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Max Verstappen pips Charles Leclerc for Jeddah win
Jeddah, 27 March 2022: Max Verstappen took his first victory of the 2022 FIA Formula One World thanks to a late overtaking move past Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in a nail-biting finish to the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix here on Sunday. Carlos Sainz took third place for Ferrari, while pole-position man and early race leader Sergio Pérez was forced to settle for fourth after he was disadvantaged by a safety car period just after his first pit stop.
When the lights went out for the start, Pérez made a good start and powered into the lead. Fellow front-row starter Leclerc was slower off the line and he was quickly put under pressure by Sainz and Verstappen.
As they approached Turn 1, Leclerc moved right to defend from team-mate Sainz and that gave Verstappen the opportunity to attack on the inside. Leclerc managed to hold P2, but Verstappen went round Sainz on the outside of the next corner to rise to third place.
At the front, though, Pérez was beginning to stretch his legs. With a clear track ahead the Mexican began to forge a gap and by lap six he was more than 2.5s clear of Leclerc, with Verstappen 1.3s off the lead Ferrari and three seconds clear of Sainz. Further back, Mercedes’ George Russell took fifth from Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and the Frenchman was also passed by team-mate Fernando Alonso.
The order at the top remained static until Pérez made his first pit stop at the end of lap 15. The Mexican switched to hard tyres in a 2.9s second stop and emerged in fifth place. However, timing of the stop proved to unfortunate, as almost as soon as he rejoined the action, the VSC was deployed due to a crash for Nicholas Latifi in the final corner. The virtual caution quickly being replaced by the physical safety car.
Verstappen immediately pitted along with Leclerc and Sainz and when the trio emerged from the pit lane Leclerc led behind the safety car with Verstappen second. Pérez was now down in third place ahead of Sainz and Russell. Behind them Haas’ Kevin Magnussen and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, both of whom had started on hard tyres, now occupied sixth and seventh respectively.
The safety car left the track at the end of lap 20 and Leclerc held the lead ahead of Max. Pérez, meanwhile, was advised by race engineer that he would have to give up third place to Sainz on the restart as he had passed the Ferrari under the safety car when the Spaniard was leaving the pit lane. As the field exited Turn 1 Pérez slowed and Sainz cruised past to take P3.
As the second stint developed the battle at the front between Leclerc and Verstappen ebbed and flowed and by lap 29 the Dutch driver was just 1.4s behind his Monegasque rival. Behind them, Sainz held third place ahead of Pérez, while Russell was fifth. Hamilton meanwhile, had risen to sixth after passing Magnussen.
The complexion of the race changed again on lap 37 when Daniel Ricciardo suffered a mechanical problem and halted his McLaren just short of the pit entry. The VSC was deployed and Haas’ Kevin Magnussen pitted for new tyres.
Almost simultaneously Fernando Alonso, also suffering with a mechanical issue, parked his Alpine close to Ricciardo’s car and the pit lane was closed by race control as marshals rushed to push the McLaren and the Alpine into the pit lane.
The VSC ended on lap 41 and Verstappen immediately went on the attack. The pit lane entry was then opened and Hamilton pitted for medium tyres and he emerged in P12.
At the front, Verstappen was now closing on Leclerc and on lap 42 he used DRS to close right up to the Ferrari driver. The world champion attacked at the end of the lap and swept past the Ferrari under DRS. Leclerc immediately struck back and using drag reduction on the main straight at the start of lap 43 he powered past Verstappen to retake the lead.
At the end of the lap Verstappen attacked again, again closing up to Leclerc under DRS ahead of Turn 27. However, this time he locked up and Leclerc held the lead as they began lap 44.
With five laps to go Verstappen switched the attack to Turn 1. Leclerc was alive to the threat however and he positioned his car well to fend off the assault. Verstappen was determined to continued the fight and he again closed rapidly. At the end of the lap put his car almost alongside the Ferrari and that gave him the perfect opportunity at the start of lap 47. With the aid of DRS on the main straight he swept past the Ferrari to take the lead.
Leclerc wasn’t finished, however, and almost immediately he was on the attack, looking to pressure Verstappen into a mistake. The Dutchman resisted and when the yellow flags were shown for an incident between Lance Stroll and Alex Albon, the Monegasque driver had to back out of any attack.
