Subaru Motorsports USA Heads for Appalachian Rally Action
Newport, TN – After a stellar run at the Ojibwe Forests Rally in August, Subaru Motorsports USA heads to the Great Smoky Mountains from September 19-21 for the slinky stages and bright fall colors of Overmountain Rally Tennessee (ORT).
Overmountain is the penultimate round of the 2025 American Rally Association (ARA) National Championship. As the ARA season ticks toward another thrilling conclusion, Subaru Motorsports USA continues to build on its longstanding rally legacy. In the Open 4-Wheel Drive (O4WD) class, driver Brandon Semenuk and co-driver Keaton Williams clinched the 2025 season championship at the Ojibwe Forests Rally last month. When their title becomes official at year’s end, it will mark the duo’s fourth consecutive ARA championship in O4WD.
While they will not enter Overmountain due to other commitments, the year’s battles aren’t over. Extreme-sports legend and Subaru Motorsports USA driver Travis Pastrana and co-driver Rhianon Gelsomino head to Tennessee on the tail of a class victory and a second place-overall finish at Ojibwe. Fresh off that success, the veteran pair look to take their new WRX ARA25L to another strong result in ARA’s fast Limited 4-Wheel Drive (L4WD) class.
“We’re having a lot of fun in our new ARA25L and looking forward to the Tennessee stages,” Pastrana says. “It’s a unique rally for the American championship, with tight and twisty roads. The speeds will be lower, and I’m really excited to see how the new car will perform.”
With a starting line roughly an hour east of Knoxville, Overmountain is a jewel of the ARA calendar. Based in the charming town of Newport, just a stone’s throw from Great Smoky Mountains National Park, ORT offers around 100 miles of competitive and unpredictable special stages, alternately cresting Appalachian ridges and flinging through dark and narrow valleys. The racing surface is some 75 percent gravel and 20 percent hard-packed clay and dirt, with the remaining 5 percent paved in tarmac.
While ORT offers a unique and often unpredictable environment for racing, Pastrana and Gelsomino aren’t fazed. They know the land well—and last year, their first time on ORT’s stages, they won overall.
“I’m looking forward to returning to Tennessee,” Gelsomino says. “In 2024, when we won overall, we had the biggest workout we’ve ever had in the rally car. These are technical stages, with many surface changes and a great variety of challenges. I can’t wait to see what we can achieve.”
The 2025 Overmountain Rally Tennessee kicks into gear Friday, September 19th at Newport Speedway, a 3/8-mile paved oval affectionately known as “Little Bristol” for its resemblance to the famed NASCAR track. The action starts at the Speedway Friday evening, with a one-mile special stage on the oval’s banks. Under Newport’s lights, Pastrana, Gelsomino, and the whole ARA field will turn Little Bristol into a rally playground, going head-to-head for packed stands. Expect standing starts, full-throttle drifts, high-speed corners, and four-wheels-up as cars navigate multiple jumps per lap.
The Overmountain Rally Tennessee is sure to be another fun and thrilling round of rally: Keep up with all of the latest news, updates, and happenings by following Subaru Motorsports USA on Facebook, on Instagram @subarumotorsportsusa, and TikTok @subarumotorsportsusa.
NAME: Overmountain Rally Tennessee
About Subaru Motorsports USADATES: 9/19/25 – 9/21/25
HOST TOWNS: Newport, TN.
TIME ZONE: Eastern Daylight Time (UTC -4)
NEAREST MAJOR AIRPORT: Knoxville (TYS) Airport
WEATHER: Mostly sunny skies. High near 82F. Low around 60F Sunset: 7:33pm.
2025 Overmountain Rally Stage Info
Total Distance: 397.30 miles
Number of stages: 16
Stage distance: 97.83 miles
Stage surfaces: Packed Gravel/Dirt/Tarmac
Longest stage: 9.11 miles (SS10/13/16 Big Clifty 1/2/3)
Highest Elevation: 3,690 ft
Recce: Open
Service Parks: Newport Speedway
Official Start: 9:00pm on 9/19
Superspecial: Yes (SS1)
Power Stage: SS16
Stages in darkness: Yes (SS1)
About Subaru Motorsports USA
Subaru Motorsports USA is directed by Subaru of America, Inc., managed by Vermont SportsCar and proudly supported by MOTUL, Yokohama Tires, R53 Suspension, Triple-R Lights, DirtFish Rally School, and Sparco USA. Follow the team online at www.subaru.com/motorsports.
Follow Subaru Motorsports USA on Facebook, on Instagram @subarumotorsportsusa, and on TikTok @subarumotorsportsusa.
About Subaru of America, Inc.
Subaru of America, Inc. (SOA) is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Subaru Corporation of Japan. Headquartered at a zero-landfill office in Camden, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru vehicles, parts, and accessories through a network of more than 630 retailers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. is the only U.S. automobile manufacturing plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. SOA is guided by the Subaru Love Promise, which is the company’s vision to show love and respect to everyone, and to support its communities and customers nationwide. Over the past 20 years, SOA and the SOA Foundation have donated more than $300 million to causes the Subaru family cares about, and its employees have logged nearly 88,000 volunteer hours. As a company, Subaru believes it is important to do its part in making a positive impact in the world because it is the right thing to do. For additional information visit media.subaru.com. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
