Yamaha Spain driver Miquel Prat and his co-driver, Ion del Cid, were recently proclaimed runners-up in the SSV Category in the 2024 FIA European Baja Cup. The Catalan-Basque duo finished second in the standings in a season cut short due to the cancellation of the Baja Troia, which was scheduled to take place from the 7th-10th of November.
Prat, who trailed the leader by 16 points heading into the final race, completed an excellent season in which he remained in contention for the top spot right until the end at the helm of his Yamaha YXZ1000R GYTR T4. However, the cancellation of the Baja Troia due to insufficient entries robbed him of the opportunity to earn the points he needed to be crowned champion.
In any event, his second-place position in the SSV category and top-five finish overall in the year of his international debut represent a veritable triumph for both the driver from Castellfollit del Boix (Barcelona) and Yamaha Spain.
During his participation in the 2024 FIA European Baja Cup, Miquel Prat demonstrated the perfect combination of consistency and speed in key moments, as evidenced by his results and the fact that he was the only driver to complete all of the races.
The year began with the Baja TT Dehesa Extremadura, where he finished third among SSV (Side-by-Side) participants. In the season’s second race, the Italian Baja, Prat stepped it up a notch, crossing the finish in second place, the same result as in the Hungarian Baja. By then in command of the leaderboard, his fourth-place finish at the Baja TT Sharish Gin (Portugal), following an accident in the race’s early stages, relegated him to second place in the standings, which ultimately proved definitive.
This was the third year of the partnership between Miquel Prat and Yamaha Spain, a pairing which continues to go from strength to strength. After two consecutive titles in the Spanish All-Terrain Rally Championship (CERRT) with Yamaha in 2022, in the T4 Category and in 2023 in the SSV class, plus a victory in the 2022 Yamaha YXZ1000R European Cup SuperFinale, Prat once again stepped behind the wheel of a Yamaha YXZ1000R GTYR T4 to compete with the best international cross-country specialists.
With this runner-up finish, Miquel Prat caps a season in which he has proven to be one of the most solid and competitive drivers in the FIA European Baja Cup. Another person making their international debut this year was William Buller, winner of the 2023 YXZ1000R European Cup SuperFinale, with the British driver gaining invaluable experience as he ended the season in fifth overall.
2024 FIA European Baja Cup SSV Final Standings
1. Tomasz Bialkowski 127 points
2. Miquel Prat 111 pts.
3. Fidel Castillo 75 pts.
4. Yagiz Birinci 65 pts.
5. William Buller 50 pts.
Miquel Prat
YXZ1000R – FIA European Baja Cup Runner Up
“We were in a situation where we had nothing to lose and everything to win. Yet despite this, I think we had an excellent season. We’ve been consistent, fast when we had to be and finished all the races, an achievement in and of itself in our first year in Europe. We finished second and fifth overall, an impressive result for both us and Yamaha. I’m thrilled with the impeccable work and support from both the team and Ion, who, in his début in this discipline, did an absolutely fantastic job.”
Pol Torrents
Product Manager – Yamaha Spain
“We at Yamaha Spain would like to congratulate Miquel Prat, his co-driver, Ion del Cid, and the entire MPRAT Racing team for their excellent work throughout the season. Thanks to their talent and hard work, Miquel and his team have far exceeded our expectations and the targets set at the beginning of the year. Miquel really maximised the performance and reliability of his Yamaha YXZ1000R GYTR T4, pushing it to the limit and navigating each stretch with great precision while avoiding unnecessary risks and finishing in an outstanding second place, which to us tastes like victory.”
