Mitsubishi Motors Corporation has once again shown the Triton’s versatility and reliability as it clinched its second straight Asia Cross Country Rally (AXCR) title. The 2026 AXCR was held in Thailand from August 9 to 15, where Mitsubishi fielded three Triton T1 pickup trucks.
Team Mitsubishi Ralliart won the overall victory at the 2026 AXCR, a cross-country rally that covered a total distance of 2,145.19 kilometers, including 921.80 km of Special Stages (SS). Team Mitsubishi Ralliart’s Katsuhiko Taguchi took the pole position in a total time of 12 hours 58 minutes and 20 seconds. Other Team Mitsubishi Ralliart drivers Kazuto Koide finished 27th, while Chayapon Yotha completed the rally in 36th place overall.
For the uninitiated, the AXCR is now in its 31st edition. It is regarded as a cross-country rally that traverses Southeast Asia, with Thailand serving as its primary stage. The AXCR is held in Thailand due to the country’s dense jungles, plantations with repetitive scenery, sections strewn with large rocks, river crossings, slippery mud ruts, and hot and humid conditions, which are factors that place enormous demands on drivers, team members, and their vehicles.
The 2026 AXCR began with a ceremonial start on Walking Street in Pattaya, the beach resort city on Thailand’s eastern coast, before the first SS began on August 10. Leg 1 headed north from Pattaya to Prachin Buri through eucalyptus and rubber plantations, where heavy rain left water-filled sections that resembled rivers, posing one of the many challenges characteristic of the AXCR.
Taguchi made a strong start in Leg 1, minimizing time losses on a day when many of the early-starting competitors went off course. Making full use of the Triton’s cross-country performance through rivers and large pools of water left by heavy rain, he finished the opening leg in third place overall.
Then, Leg 2 moved west from Prachin Buri to Nakhon Sawan, while Leg 3 featured a loop route from Nakhon Sawan through plantation areas in northern Thailand before returning to the city. Rice fields and irrigation canals dominated the landscape. Team Mitsubishi Ralliart’s Taguchi, along with navigator Takahiro Yasui, set the fastest SS time in Leg 3 to move into the overall lead.
“I never imagined we would take the overall lead by the third day. It may have looked as though everything was going smoothly from the outside, but Yasui and I were driving at the limit throughout the rally. Once we moved into the lead, our rivals were forced to take greater risks in their pursuit, which worked in our favor,” said Taguchi.
Leg 4 continued north from Nakhon Sawan to Kamphaeng Phet. The route passed through forests and rural communities before entering farm roads that wound through cassava and sugarcane fields. Leg 5 then took competitors to Phitsanulok in northern Thailand, an area known for its expansive natural scenery. Leg 6, which is the final stage, was based in Phitsanulok and traversed mountainous terrain before returning to the city for the finish.
“This year’s rally was a closely fought battle from the very beginning, and it was impossible to predict who would come out on top. I believe this victory was achieved because every member of the team fully committed to teamwork,” said Team Mitsubishi Ralliart Director Hiroshi Masuoka.
Autocar’s Take
Mitsubishi Motors has once again proved that it knows what it’s doing when it comes to rallying. Through Team Mitsubishi Ralliart, the Japanese automaker has shown that its knowledge of cross-country rally competition is superb, as the Triton T1 trucks have once again helped the team to win the AXCR for the second straight year. The AXCR was held in Thailand for a reason: its terrain and landscape. As mentioned, Thailand features dense jungles, plantations with repetitive scenery, sections strewn with large rocks, and river crossings, among others.
