The Casa Cristo 5000 was a race that was held in the 2008 Speed Racer movie. Speed Racer and Racer X join the event with a modified Mach 5 to aid Taejo Togokahn in winning the race and breaking Royalton's fix. When word is spread about this, Cruncher Block bribes various drivers, including Snake Oiler, into taking out the three drivers and saving their money.
Background[]
A cross-country race, the Casa Cristo Road Rally spans two continents, three climate zones, and 5,000 km of the most winding and treacherous roads ever raced – from the arches and columns of the Muqranna through the Casa Cristo Cliffs, Zunubian Desert, and Maltese Ice Caves.
Though the WRL has made an effort to clean up rally racing, underhanded driving tricks including spearhooks, tire shanks and battery boosters make the Casa Cristo such a brutal test of endurance that it is nicknamed the Crucible. Taejo even remarks that the first rule of the rally racing is that if you aren’t cheating, you’re not trying hard enough. Being first to cross the finish line automatically earns the winner an invitation to the prestigious Grand Prix.
It is known that during the 1974 running of the race that Rex Racer had died at the entrance to the ice caves, his car also having been destroyed. However in truth, Rex Racer faked his death during the race, purposely destroying his car and hiding his identity in order to keep his family safe while exposing the corruption in the racing scene.
Racers[]
45 racers participated in the event. There's no list showing the driver names from Casa Cristo, but some can be noticed via analysis. Here's a map of the starting grid with the known cars and racers.
Outcome[]
It was eventually revealed to the Racer family that Togokahn winning the race was not to expose Royalton's race-fixing to the world, but to boost profits for their company. A furious Speed drives the Mach 5 to Thunderhead Raceway in the dark and accidentally wrecks Racer X. Speed confronts Racer X if he is Rex, but as he unmasks, he reveals an unfamiliar face and tells Speed that Rex is indeed dead. But he does, however, give Speed advice to not let racing change the way it is and to figure out his own driving.
Despite the victory, Taejo would reject the offer to participate in the Grand Prix, and would have his sister give the invitation to Speed instead, having realized her brothers’ actions. Speed would eventually win the Grand Prix causing Taejo to have a change of heart and eventually expose Royalton’s race-fixing to the public.
Trivia[]
- The title, Casa Cristo, is Spanish for "the house of Christ". The race may have gotten this infamous name for being the grave of various drivers in the past, seemingly including Speed Racer's brother.
- A leg of the Casa Cristo resembles the Stelvio Pass in Italy.
Gallery[]
