Nicolás Cavigliasso is moving up to the Ultimate class. On Wednesday, he revealed plans to race a Toyota Hilux from SVR and Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa at the Rallye du Maroc. From there, he will compete in the 2027 Dakar Rally.

“We’re going to have several days of training before the race, which is the most important thing for us: finding the limit in the truck, finding that speed, that rhythm, managing the weight during the race,” he told Carburando Radio. “Having the opportunity to get behind the wheel and be able to demonstrate our potential, and representing our country at the highest level of the Dakar Rally, is an honor.”

Cavigliasso is the reigning World Rally-Raid Champion in the Challenger category, including winning the class at the Dakar Rally in 2025. He finished third in T3 at the 2026 Dakar, but has not run a W2RC race since as he looked toward moving into a higher division.

In May, he joined Great Wall Motor for the Taklimakan Rally. Despite being his first time in a T2 car and racing in China, he went on to win T2.E with a 19th place overall.

“It’s going to be something new, something I’ll have to learn,” his wife and navigator Valentina Pertegarini commented. “Luckily, we’ve had many races here in Argentina where we practiced a lot, so I feel prepared. It’ll be about adapting to the speed while navigating. We’re reading routes we don’t know as we go.

“It’s not like a rally car where you’re already familiar with the tracks. This is about constantly reading routes you don’t know during the race.”

SVR is one of the major builders of the Toyota Hilux, previously making the T1+ for the flagship Toyota Gazoo Racing in Europe until the latter partnered with Overdrive to produce it themselves. Still, SVR remains the main maker for TGRSA. Despite the name, Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa does field Hiluxes for non-South Africans too like Tomáš Ouredníček at last year’s Rallye du Maroc.

Featured image credit: Julien Delfosse / DPPI / ASO