He would have one last chance, at the end on the final lap, but while Leclerc got close in Turn 27 it wasn’t enough and Verstappen held position to take his first victory of 2022.
Behind them, Sainz took third while Pérez was forced to settle for fourth place. Fifth place went to Russell, with Ocon sixth ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris. Pierre Gasly was eighth for AlphaTauri, while Magnussen’s tyre gamble under the VSC saw him finish ninth ahead of Hamilton who took the final point on offer.
2022 FIA Formula Saudi Arabian Grand Prix – Race
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull 50 1:24’19.293
2 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 50 1:24’19.842 0.549
3 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 50 1:24’27.390 8.097
4 Sergio Pérez Red Bull 50 1:24’30.093 10.800
5 George Russell Mercedes 50 1:24’52.025 32.732
6 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 50 1:25’15.310 56.017
7 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 50 1:25’15.417 56.124
8 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Red Bull 50 1:25’22.239 1’02.946
9 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 50 1:25’23.601 1’04.308
10 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 50 1:25’33.241 1’13.948
11 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 50 1:25’41.508 1’22.215
12 Nico Hülkenberg Aston Martin/Mercedes 50 1:25’51.035 1’31.742
13 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 49 – 1 lap
14 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 47 – Not running
Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 36 – Retirement
Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 35 – Retirement
Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 35 – Retirement
Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 14 – Retirement
Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Red Bull 0 – Not started
Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 0 – Withdrawn -
Karna Kadur wins APRC round on international debut; Nikhil Pai drives Polo magic again
Chennai, 27 March 2022: Gentle giant Karna Kadur, who brings back glorious memories of Team Kadur, along with experienced co-driver Nikhil Pai, a stalwart with ‘Tulips’ and ‘pace-notes’, made a scintillating debut in the Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) and brought Arka Motorsports team a solid victory in the first round of the APRC Asia Cup 2022. The duo thus qualified for the APRC finals to be held in Australia later this year where the winners of other rounds will join to decide the APRC title. In 2016, the pair brought the first National title for Volkswagen in the annals of Indian National Rally Championship (INRC).
The Madras Motor Sports Club (MMSC) pulled off yet another miracle in bringing APRC to India, albeit in a new regional format of APRC Asia Cup. After a brief hiatus of two years (2020 & 2021) thanks to COVID, APRC made a comeback but in its regional avatar as Asia Cup and Pacific Cup, held separately in their own regions. All winners and ranked teams selected by ASNs from these regional events, will join the grand finale at Australia in November to vie for the APRC title. MMSC successfully completed the 44th South India Rally, a leg of the APRC (Asia Cup) and the third and final round of the delayed and depleted National championship, INRC.
Three-time APRC champion, Gaurav Gill, who came second here, has already registered for the APRC 2022 and will be taking part in a Japan rally for prep and will proceed to display his talent at the finale Down Under. As per the current rules, a penalty of 10 minutes plus the fastest stage time will be added to any car which did not finish a particular stage. However, Younus Ilyas of Race Concepts who did well till the fag end, may have lost a third place in APRC, for not having parked the car in Park Ferme on time.
Karna Kadur, who got the first overall National INRC Championship title for Volkswagen Polo, winning the coveted title in 2016 has a record of sorts winning many a National title in different classes. But the APRC round win, has its own charm. Ably partnered by Nikhil Pai, one of the senior-most of the current navigators, Polo tasted its first victory in the Indian shores in 2013 when Sirish Chandran won a round in INRC. Later, he also stood with Karna Kadur to fulfill a dream of winning their first overall National title (2016), also in a polo; and now the duo did it again bringing their first international win at home behind the steering wheel of a Polo. Gifted with a clarity in thought and clear vision, Pai, at 50, looks forward to another fruitful season. “With the 2022 season starting early, we have no time to rest. I am looking forward to a great year ahead,” said Pai.
