Toyota’s keen on defending their Asia Cross Country Rally. Although last year’s victor Natthaphon Angritthanon couldn’t get past Chayapon Yotha of rival Mitsubishi in Stage 2, he maintains the overall lead while his teammate Tubagus Adhi Moerinsyahdi picked up the pace to win the leg.

Adhi was the fastest in Sunday’s action, beating Yotha by five minutes. Angritthanon was third and a minute back of Yotha, but still holds the overall lead by five minutes over Yotha after beating him for the Stage 1 win. For Adhi, whose Fortuner is smaller and more agile than Angritthanon’s Hilux and Yotha’s Triton despite having a smaller motor, so it better fit the narrower mountains.

Yotha also found the terrain was rougher for stronger vehicles than those like the Fortuner.

“The first section of SS2 was rocky, making it difficult to check the road conditions,” he explained. “I focused on staying focused and avoiding mistakes, and I was able to navigate the course well. At one point, I caught up with the car in front, but I think that’s part of the rally. The second half of the route was also rocky at the beginning, making it difficult to go fast, but the final 40 kilometers was very fast and I was able to drive with confidence.”

Adhi’s stage win launched him up to third overall from eighth, and he trails Angritthanon by 14 minutes.

Yoshio Ikemachi led a 1–2 finish for Team Musashi International in Moto, beating Sumaetee Trakulchai by less than a minute and a half.

American Ultra4 star Bailey Cole, making his AXCR debut, took the overall lead for T2A-D with a second in class for Sunday. He was four minutes back of winner Thongchai Klinkate, while his teammate and the category’s Stage 1 victor Michael Freeman struggled with mechanical issues and a bigger truck. Freeman finished last in class.

While not as incident heavy as Saturday, Sunday still took some names. Arunpong Sririt flipped his Hilux just 1.5 kilometers into the stage, while Ikuo Hanawa’s Fortuner overshot a lefthand turn and rolled down an unexpectedly deep slope.

Stage 2 winners

Auto

Class	Overall	Number	Driver	Team	Total Time
T1D	1	122	Tubagus Adhi Moerinsyahdi	Toyota Gazoo Racing Indonesia	2:36:38
T1G	20	140	Motoaki Yamazaki	eTOHYO FLEX SHOW AIKAWA Racing	3:14:32
T1E	35	127	Chen Ho-Huang	i Taiwan Rally Team	9:30:00
T2A-D	6	103	Thongchai Klinkate	ISUZU Suphan Sports Yokohama Liqui Moly Racing Team	2:49:30
T2D	31	123	Yuichi Iijima	SRS-Osaka Welport Rally Team	3:48:46

Moto

Class	Overall	Number	Rider	Team	Total Time
M1	4	22	Takuya Izumoto	JISOK-RR	3:57:48
M2	1	16	Yoshio Ikemachi	Team Musashi International	3:02:33
M3	3	45	Khomsan Udomteekasiri	Ark Bar Samui	3:57:11
Sidecar	DNF	N/A	No Finishers	N/A	15:00:00

Leaders after Stage 2

Auto

Class	Overall	Number	Driver	Team	Total Time
T1D	1	113	Natthaphon Angritthanon	Toyota Gazoo Racing Thailand	5:59:10
T1G	19	115	Satoshi Takeno	Garage Monchi & Yanagawa Iron Works JapInd	7:58:10
T1E	36	127	Chen Ho-Huang	i Taiwan Rally Team	19:30:00
T2A-D	8	142	Bailey Cole	Feeliq Innovation Motorsport	6:41:29
T2D	26	123	Yuichi Iijima	SRS-Osaka Welport Rally Team	9:27:45

Moto

Class	Overall	Number	Rider	Team	Total Time
M1	3	22	Takuya Izumoto	JISOK-RR	8:13:16
M2	1	16	Yoshio Ikemachi	Team Musashi International	6:49:42
M3	6	45	Khomsan Udomteekasiri	Ark Bar Samui	9:06:33
Sidecar	DNF	N/A	No Finishers	N/A	28:30:00

Featured image credit: via Jatuporn Burakitpachai