Abu Dhabi: Shaikh Khalid Al Qasimi and co-driver Chris Patterson finished Qatar International Rally with a bronze on Saturday.
The rough terrain for a better part of the route, which formed a big hazard to tyres, and a cracked cooling system, proved costly for Shaikh Khalid’s campaign on the Abu Dhabi Citroen Total World Rally Team.
However, the second day saw an improvement, with Al Qasimi winning the early stages and later maintaining short gaps as Qatari drivers Nasser Al Attiyah and Abdul Aziz Al Kuwari took first and second on home turf.
“I was off to a good start and tried hard to suppress my adrenaline rushes and kept focused to win the early stages of the second day,” said Shaikh Khalid on Saturday. “The eighth stage proved both easy and tough altogether with vague routes, but I was able to retain momentum to score close gaps between me and the leaders, where I was able to finish stages eight and nine in third and second position, consecutively. We will re-run these stages again in the hope of successfully finishing the rally.”
Abu Dhabi Team’s young drivers achieved a better performance during the second day, with Mohammad Al Mutawaa and teammate Mohammad Al Sahlawi exchanging the leading position throughout the final six stages. Equally thrilling, Juma Al Falasi pulled off enough conviction to score competitive results with teammates Mansour Belhaelei and Saeed Bin Touq.
At the finish line, Al Mutawaa and teammate Al Sahlawi claimed sixth and seventh position respectively in the overall standings, with Mansour Belhaelei and Juma Al Falasi finishing their first rally ever under the Abu Dhabi Racing flag at 10th and 11th in the overall standings, while Bin Touq was left empty-handed after colliding with a rock.
“We were able to safely finish Qatar International Rally after getting really close to withdrawing due to the cooling system fracture we suffered,” Shaikh Khalid said. “Qatar Rally is quite tough with the harsh nature of its terrain, but today was fruitful, since we were able to achieve quicker results that yielded a little less than a second gap between us and the leaders inside the stages. We were committed to the stringent rally guidelines and successfully competed on the second day of the rally, and I feel content to have won the pre-defined Super Special Stage at the start of the rally where you have a clear track to follow.”