Born in Bengaluru, 33 summers ago, Karna Kadur caught the eye of theIndian motorsports connoisseurs as he displayed immense talent and skill in his teens and twenties and continued his momentum but lack of sponsors meant that his potential is yet to fully blossom. He won the Rally Star Cup, a baby of MAI, in his debut in 2009 and went on to win many other National titles, with Group N victory in 2012 being another major haul. He not only won the Overall National title in 2016 but notched overall wins in 2017 and 2018, the year where he graduated to INRC2 and pocketed the National title on debut in the class.
In 2020, the duo were planning to break through into international circuit, but the pandemic, and lack of proper commitment from the sponsors halted their plans. It is a pity that such a talented pair had to slog and always fight with shoe-string budgets for lack of “backing and budget” as Karna put it. Nevertheless, the APRC participation and Asia Cup win will be a moment to cherish for some time, and hopefully bring-in some well-deserved sponsosrs.
But there is no time to relax. “We get only two days off, then we are back to work with early 2022 calendar. We will work hard and hopefully put down a plan to go the for the APRC finale,” said Karna Kadur after his victory podium. Karna, is adept at road racing too and has excelled in the racing Nationals and also became a driver coach and mentor. He was first selected for Red Rooster team in 2010 after his brilliant show in his debut year in 2009.
Nikhil Pai, is a sound engineer by profession. Everything he plans is sound and safe. A meticulous planner and systematic executor, his hardwork and attention to detail can match few in the field. He has been a consistent and safe co-driver calling pace notes for many different drivers in a career spanning three decades. He made his international debut in 2012, in Rally Sarangala in Sri Lanka and called the notes for former Indian National Champion Lohit Urs in the Malaysian National Championship in 2013. “But this is my first victory in an International event. It is a long time coming and I am thrilled right now. A big shout out to my team, sponsors and all the mechs and yes, we have done it,” said Pai.
Karna Kadur and Nikhil Pai will be back to Chennai for South India Rally on April 22, the first round of INRC 2022.
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Aditya-Virender INRC 2021 champs
Chennai, 27 March 2022: Himachal Pradesh duo Aditya Thakur and navigator Virender Kashyap lodged a hard-fought overall third in a humble INRC3 and kept a marauding Fabid Ahmer at bay till the fag-end and pulled off a stunning championship win by 1.2 seconds. Aditya and Virender join an elite club of INRC Overall winners inscribing their name as 2021 champions.
Meanwhile, Karna Kadur and co-driver Nikhil Pai of Arka Motorsports, driving a Volkswagen Polo 1.0 shod on MRF Tyres, kept their nerves to win the 44th South India Rally, thus grabbing their first win in an international event.
The victory in the FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (Asia Cup) first round which was held along with the Indian National Rally Championship final round of 2021, got Karna-Nikhil pair their first victory since 2018. The third round of the FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship 2021 concluded the delayed and depleted 2021 season on Sunday but the Championship winners in other classes were not announced as there was delay in the final results.
Even as Kadur and Pai celebrated their Asia Cup (India leg) victory on their APRC debut, Himachal’s Aditya Thakur and co-driver Virender Kashyap (Chettinad Sporting) clinched their maiden National championship title (Overall), though provisionally, and subject to the outcome of an appeal pending before the Indian Motor Sports Appeal Court.
Kadur survived another scare today when the door of the luggage boot sprung open in the day’s second Stage, but he came through relatively unscathed for his maiden success in an international event. Two other Asia Cup contenders, Amittrajit Ghosh (Ashwin Naik) and Younus Ilyas (Sanath G) packed up due to mechanical failures, when running second and third, respectively.
Meanwhile, three times APRC champion Gaurav Gill (Musa Sherif), who had retired on Saturday with a mechanical failure but restarted today, eventually finished second behind Kadur.
Kadur also topped the South India Rally, organised by the Madras Motor Sports Club, to claim the Overall honours ahead of Dean Mascarenhas (Gagan Karumbaiah) and Thakur. The third place finish was sufficient for Thakur to emerge National champion.
Reflecting on his victory, Kadur said: “This is my first win since 2018 and I am very happy to break a jinx. Also, this is my first win in Chennai and the APRC victory also, and I cannot ask for anything better. As always, there is last-minute drama today with lower-arm bush popping out, but we were lucky to finish. We have learnt a lot in the last two rallies (both DNFs).
