper rankings, but I am very happy that the team have taken an overall victory” said Masuoka.

The Dakar rally legend added: “This victory was the result of teamwork and know-how that Mitsubishi Motors has accumulated over the years. Team Mitsubishi Ralliart will consider the possibility of coming back again next year and will fully prepare our team structure and the rally cars. We would like to thank all of our fans and sponsors for their great support".

With this latest victory of Mitsubishi Ralliart, the Triton (known as the Strada in PH) takes its rightful place as one of Mitsubishi's successful vehicles in rallying. Serious attention has been put into the suspension system and its safety equipment, but Mitsubishi kept its 2.4-liter MIVEC turbodiesel powertrain and four-wheel-drive system in its factory tune. Not to mention, even the standard A/C unit has been retained for the competition, making the Triton Rally Truck as close as possible to the road-going Strada we see on our roads.

Aside from achieving success, the initiative of Mitsubishi Ralliart's return to motorsports is to take in the lessons learned from competition to improve Mitsubishi production vehicles that people can buy in the future, recapturing the formula that made the Lancer Evolution and Pajero legends in their own right.