Australian rider Andrew Houlihan will face one of the toughest tests of his off-road career when he tackles round four of the FIM Baja World Cup in Spain this weekend.

The Albury KTM rider has arrived from local winter conditions into 45-degree-plus temperatures in the mountainous region of Teruel.

Houlihan heads into round four as leader in the World Cup Veterans’ class with a 37-point break over Qatar’s Mohamed Al Khabi.

He also sits third outright in 450cc World Cup standings behind UAE’s Mohamed Al Balooshi and Canada’s Jonathon Finn.

“The heat is certainly going to be a major factor,” said Houlihan, who has major support from Speedcafe.

“It has been crazy hot here for weeks and that is not going to change over the weekend.

“I tried to do a little preparation work for the heat before I left, but there is nothing that really gets you ready for conditions like these.

“We just need to get the job done out of the gate, keep as hydrated as possible and then keep it upright.”

This weekend’s event has attracted the largest field of the season including Dakar frontrunners Lorenzo Santolino and Tosha Schareina.

Houlihan will again be on a Speedcafe KTM 450 Baja built and prepared by Auorora Rally in Greece.