Toyota GAZOO Racing Australia puts on stellar performance at Rally Hokkaido

Harry Bates and Coral Taylor made a guest appearance at Rally Hokkaido as part of an international partnership between TOYOTA GAZOO Racing and its Australian arm, supported by Neal Bates Motorsport.

Taking place across two days in the Central Tokachi area of Hokkaido, Bates and Taylor hit the ground running on Day 1 with a win in the first stage of the event and were in close contention over the next few stages.

A pop off valve issue hampered their efforts midway through day one. However, Bates and Taylor still performed strongly enough to secure second place overall at the end of the first day.

After fixing the pop off valve issue, the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Australia (TGRA) team showed the skill and execution that made them the reigning ARC champions on the shorter Day 2, winning the day overall to secure second place for the event with four stage wins – the highest finish of any competing GR Yaris Rally2.

The TGRA team’s guest drive at the Hokkaido Rally followed TOYOTA GAZOO Racing TGR-WRJ development driver Nao Otake’s drive at the Gippsland Rally in August. Both were part of a collaborative endeavour to advance talent development and cultivate cross-border relationships.

Harry Bates said he relished the opportunity to compete in the Japan Rally Championship, and was thrilled by the support of the TGR-WRJ team and the hospitality of the Japanese people.

“I’m extremely happy with second place, it’s like a dream to come over here and in my first Rally in Japan I got a podium, so I was very happy with that.”

“Thank you so much to TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Australia for making this happen, and also the cooperation with TGR-WRJ, they gave us so much support this weekend, their mechanics were unbelievable, and really, really good at working on my car.”

Harry Bates

Coral Taylor was equally effusive about the event and TGR-WRJ teams.

“We’ve had a fantastic time here, really fantastic. It’s been a huge collaboration between TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Japan and TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Australia, but also the event organisers have been super helpful, the Japanese people in general have been super welcoming and friendly, and just can’t do enough to help you.”

“I think Harry drove a brilliant event here, and it was all very close… our event apart from a slight mechanical issue had gone perfectly, and we really enjoyed ourselves.”

Coral Taylor

TGRA rally team manager Neal Bates said the collaboration between the TGR teams was a great success.

“I just wanted to thank TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Australia and TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRJ. It was a fantastic collaboration and I’m sure they learnt a lot in Australia and we learnt a lot here. So overall, the whole joint venture has been a very positive thing for both of us.”

Neal Bates

Harry Bates and Coral Taylor are back on Australian soil to compete at the Adelaide Hills Rally this weekend, taking place from 13-15 September.