Shaikh Khalid Al Qasimi finishes third in Jordan Rally

Dubai: The UAE’s Shaikh Khalid Al Qasimi battled rear differential problems to finish third in the Jordan Rally on Saturday, maintaining his second spot in the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (Merc) series after three of seven stages.

Having outpaced eventual winner Nasser Al Attiyah of Qatar on the opening day, Al Qasimi and his British co-driver Scott Martin, in their Abu Dhabi Citroen Total World Rally Team DS3 RRC, then slipped to third behind Lebanon’s Roger Feghali on day two. After 16 stages, Al Attiyah held a 1 minute 42.2 second winning margin from Feghali, with Al Qasimi just 18.4 seconds behind in third.

Al Qasimi’s Abu Dhabi Racing teammate Bader Al Jabri also impressed by finishing third in the Group N production class and 10th overall with French co-driver Denis Giraudat in a Subaru N15.

Another member of the five-car Abu Dhabi Racing team, rally newcomer Mohammad Al Mutawaa, topped the two-wheel drive and young driver classes alongside Irish co-driver Stephen McAuley in their Citroen DS3 R3 2WD.

Al Qasimi said: “We had problems with the rear differential on Friday and we tried to rectify the problem but the car is not right. We carried an extra tyre this morning and maybe were a little overweight so that didn’t help. When everything works well we’re fine, but you can lose time on the corners when things aren’t right.”

The fifth Abu Racing crew, Majed Al Shamsi and his Irish co-driver John Higgins, were out watching their teammates in action on the stages, a day after their Subaru suffered a spectacular 20-foot fall over a cliff.