“Till 2018, we won all the sub-categories we entered. And only in 2019 we started getting the budgets and the backing to go Overall. From there, we were developing the car, thanks to Leela uncle (N Leelakrishnan) and the whole team at Arka. Thanks also to the Volkswagen Motorsport team who have been continuously supporting me. The MRF Tyres certainly gave us the edge as the difference was only in seconds after the first stage, but it is the Tyres that allowed us to push the limits.”
An ecstatic and emotional Thakur said: “Right now I can’t express how happy I am today. It is a dream come true. I never expected to become a National champion in such a short time after making my INRC debut in 2018. There are so many emotions and thoughts going through my mind. A big thanks to my co-driver Virender who is always spot-on.
“I want to thank MRF Tyres and Volkswagen Motorsport for all the support. It is a dream come true that I am driving for such a wonderful rally car. I am indebted to my team Chettinad Sporting, Team PPTS and Lionnoil, that keeps my car cool every time I go out.”
Gill was disappointed with the result. “It was the same in Coimbatore where we had a DNF (Did Not Finish) and in K-1000 that we won. Here too we were the quickest, but a mechanical issue cut short our rally yesterday. However, on restart, we had a good run today. Overall, I am quite happy with our performance,” said Gill, who plans to compete in APRC’s Japan and Australia legs this season.
Final classification (Provisional):
FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (Asia Cup, India round): 1. Karna Kadur / Nikhil Pai (India) (01hr,50mins, 04.500secs); 2. Gaurav Gill / Musa Sherif (India) (02:07:17.000)
The FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship:
Overall / INRC: 1. Karna Kadur / Nikhil Pai (both Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (01:50:04.500); 2. Dean Mascarenhas (Mangaluru) / Gagan Karumbaiah (Kodagu) (01:51:08.900); 3. Aditya Thakur / Virender Kashyap (both Himachal, Chettinad Sporting) (01:52:16.100). National Overall champion (Provisional, subject to outcome of an appeal pending before the Indian Motor Sports Appeal Court): Aditya Thakur (Himachal, Chettinad Sporting).
INRC-2: 1. Dean Mascarenhas (Mangaluru) / Gagan Karumbaiah (Kodagu) (01:51:08.900); 2. Fabid Ahmer / Sanath G (both Palakkad) (01:52.17.300); 3. Rahul Kanthraj / Vivek Bhatt (both Bengaluru) (01:56:11.400).
INRC-3: Aditya Thakur / Virender Kashyap (both Himachal) (01:52:16.100); 2. Syed Salman Ahmed (Mysuru) / BK Rishabh (Mangaluru) (01:54:53.100); 3. Kuber Sharma / Kunal Kashyap (both Himachal) (01:55:32.900).
INRC-4: Mujeeb Rehman (Kasargod) / Ravindra Kumar (Bengaluru) (01:59:08.600); 2. Prakhyat Shirole / Arjun SSB (both Bengaluru) (02:01:05.900); Deepak Chandra / Raghuram CG (both Bengaluru) (02:12:37.100).
Junior INRC: 1. Pragati Gowda / Trisha Alonkar (both Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (01:57:42.300); 2. Raghuram Saminathan (Coimbatore) / Bharath Sargur (Bengaluru, Kari Sports) (01:59:54.000); 3. Jahaan Singh Gill (Chandigarh) / Sheeraz Ahmed (Chikkamagaluru, SNAP Racing) (02:32:13.400).
FMSCI Gypsy Challenge: 1. Samrat Yadav (Chandigarh) / M Chandrashekar (Bengaluru) (01:57:22.900); 2. Rupender Sheoran (Gurugram) / Mohit Mallik (Faridabad) (02:03:23.700); 3. MR Venkatapathy / Santosh Kumar Selvaraj (both Coimbatore) (02:04:44.600). FMSCI SUV Challenge: 1. Ritesh Rai (Chennai) / Venu Rameshkumar (Coimbatore) (02:05:20.000).
