Germany's Hans Werner Werth and co-driver Dr Ursula Schmitt completed a comfortable victory in the Rally Al Khaleej which finished with the UAE's Saeed Thani already planning his next classic car outing in Europe.
The German pair made sure of success in the new 1,200-km event by winning the final special stage which concluded in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday night in their 1955 Jaguar XK 140.
Held under the patronage of Lt General Shaikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE Minister of Interior, the Rally Al Khaleej was sponsored by Siemens and by Etihad Airways, the official carrier.
Peter and Martina Bockemuehl in a 1971 Mercedes Benz 350SL took second place ahead of the 1970 AC Cobra of Dietr Krauschmidt and Bernd Freund, with Thani claiming fourth position in his 1960 Ford Thunderbird.
Making his competitive debut in the event after previously taking part only in classic car exhibitions, Thani was held back by inexperience. While conventional rallies are decided by the fastest times on special stages, classic car rallies require competitors to complete stages as close as possible to the precise target time set.
Thani checked in too early at the end of the first stage to collect heavy time penalties and he admitted at the finish in Abu Dhabi: "I just need to get the timing sorted out. All the other drivers have much more experience than myself and that was the difference.
"It was more difficult than I expected, but I really enjoyed it. I'm still learning and I need more experience, but I'm already thinking of going to Europe to compete next," he added.
STANDINGS
Final positions (provisional):
1. Hans Werner Werth/Dr Ursula Schmitt (Ger) Jaguar XK 140 52pts; 2. Peter Bockemuehl/Martina Bockemuehl Mercedes Benz 350S 32pts; 3. Dietr Krauschmidt/Bernd Freund (Ger) AC Cobra 25.8pts; 4. Saeed Thani/Thani Saeed Thani (UAE) Ford Thunderbird 23pts; 5. Lebrecht Tiede (Ger) MG TC Roadster 18pts.
Special stage 4 results:
1. Peter Bockemuehl/Martina Bockemuehl Mercedes Benz 350SL 0.04secs; 2. Hans Werner Werth/Dr Ursula Schmitt (Ger) Jaguar XK 140 0.05ecs; 3. Willi Mayer/Christina Mayer(Ger) BMW Coupe 3.0 CS 0.11secs; 4. Saeed Thani/ Thani Saeed Thani (UAE) Ford Thurderbird 0.55secs.
Special stage 5 results:
1. Hans Werner Werth/Dr Ursula Schmitt (Ger) Jaguar XK 140 0.07ecs; 2. Peter Bockemuehl/Martina Bockemuehl Mercedes Benz 350SL 0.12secs; 3. Willi Mayer/Christina Mayer(Ger) BMW Coupe 3.0 CS 0.24secs; 4. Saeed Thani/ Thani Saeed Thani (UAE) Ford Thurderbird 0.48secs.
