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72-HP Rally Bike Drags Toyota GR Supra and GR Yaris, Results are Quite Surprising

Carwow's Mat Watson is somewhere with lots of sand around him and easy access to closing off a stretch of road for some unprepped quarter-mile shenanigans. Yep, that's Dubai, most likely. Oh, and he is also driving the glorious GR Yaris and GR Supra in a novel string of face-off races.
Toyota GR Supra and GR Yaris vs Rally Bike on carwow 38 photos
Photo: carwow / YouTube
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Most automotive enthusiasts who love quick cars and vehicles that go fast in a straight line probably know that Mat Watson, the host of the YouTube channel carwow, loves to drag race just about anything. Both on the tarmac, as well as off the beaten path. And he is not discriminating against anyone, from tuned cars to modified muscle heroes and SUVs to the latest crossover idea – the Porsche 911 Dakar. Alas, on this occasion, he is not somewhere where it is damp and constantly humid or even muddy (UK).

Instead, he moved to sunnier estates, as far as we can tell from his car's license plate that reads something about Dubai. On this occasion, he drives the feisty Toyota GR Yaris, the rally-inspired performance version of the fourth generation (XP210) Yaris subcompact. Turned into one of the greatest pocket-sized hot hatchbacks of all time, the three-door GR Yaris rocks a minute 1.6-liter three-cylinder turbo mill with 264 ponies under the little hood, according to Watson. It is also AWD, has a six-speed manual transmission, and weighs 1,280 kg (2,822 lbs.), so it's likely to be very quick with an experienced driver behind the wheel.

But Mat Watson faces a legendary challenger – British rally raid motorcycle racer Sam Sunderland, who has won two Dakar editions in 2017 and 2022! And he is not alone, as his Gas Gas RX 450F Red Bull Racing factory rally raid bike came along for the races! It has just 72 horsepower under the saddle, but it is also the lightest vehicle on the premises, weighing in at just 150 kg (330 pounds), and it is ridden by an absolute icon, of course. So, one might have expected the drag race to be reasonably balanced – the bike is massively underpowered yet lighter, while the GR Yaris is driven by someone who knows it inside-out very well since Mat also owns one.

As it turns out, Sam and his Gas Gas bike were bus lengths ahead of the GR Yaris on both attempts from the 3:15 and 4:52 marks, so Mat decided to do something drastic about it. As such, he upgraded to the flagship Toyota GR Supra two-door sports car and its 3.0-liter inline-six engine with 386 ponies on tap. It is heavier, of course, hitting the scales at 1,502 kg (3,311 pounds), and also comes with the six-speed manual transmission that was made available just recently from ZF with custom Toyota parts. Well, almost nothing changed – both from a standstill and during a roll race attempt. So, again, Mat changed the rules and placed Sam and his Gas Gas motorcycle in the rally bike's primary environment – off the pavement. Surprisingly, that is where the tides started to change!

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About the author: Aurel Niculescu
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Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution.
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