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SIR APRC/INRC live timing
44TH SOUTH INDIA RALLY the third and final round of the 2021 Indian National Rally Championship will decide the APRC 2022 first round winner and the National Champion for INRC 2021. Follow the Live timing here:
http://vgonext.com/ControlCenter/PLI.aspx?Key=c6680d53-0a46-49ff-9be4-60ad8a8a91f6http://vgonext.com/ControlCenter/PLI.aspx?Key=c6680d53-0a46-49ff-9be4-60ad8a8a91f6
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Sergio Perez takes maiden career pole; Max P4, Hami P16
Jeddah, 26 March 2022: Red Bull Racing’s Sergio Pérez claimed his first career pole position at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, beating Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by two hundredths of a second to claim top spot in qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix here on Saturday. Carlos Sainz was third for Ferrari while defending world champion Max Verstappen will line up fourth for tomorrow’s race.
At the beginning of Q1, Haas’ Kevin Magnussen was the first to lay claim to P1, with the Danish driver climbing to the top of the timesheetr with a lap of 1:30.425.
It might have been expected that the Red Bulls of Verstappen and Pérez would usurp the Haas driver when they took to the track but they didn’t get the chance. With just over six minutes on the clock the session was halted when Nicholas Latifi crashed at Turn 13. The Canadian lost the rear of his Williams on entry and slid off into the barriers on the right-hand side of the track. The incident forced both Red Bulls to abandon their opening runs and they returned to the pits to await the restart.
After an almost eight-minute delay the action resumed and Verstappen promptly jumped to the top of the order with a lap of 1:29.330. His stay there was short however, and he dropped to third as Sainz took P1 with a lap of 1:28.855 and Leclerc slotted into P2 just under two tenths behind his team-mate. Verstappen was already building towards another run, though, and when he crossed the line at the end of his flying lap he split the Ferraris with a lap 1:29.928.
Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton was in trouble, however. As the final runs began the Mercedes deriver was in 16th position and at risk. He crossed the line in 1:30.343, which boosted him to 15th but when Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll crossed the line two tenths ahead, Hamilton fell back into the drop zone and he was eliminated. It was the first time since the 2017 Brazilian Grand Prix that the seven-time champion had failed to make it out of Q1.
Eliminated behind Hamilton were Williams’ Alex Albon, Aston Martin’s Nico Hulkenberg, the unfortunate Latifi and AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda who only completed two laps before a fuel system issue ruled him out of the Q1 running.
At the top of the order, Sainz took P1 ahead of Verstappen, Leclerc and Russell, while Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas took fifth ahead of Pérez at the end of the first segment.
In the first runs of Q2 it was Leclerc who set the pace, with the Ferrari putting in a good lap of 1:28.883 to claim P1. Pérez slotted into second place just five hundredths of a second behind the Monegasque driver, with Verstappen two hundredths further back in third place and Sainz fourth.
The session was then red flagged when Mick Schumacher crashed heavily in Turn 9. The medical car was quickly on the scene and Schumacher was extracted from the wreckage and taken by ambulance to the medical centre. The FIA later confirmed that Schumacher appeared unhurt but that he was being taken to hospital for precautionary checks.
After almost an hour the session resumed and it was Ferrari who made the moves at the top of the order, with Sainz posting a lap of 1:28.686 to take top spot ahead of Leclerc who improved to 1:28.780. Pérez couldn’t find an improvement on his lap and progressed to Q3 in third place thanks to his earlier lap. Verstappen started his lap but then backed out of the attempt and his first lap of the middle phase saw him through to Q3 in fourth place ahead of Alpine’s Fernando Alonso. Behind them, Bottas went through in sixth ahead of AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly, Magnussen, the second Alpine of Esteban Ocon and Russell.
Ruled out at the end of Q2 were the McLarens of Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo, in P11 and P12 respectively, followed by Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu, Schumacher, who qualified 14th, and Stroll.
In the first runs of Q3, Sainz was quickest and the Ferrari man claimed provisional pole with a lap of 1:28.402. That put him four hundredths of a second clear of Leclerc. Pérez, looking increasingly comfortable on the high-speed track, powered to P3 just a tenth behind Leclerc. Verstappen was not happy, however, and complaining that “he had no grip on this tyre” the world champion was eighth at the end of the opening laps with a time of 1:29.239, almost three tenths off his Q2 time.
