Latest news with #MERC2
Muscat Daily
5 days ago
- Sport
- Muscat Daily
Oman's Al Rawahi finishes second in Jordan Rally, compatriot Al Zubair wins MERC2
Dead Sea, Jordan – Qatar's Nasser Saleh al Attiyah won all but one of the 12 gravel special stages on his way to a comfortable 17th victory in the Jordan Rally on Saturday. Abdullah al Rawahi and his Jordanian co-driver Ata al Hmoud maintained the pressure on the Qatari throughout day one but a time-consuming puncture delayed the Omani on Saturday's opening Panorama stage and a second issue on stage 10 proved too much for the 2023 regional champion. He finished second overall. Al Rawahi said: 'It was a long two days for us. The first day was quite good, especially with the pace and we were very close to Nasser. Unfortunately, today we had some punctures and we lost some time. Overall, we are very happy with our performance. It has been the closest we have been to him in the battle. 'We don't really have enough seat time in the car. After this rally I have three months off not really driving my car. My car is also an older generation and there is experience difference between me and Nasser. That is why it is good that he is in the championship. He helps us to push and get closer to him. It is still good. We wanted to win but we are still happy.' Al Rawahi also earned victory in the second round of the Jordan National Championship with Shaker Jweihan claiming second place ahead of Sheikh Bader al Fayez. Oman had plenty more to celebrate as Abdullah al Zubair led the MERC2 field at Jordan Rally from start-to-finish with co-driver Taha al Tadjali to strengthen his push for the overall title. Fellow countryman Zakariya al Aamri had arrived in Jordan with a 15-point lead over Al Zubair but his rival's success and fifth place overall has thrown the battle wide open with two rallies remaining. Al Aamri finished second in the category and eighth overall. Al Zubair said: 'We are happy with this result, It is a very difficult race. It is also very hot. It was our first time here. The first day we were flat out and won every stage. Today, we took it slow. We had a good lead and the strategy paid off.' For Al Attiyah, the Jordan win took him to a record 90th career MERC rally win, as he closes in on an unprecedented 20th regional title since 2003. The new partnership with his Spanish co-driver Candido Carrera has a 100% winning record with the duo now taking victories at the opening four rounds of this year's FIA Middle East Rally Championship in Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and now Jordan. 'I am so happy to win again here in Jordan for the 17th time. This means a lot to me,' said al Attiyah. 'This year we have won every rally so far. It feels like a good year, leading the Middle East Championship and leading the W2RC. For this rally, I will give it 10 out of 10. Today, we controlled the pace and tried to make a gap in case we had a puncture.' Qatar's Abdulaziz al Kuwari and his Irish co-driver Lorcan Moore tried different set-ups with their Citroën C3 but struggled to match the pace of the leading duo on this occasion. They did enough to round off the podium places.
Muscat Daily
05-02-2025
- Sport
- Muscat Daily
Omani trio Al Rawahi, Al Zubair and Al Amri raring to go at Qatar International Rally
Muscat – Oman's Abdullah al Rawahi, Zakaria al Amri and Abdullah al Zubair will be fighting for honours in the second round of the Middle East Rally Championship will begin this weekend in Qatar. After the first leg of the championship in Sohar won by Qatar's Nasser al Attiyah, Al Rawahi occupies eighth place in the overall championship standings. Al Zubair leads the MERC2 group with 30 points, while Al Amri has 24 points. Al Rawahi hopes to return to the podiums this time in Qatar after he was forced to withdraw from the first day of the rally in Sohar. He was able to enter the rally on the second day via the Super Rally and achieved the fastest time in four of the six stages the next day. Al Amri also faced problems with his car from the first day, especially in the turbo system. He said, 'We have complete knowledge of the Qatar Rally and its stages. There are some differences in the stages and some difficulty in navigation, but our goal is to win the category so that we can go to the third round in Saudi Arabia, and we are at the top of our category. I have a good and well-known navigator, Mohammed al Mazroui, and we have previously competed in many races together. We wish success to everyone. We say thank you to all who supported us in the championship'. Al Rawahi said he wanted to win in his country's rally, but circumstances forced him out on day one of the competition. Al Rawahi said: 'For Qatar rally, it is more difficult for us than the local drivers. They are more familiar to the type of stages, for example, Nasser Al Attiyah and other locals, they enter and exit stages their own ways, you have to take careful notes of the stages. 'We hope that the organising committee will be more careful and strike about this point in the stages, last year we finished third in Qatar and we are hoping to do better this time.'
