Brandon Semenuk has today announced he has signed with Subaru Motorsports USA to form half of their rally team alongside action sports legend Travis Pastrana.
This is far from Semenuk's first introduction to rally car racing. Competing first in a production WRX and then in a Subaru Canada-supported Crosstrek rally car, Semenuk has racked up five overall Canadian Rally Championship event wins and a pair of North American Rally Cup titles in the last three years. His achievements in U.S. events include an impressive 4th overall at Idaho Rally in 2018 and another 4th place finish in a privateer car at 2019's Oregon Trail Rally.
Here's a video of him racing in a Subaru back in 2017:
Semenuk has also previously appeared in a Subaru advert called Vice Versa, shot by Revel Co.:
Travis Pastrana is also a seasoned rally driver and is a five-time national rally champion with Subaru. He is returning to the US circuit for his first full season since 2017. The Subaru press release indicates that Semenuk and Pastrana will both be racing every round of the competition, kicking off at the 100 Acre Wood rally on March 20-21.
 | This season is going to be a blast. I’ve been rallying for the last few years, but the STI is a big step up in performance. Travis knows the STI really well, so I’m going to take it one event at a time to learn as much as I can and get my pace up. The car is really exciting to drive and I’m getting more confident with it in testing. I can’t wait to put in some stage miles and see how we measure up.—Brandon Semenuk |
More info,
here.
168 Comments
good luck Brandon this year Brandon!
#hotcarl
My wife also had her forester 2.5L replaced @99k mi due to oil consumption. But Subaru family!
Someone wrote off my WRX hatch just a couple weeks ago, sad way for it to go. Aside from a steering rack, had no typical Subaru issues. Just regular maintenance.
Probably a Taco. They're fun to drive for a truck, and Toyota reliability cant be beat. Dont think I can drive anything without AWD anymore though.
Comment section when rally car article is posted: *Grunts of approval*
Pinkbike, everyone!
I think you’ve nailed it I’m regards to the ex-action sports guys... Ken Block, Travis Pastrana- They help bring in viewers and interest, even if they aren’t the fastest. (Pastrana has been competitive though.)
That’s probably how it will go with Semenuk to... No doubt he’s an awesome driver, and will do well, but it’s unrealistic to think he’ll ever be as good as a European like Solberg who’s been banging gears and fenders since birth.
I don’t think it’s on TV anyways.
"I'm going to race a bike in my Porsche"
Semenuk:
"hold my beer"
Carlos Sainz (snr) was still racing rally into his late 40's.. last rally win at 48!
I see Semenuk as more of a do-er than a team manager/race director or whatever else human powered sports athletes go into once they start slowing down.
@src248 super special stage is gymkhana
Jeez some people take a flippant comment way too seriously.
US Rally is worth watching and I wish Red Bull Media would cover it. WRC is ok, but AWD subcompacts are not really cars that people can buy. At least the rules in WRC allow for AWD performance cars that people can buy (i.e., WRX, etc.).
Grip, balance, flow/line, focus and don't forget fitness all transfer Very Well from 2 wheels to 4.
Find that video of Pastrana yardsailing the factory car in Colorado in the 2000's. . . gets out 'Wheeee, that was a hell of a ride' . . . Belted in with head and neck restraints and it's easy to feel invincible.
The ~200hp RWD car can be built for the price of an average MTN bike (Carbon, not that Ripmo AF), but the entry fees went from $350/event to ~$600-1000, and makes it hard to justify.
And good luck Brandon! More Pinkbikers wish we could drive our 80hp, front wheel drive car, like a rally car
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolas_Vouilloz
Slowest rally ever!
The fan and community involvement in rally is very reminiscent of the MTB scene, everyone is respectful, supportive, and out to have a good time.
Clearly Ford’s return on investment wasn’t enough to stop them cancelling the Fiesta ST & Focus RS.
To my knowledge, Subaru intends to keep selling the WRX.
So what you’re saying is that Ken Block is better at selling trucks then cars? Trucks being a thing that Ford sells, and Subaru doesn’t?
Again, I highly doubt Subaru regrets their decision- especially when they can pick up new talent that’s more appropriate to their brand.
Pastrana is the man!!
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