TBR - Thomas Bell Racing

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

The journey so
far, and
what a
journey!!!!

Built from One Man’s passion to go adventure, TBR has existed in many forms for almost 10
years. What once began as Tom, Paulo and a bucket of bolts, has now grown into a competitive
cross country rally team that offers one of a kind training based in the Middle East.

The full circle
From a Bowler to a Nissan to a fully spec Dakar T1, T3 & T4 there isn’t much that hasn’t been
raced but now the new challenge begins in an unproven new comer THE REVO T1 and T1.1.
The ups and downs of Rally Raid have given the team vital experience to help others conquer
the Dakar rally and other cross country endeavors.

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

The Early Days MAROC CHALLENGE

The Team Evolution

The Sabertooth Range Rover adventure Tom and Noel take on the Maroc Challenge

Thomas Bell racing Company

Thomas Bell – From Day dot Tom had his eyes set on the infamous Dakar Rally, the passion has set him on an almost 10 year journey from a complete Rookie to a Top 10 Dakar finisher.
Competing now in the race 3 times in a T1 Nissan prepared by Red-Lined and most recently in a T3 South Racing Can Am.

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

Experience isn’t all about the DUNES

Paulo Villa – Tom’s chief mechanic from the beginning, he’s worn many different hats over the
years but has been loyal and followed Tom across different vehicles honing his trade on each
one, Paulo also became the first Filipino to take part in the Dakar rally (although he’d never tell
you that)

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

The Experience or as we call it the GATEWAY TO DAKAR

Patrick McMurren – Long time Co Driver and now Head Instructor for Dune 1-2-1, Patrick
brings all the knowledge of multiple rallies plus 2 Dakar’s to the Dune 1-2-1 table.

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

The Experience or as we call it the GATEWAY TO DAKAR

The Story So Far
2015 – Muddy Beginnings: Tom begins to wet his feet in the world of cross country rally with
two events in the Defender challenge with Co Driver Noel Dancy. A DNF followed by a P22
shows that progress can be made with more seat time, so after a brief stint in the UK it was time
to take the racing back to the Middle East.

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

The Experience or as we call it the GATEWAY TO DAKAR

2016 – Getting the feet Wet: More Defender challenge, a highest finish of P8 in the Mid Wales
stages. This was followed by the first real competition in the Middle East with a 9th place finish
in the Fujairah Rally in a T2 Land Rover Defender. This is the first event with navigator Patrick
McMurren who will go on to compete in plenty of Rally Raid events with Tom. Patrick had
previously been a rally navigator for stage rally with a highest finish of P3 in the 2008 Abu Dhabi
Rally

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

The Experience or as we call it the GATEWAY TO DAKAR

2017 – Pushing On: A year of many vehicles as not only is the Bowler T1 run out in Qatar and
Sharjah, the first appearance of the Sabertooth Motoring Adventure Nissan Patrol is seen at
ADDC in 2017 finishing in 21st overall, further on into the season a partnership with RedLined
Motorsport Adventure brings with it a new vehicle, the Nissan T1. Along with a new car comes
new racing as the team competes in the SACCS championship for the first time. The year also
crowns Tom and Patrick as UAE rally champions in the T1 Class,

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

Developing your own car on the GATEWAY TO DAKAR

DON’T DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2017 – Pushing On: A year of many vehicles as not only is the Bowler T1 run out in Qatar and Sharjah, the first appearance of the Sabertooth Motoring Adventure Nissan Patrol is seen at ADDC in 2017 finishing in 21st overall, further on into the season a partnership with RedLined
Motorsport Adventure brings with it a new vehicle, the Nissan T1. Along with a new car comes new racing as the team competes in the SACCS championship for the first time. The year also crowns Tom and Patrick as UAE rally champions in the T1 Class,

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

GATEWAY TO DAKAR

DAKAR RECCE

DO IT!!!!!!!!

2018 – Dakar Dreams: Dakar is recceed by Tom and his Co Driver Patrick as they prepare for their attack on the rally in the following year. Another visit to South Africa garnered multiple
results across a number of rounds
R6 P20
R5 P13
R2 DNF
R1 P15
A full regional season is also at hand to help with preparation although it is hampered by a
disappointing 21st place finish at ADDC. This is then followed up by a 6th place finish at the home race of the Dubai International Baja.

Thomas Bell racing Company

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

DAKAR 2019
NUMBER 1

No Joke 3 Dakar’s in 1

2019 – DAKAR: All the hard work pays off as Thomas and Patrick take on their first Dakar rally in South America, a partnership with RedLined means they are driving one of the Nissans
prepared by the South African Team. As first Dakar’s come this may have been one of the toughest. Rolling the car in the dunes, multiple mechanical issues and two nights spent in the
desert they still managed to finish the race in 48th. Using the Dakar knowledge and experience Tom and Patrick go on to secure their best win at ADDC securing 9th place overall. Narrowly
missing out on a top 10 finish in the Dubai International Baja finishing 11th only 3 minutes
behind Sheikh Al Qassimi.

Thomas Bell racing Company

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

DAKAR 2020
NUMBER 2

Thomas Bell racing Company

2020 – A Tale of Two Halves. The second Dakar, with the experience of one Dakar under the belt and extra training finished the closer to home in Saudi Arabia provided the landscape for a much smoother event than the year previous and a best finish of 31st in the Nissan Navara T1, but in return the world began to shut down and so did racing…

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

TOYOTA
DAYS

The Team Evolution

The TBR Monster Energy journey

2021 – A New Challenge, a partnership with Dakar winning team South Racing brought around a new challenge the SXS class and the South Racing Can Am, no Dakar this year but Dune
1-2-1 went forward with its biggest year training the likes of the Extreme E drivers, Molly Taylor,
Oliver Bennett and Klaudia Hurtgen along with prepping the first two Saudi Females to take Dakar in 2022. Still Baja’s and Desert Challenges were used to prepare for the Dakar in 2022, 9th place in the Dubai International Baja as a send off for the Nissan Navara T1.

THOMAS EDWARD BELL

DAKAR 2022
NUMBER 3

2022 – Looking Forward: The first Dakar in the South Racing Can Am proved to be successful with new Co Driver Bruno Jacomy, Thomas Bell achieved his highest finish of 7th leading him to a current top 10 position in the newly formed World Rally Raid Championship. An eventful Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge shows off a fantastic recovery drive to finish in the top 10. With the new
REVO on the horizon, this may be the end of the SXS chapter of Thomas Bell Racing.