Conner Martell will replace Travis Pastrana in the works Subaru Motorsports USA entry at next week’s Overmountain Rally Tennessee.
Martell finished second to then Subaru driver Brandon Semenuk in last year’s American Rally Association National championship, but has since moved to WRC2 where he’s campaigned a Lancia Ypsilon Rally2 HF Integrale in two events so far.
Pastrana has been driving a Limited 4WD Subaru alongside co-driver Rhianon Gelsomino this year, but missed last month’s Ojibwe Forests Rally after injuries sustained in a motocross stunt.
With his recovery ongoing, Subaru has sourced a replacement driver for the penultimate round of the season, with Martell slotting in albeit driving the more performant Open class Subaru instead.
Martell will be co-driven by Ross Whittock, with his regular co-driver Alex Gelsomino partnering championship leader Lia Block.
“I’m beyond excited to get the call to drive for Subaru,” said Martell. “I’m bummed for Travis and hope he has a speedy recovery. I’ve tested the Subaru WRX ARA25 several times, including recently, so I’m comfortable stepping into the car on short notice.
“Overmountain is special to me because it’s where I earned my first ARA National victory last year. I’m grateful to Subaru and the team for trusting me with the opportunity, and I’m ready to go chase another victory.”
Overmountain has attracted a strong entry of competitors, including 2019 World Rally champion Ott Tänak who’ll drive a Toyota GR Corolla Rally RC2 alongside Seth Quintero.
Four-time ARA champion Brandon Semenuk is also on the entry list in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2.
