Abu Dhabi: Shaikh Khalid Al Qasimi won the Abu Dhabi Rally, a candidate event for next year’s FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC), in dominating fashion on Friday.
Shaikh Khalid dominated the event from day one, going fastest in the super special stage held on Thursday night at the capital’s iconic Yas Marina Circuit, although he later received a 30-second penalty for going off the track.
On Friday, Shaikh Khalid opened his campaign at the Ghantoot 1 special stage over 18.71km, finishing 25.9 seconds ahead of his closest rival and more than one minute ahead of the new overnight leader, Abu Dhabi Racing’s junior driver Mohammad Al Mutawa’a.
From there on, Shaikh Khalid was in top form, winning all of Friday’s stages and storming to victory in a total time of 1 hour 24 minutes 33.8 seconds, more than three minutes ahead of Shaikh Abdullah Al Qasimi in second, with Abdullah Al Kuwari almost 10 minutes back in third.
Shaikh Khalid said: “I would like to thank each and every member of the organising body — the organisation of the rally was first class. The stages were exciting and technically demanding in places, but thankfully we didn’t face any major obstacles and won first place.
“I would like to thank the Citroen Total Abu Dhabi Rally Team for their consummate professionalism as always in preparing the cars to the highest standards. I would like to add that I am very happy for the Abu Dhabi Racing junior team, who I thought performed very well in stages and we are looking to enrol them in numerous future rallies so that they can gain even more experience.”
Shaikh Abdullah added: “It was an exciting rally. We did our best to win but unfortunately our tyres did not perform well here in Abu Dhabi despite being tested at Rally Jordan.”
Abdulla Al Kawari said: “We have really enjoyed the rally and its exciting stages despite the hot weather. The organisation was outstanding, as were the spectators. I would like to thank Shaikh Khalid and the organising committee, who delivered a fantastic rally for all involved.”
Abu Dhabi Racing drivers Al Mutawa’a, Mansour Bel Helei, Mohammad Al Sahlawi and Saeed Bin Touq finished fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh respectively.
The event, jointly organised by Yas Motor Racing Club and Abu Dhabi Racing, ran over 453.48km, with 153.44km as the competitive distance over nine stages and the remainder as the liaison distance. It drew a total of 15 cars.
Ahmad Al Ka’abi, Chairman of the Organising Committee, said: “I would like to thank everyone in the organising team for their efforts in making the rally happen.
“Obviously safety is our top priority at Yas Marina Circuit and, thanks to the efforts of the team, the rally was a huge success. We are looking forward to organising the Abu Dhabi Rally next year and for it to become a permanent part of the Middle East Rally Championship.”
