Dubai: Reigning FIA World Cup champion Nasser Al Attiyah produced a first leg masterclass to take control in the Dubai International Baja powered by AW Rostamani and Nissan on Friday while French rider Benjamin Melot grabbed the lead in the bikes contest.
Partnered by French co-driver Mathieu Baumel in a Toyota Hilux, Al Attiyah powered to a lead of 6 minutes 12 seconds after the day’s two stages ahead of UAE’s Shaikh Khalid Al Qasimi and Khalid Al Kendi in their Abu Dhabi Racing Peugeot 2008 DKR.
Former Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge quads champion Mohammad Abu Eisa of Qatar finished the stage another 6 minutes 52 seconds away in third place in a Mini All4 Racing in the second round of this year’s FIA World Cup for Cross Country Rallies.
Shaikh Mansour Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum flagged off the 60 cars, buggies, bikes and quads during the ceremonial start at Bab Al Shams Arena on Thursday evening in the presence of Ebrahim Abdul Malek, general secretary, General Authority of Youth and Sports Welfare (GAYSW), and Mohammad Bin Sulayem, president, Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE (ATCUAE) and Emirates Motor Sport Federation (EMSF).
Al Qasimi might have been running Al Attiyah closer but for an early problem. He said: “We had a very good start to SS1 in the morning with great rhythm but then faced some difficulties when driving on the sand as the track was affected by the bikes and cars that started in front of us. So we tried to take a different line and managed to get our rhythm back and regain some of the time we had lost,” he said.
“Approaching the last 10km we hit another obstacle when the jack arm fell off; we tried to pull the arm back up, which affected our pace. We also lost a little bit of time when we had to turn and pass the waypoint after 500m, but that’s fine. Anyway, we managed to successfully cross the SS1 finish line but it looks like the jack is bent. In general, the stage was good and we are now looking forward to the remaining stages.”
Czech Republic driver Miroslav Zapletal in a Hummer, Frenchman Ronan Chabot in a Toyota Hilux and World Cup first round winner Aron Domzala of Poland in another Hilux completed the top six.
Capitalising on the early retirement of Dubai-based Dakar Rally champion Sam Sunderland with mechanical problems, Melot completed the first leg holding a lead of 1 minute 28 seconds over South African rider Mark Ackerman, with Italian Alessandro Ruoso in third, just ahead of top Emirati rider Mohammad Al Beloushi.
Dubai-based Dave McBride and Kuwaiti Mohammad Jaffar completed the top six in the opening round of this year’s FIM Bajas World Cup.
Emirati driver Ahmad Al Maqoodi, partnered by Obaid Al Kitbi in a Polaris, finished the day leading the buggies category and holding ninth place overall.
In the production cars class, young Emirati driver Mansour Al Helei in an Abu Dhabi Racing Land Cruiser had carved out a lead of 5 minutes 34 seconds from the Nissan Patrol of UAE-based Emil Khneisser. Saudi Arabia’s Yasir Seaidan in another Land Cruiser was 2 minutes 40 seconds further away in third, with reigning FIA World Cup T2 champion Adel Hussain Abdullah of Qatar fourth in another Nissan Patrol.
At the end of two AW Rostamani Arabian Automobiles stages adding up to 174km, the UAE’s Mohammad Al Shamsi topped the quads standings on his Yahama 700 Raptor by 1 minute 20 seconds from Kuwaiti Fahad Al Musallam on another Yamaha. The UAE’s Humaid Al Mashghouni was another 6 minutes 32 seconds away in third place on a Honda.
Taking place under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman, Dubai Sports Council (DSC), the Dubai International Baja is the second round of this year’s FIA World Cup for Cross Country Rallies for cars and buggies and the opening round of the FIM Bajas World Cup for bikes and quads.
The rally is supported by Dubai Sports Council, Dubai Police, Dubai Civil Defence, Al Ain Water and AssetCo Fire and Rescue. The event finishes at Bab Al Shams Arena at 5pm on Saturday after the final 174km Nissan stage.
STANDINGS
Provisional leading positions at the end of Leg 1
Cars: 1. Nasser Al Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel (QAT/FRA) Toyota Hilux (1:58.27); 2. Shaikh Khalid Al Qasimi/Khalid Al Kendi (UAE/UAE) Peugeot 2008 DKR 2:04.39; 3. Mohammad Abu Eisa/Xavier Panseri (QAT/FRA) Mini All4 Racing 2:11:31; 4. Miroslav Zapletal/Marek Sykora (CZE/SLO) Hummer H3 EVO V11 2:15:35; 5. Ronan Chabot/Gilles Pillot (FRA/FRA) Toyota Hilux 2:18:56; 6. Vadym Prytuliak (UKR) Polaris RZR 1000 T3.1 2:23:16; 7. Aron Domzala/Szymon Gospodarczyk (POL/POL) Toyota Hilux 2:23:49; 8. Khalid Al Jafla/Ahmad Al Malik (UAE/UAE) Armada Trophy Truck 2:24:40; 9.Ahmad Al Maqoodi/Obaid Al Kitbi (UAE/UAE) Polaris RZR 1000 2:24:45; 10. Yahya Al Helei/Nasser Al Kuwari (UAE/QAT) Nissan Pick Up 2:26:28.
Bikes: 1. Benjamin Melot (FRA) KTM 500 EXC 5 2:03:20; 2. Mark Ackerman (RSA) KTM 450 FX 1 2:04:48; 3. Alessandro Ruoso (ITA) KTM 450 SXF 1 2:08:18; 4. Mohammad Al Beloushi (UAE) KTM 450 SXF 1 2:09:40; 5. David McBride (GBR) KTM 450 Rally 1 2:12:54.