Times of Oman
26-01-2025
- Automotive
- Times of Oman
Abdullah Al Zubair brings smiles on the faces of Oman rally fans
MUSCAT: Local rally driver Abdullah Al Zubair earned the coveted MERC2 title along with his co-driver Taha Al Zadjali at the 28th Oman International Rally, the first round of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC), which concluded in Sohar on Saturday. Driving a Subaru Impreza, the Al Zubair and Al Zadjali did the host nation proud with overall sixth place and top honours in the MERC2 category. Qatar's Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah and his new Spanish co-driver Candido Carrera cruised to the overall title win in 6min 13.6sec victory. The Qatari secured a record-breaking eighth win in the Sultanate in his Škoda Fabia RS and a staggering 87th career victory in the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) with a seventh different co-driver. He won nine of the 13 special stages, including the Power Stage finale. Al Zubair's return to competitive rallying was marked by his determination to excel in the N category. Prior to the rally, he emphasised the challenges posed by the new stages in Sohar, noting that success would require "effort, patience, caution, and experience." He also expressed gratitude to his sponsor, Ara Petroleum Company, highlighting the importance of corporate support in the demanding sport of rallying. Al Zubair's extensive rally experience includes participation in the Middle East Rally Championship, the Jordan National Rally Championship, the World Desert Rally Championship, and various Baja events across Europe. The experience stood out handy as he claimed MERC2 success while navigating the demanding routes in Sohar. Rakan Al Rashed returned to the series in impressive style by taking second overall with Portugal's Hugo Magalhães in a Toyota GR Yaris Rally 2. The Saudi overcame a couple of flat tyres on Friday's opening stage and measured his pace well once Abdulaziz Al Kuwari had blotted his copybook on the last stage of the first day. Qatar's Nasser Khalifa Al Attiyah and his Lebanese co-driver Ziad Chehab went largely under the radar to deliver a polished performance to snatch the final place on the podium in their Ford Fiesta. Defending regional champion Abdulaziz Al Kuwari overcame a seventh stage accident and the resultant 10-minute penalty to retain third at the start of the final day in his QMMF-backed Citroën C3. But the luckless Qatari ground to a halt with suspension issues on the penultimate stage. Irishman Lorcan Moore performed well on the pace notes. Al Kuwari's cruel demise lifted Rashid Al Muhannadi and Gary Mcelhinney into fourth place in the new Peugeot 208 Rally 4. They suffered late drama of their own when the car got stuck in the regrouping zone before the final stage and an attempt to pull it clear resulted in extensive damage to the front end. Jordan's Shadi Shaban and Samer Issa secured a fine fifth place in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX followed by the Subaru Impreza crew of Al Zubair and Al Zadjali. Saudi Arabia's Ibrahim Al-Muhanna (Can-Am) finished seventh and last year's winner and Oman's Abdullah Al Rawahi and Ata Al Hmoud benefited from four fastest times to lift themselves into an unlikely eighth in the second Autotek Škoda after a cruel retirement on the first stage on Friday morning. Shadi El-Fakih (Renault), Yosra Jazzar (Can-Am) and Zakariya Al Aamri (Subaru) rounded off the FIA finishers in ninth, 10th and 11th positions after India's Saneem Payyakkal and Musa Sherif stopped in the penultimate stage. Zakariya Al Aufi claimed victory in the Oman National Championship event with his co-driver Mutasim Al Balushi. On the final day, a total of 15 crews graced the start list for the final leg of six special stages with both Al Rawahi and Al Kuwari returning to the fray and chasing as many points as possible. Only Mohamed Mansoor Parol's Subaru Impreza was missing from the list. All five crews competed in the Oman National Rally made the restart. Salim Al Tauqi and his navigator Issa Al Wardi in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII came second while the duo of Haitham Al Zadjali and Wail Al Shaibani, also in Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII, rounded the podium.
