Dubai driver Al Mutaiwe'e piles pressure on early leader Schlesser

Abu Dhabi: Dubai's Khalifa Al Mutaiwe'e and German co-driver Andreas Schulz guided their X-raid Mini All4 Racing to the fastest time on the punishing second stage of the 2012 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge through the Rub Al Khali [Empty Quarter] yesterday.

Trailing Frenchman Jean-Louis Schlesser by 32m 22s at the overnight halt at Qasr Al Sarab, Al Mutaiwe'e reduced the twice former Dakar Rally winner's overall advantage to an unofficial 24m 36s.

Frenchman Patrick Sireyjol was on course to set the third fastest time on the day's stage and the UAE's Yayha Al Helai was running in fourth at PC3 and on track to retain third overall in his Nissan Patrol.

‘Going as per plan'

"Everything is going according to plan," Al Mutaiwe'e said. "This stage was better suited to my car and we managed to get some time back on the Buggy [Schlesser]. There is still a long way to go, but we are in a good position and also need to be careful not to make a mistake."

Al Mutaiwe'e began the second 283.35km stage, around 36km north of Mezaira'a, two minutes behind overnight leader Schlesser and the Fazza Rally Team driver arrived at the first passage control (PC) one second behind the Frenchman, courtesy the virtual fastest time to that point.

Numerous drivers, including the UAE's Mansour Al Helai, Britain's Mark Powell, Italy's Maurizio Traglio and Russian Boris Gadasin began the second stage with 10 hours of time penalties for failing to complete the first of the desert legs on Monday.

Yesterday's route turned south towards the sand dunes near Liwa and Al Mutaiwe'e managed to extend his virtual stage advantage over Schlesser to 2m 12s by PC2. After over more than an hour of further action in the sweltering heat of the midday sun, the pair remained split by 2m 12s at the third of four passage control points.

Al Mutaiwe'e reached the final checkpoint in 4h 2m 21s and that was sufficient to extend his stage lead over Schlesser to 10m 1s heading into the final section, ensuring his dream of winning the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge was becoming a distinct possibility.

Toughest stage today

Today's 420km leg — split into two stages — is one of the toughest of the race. After a 230km run through the Liwa desert, competitors get just over an hour's break before starting the 190km fourth stage from the Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara, ending back at the event's bivouac desert base.

The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is organised by the ATCUAE and is held under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler's Representative in the Western Region.