And in the final runs it was Pérez who rose to the top. Leclerc, first of the front runners out on track, set a tough benchmark at 1:28.225. Sainz, following, couldn’t find an improvement and had to rely on his opening time. Pérez, though, was flying and when he crossed the line he stopped the clock at 1:29.200 to claim his first career pole position.
Verstappen, meanwhile, was forced to settle for fourth place on the grid ahead of Ocon, Russell, Alonso and Bottas. Gasly will line up ninth and the top 10 was rounded out by Magnussen.
2022 FIA Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix – Qualifying
1 Sergio Pérez Red Bull 1:28.200 7 252.000
2 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:28.225 0.025 8 251.928
3 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:28.402 0.202 8 251.424
4 Max Verstappen Red Bull 1:28.461 0.261 8 251.256
5 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 1:29.068 0.868 5 249.544
6 George Russell Mercedes 1:29.104 0.904 5 249.443
7 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 1:29.147 0.947 6 249.323
8 Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:29.183 0.983 7 249.222
9 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Red Bull 1:29.254 1.054 7 249.024
10 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 1:29.588 1.388 6 248.095
11 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:29.651 0.965 7 247.921
12 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 1:29.773 1.226 8 247.584
13 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:29.819 1.278 6 247.457
14 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 1:29.920 1.234 5 247.179
15 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:31.009 2.323 6 244.222
16 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:30.343 1.488 11 246.022
17 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 1:30.492 1.637 9 245.617
18 Nico Hülkenberg Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:30.543 1.688 10 245.478
19 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1:31.817 2.962 4 242.072
Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Red Bull – 2 -
Karna Kadur, Nikhil Pai lead APRC; Aditya inches closer to INRC title
Chennai, March 26: On a day of topsy-turvy results, Bengaluru pair of Karna Kadur and co-driver Nikhil Pai (Arka Motorsports) survived a puncture and a cracked windscreen to seize the Overall lead in the 44th South India Rally which is also a round of the FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (Asia Cup) and the concluding round of the FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship with MRF Tyres as the Associate Sponsor, here on Saturday.
A big shocker was the early retirement of title favourite and seven-times National champion Gaurav Gill (co-driver Musa Sherif) after the lower arm of his Mahindra XUV 300 broke, but it was not known whether he will rejoin the Rally under the Super Rally format on Sunday when five more Stages would be run in the reverse direction, starting 7:27 am. “We will take a call whether or not to compete tomorrow after examining the car tonight for any collateral damage,” said team engineer N Leelakrishnan.
In all, 33 of the 43 starters finished Leg-1 of the South India Rally, organised by the Madras Motor Sports Club, celebrating its 70th anniversary.
Meanwhile, Kadur, despite the puncture and damaged windscreen, put in some consistent times to take a 19-second lead over Race Concepts’ Younus Ilyas (G Sanath) from Kollam, while Kolkata’s Amittrajit Ghosh (Ashwin Naik, Mangaluru) was running third, in the Asia Cup.
“We lost almost a minute this morning due to a puncture. I drove the entire stage on three wheels before changing. In the Aavisa Stage, a stone thrown up by (Gaurav) Gill’s car, as we passed in the opposite direction, cracked the windscreen which we taped to prevent further damage. That apart, we had a fairly trouble-free run, but tomorrow is another day. So, fingers crossed,” said Kadur.
In the National Championship, Kadur, followed by Mangaluru’s Dean Mascarenhas (Gagan Karumbaiah, Kodagu) and Ilyas occupied the top three spots (Overall) at the end of Leg-1 today.
INRC Overall championship leader, Aditya Thakur (Virender Kashyap) from Himachal was placed fifth behind Ghosh, and has an opportunity to win the championship on the morrow provided he finishes the event.
Thakur, winner of the first round in Coimbatore last month, said: “The going was good today, except for some issues with the ignition in SS-4. Tomorrow, we will push hard, but our focus would be on bringing the car back home safely. The set of MRF tyres were really good and provided good traction.”
Leg-1 classification (Provisional):
FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (Asia Cup): 1. Karna Kadur / Nikhil Pai (India) (55mins, 30.200sec); 2. Younus Ilyas / Aniruddha Ranganekar (India) (55:49.200); 3. Amittrajit Ghosh / Ashwin Naik (Indi) (55:49.800).
FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship:
Overall / INRC: 1. Karna Kadur / Nikhil Pai (both Bengaluru, Arka Motorsports) (55:30.200); 2. Dean Mascarenhas (Mangaluru) / Gagan Karumbaiah (Kodagu) (55:49.000); 3. Younus Ilyas (Kollam) / Aniruddha Ranganekar (Pune) (Race Concepts) (55:49.200.
INRC-2: 1. Dean Mascarenhas (Mangaluru) / Gagan Karumbaiah (Kodagu) (55:49.000); 2. Fabid Ahmer / Sanath G (both Palakkad) (57:03.700); 3. *Chetan Shivram / Dilip Sharan (both Bengaluru, SNAP Racing) (57:04.100). (*Shivram and Sharan were later disqualified by the stewards.)
INRC-3: Aditya Thakur / Virender Kashyap (both Himachal) (56:29.400); 2. Syed Salman Ahmed (Mysuru) / BK Rishabh (Mangaluru) (57:48.400); 3. Kuber Sharma / Kunal Kashyap (both Himachal) (58:04.200).
INRC-4: Mujeeb Rehman (Kasargod) / Ravindra Kumar (Bengaluru) (59:40.200); 2. Vaibhav Marathe (Goa) / Harsha Vardhana (Tumkuru) (59:45.600); 3. Prakhyat Shirole / Arjun SSB (both Bengaluru) (1:00:43.400).
Junior INRC: 1. Pragati Gowda / Trisha Alonkar (both Bengaluru) (58:44.700); 2. Raghuram Saminathan (Coimbatore) / Bharath Sargur (Bengaluru) (59:38.900); 3. Shivani Pruthvi (Davangere) / Ruthvik Praveen (Tiptur) (1:00:52.400).
FMSCI Gypsy Challenge: 1. Samrat Yadav (Chandigarh) / M Chandrashekar (Bengaluru) (58:18.600); 2. Rupender Sheoran (Gurugram) / Mohit Mallik (Faridabad) (1:00:52.800); 3. MR Venkatapathy / Santosh Kumar Selvaraj (both Coimbatore) (1:02:08.900).
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FIA Statement on Mick Schumy’s check up
26 March 2022:The FIA advises that an incident occurred during Qualifying for the 2022 FIA Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix today, 26/03/22, involving car #47, Mick Schumacher.
Assessment at the Medical Centre revealed no injuries, and he has been transferred to King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital, Jeddah, for precautionary checks.–
Update: The driver has left hospital and the precautionary checks revealed no injuries. -
Nasser Al-Attiyah, Konrad extend thier lead: Qatar Baja
Losail (Qatar), 25 March 2022: Qatar’s Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and Polish junior rider Konrad Dabrowski extended their leads in the car and motorcycle categories after the second section of a gruelling Qatar International Baja on Friday.
Al-Attiyah and French co-driver Mathieu Baumel started the day from 10th position on the road and quickly began to overtake their rivals to win stage two (122.73km). The latest Toyota GR DKR Hilux never missed a beat and the Qatari was able to shadow Toyota team-mate Yazeed Al-Rajhi to the finish of the second of the FIA’s two stages to extend his outright lead to 3min 52.6sec.
“It was a good run and we didn’t have any problems except for one flat tyre,” said Al-Attiyah. “For the second stage we didn’t really need to push because there were a lot of stones and we wanted to save everything for tomorrow. I am not surprised with the pace of Yazeed. Now we will try and do our best tomorrow.”
Al-Rajhi and co-driver Michael Orr opened the road for much of the second 124.86km stage, after passing Ahmed Al-Kuwari around 15km after the start, and their pace and performance was rewarded with the stage win and a comfortable second place in the rankings. Fellow Saudi Yasir Seaidan lost his way on several occasions in the third Toyota and held a distant third overall.
Al-Rajhi said: “It was a good day for us. First stage we were unlucky. We have a puncture after the start, after 10km, and I catch Yasir (Seaidan) and I follow for around 70km with the dust and more dust. We lost together, me and Yasir, in one place because we took a different road and then we see Nasser and we followed him. But we lost some time. On the second stage we push and Michael did a great job. Qatar is very difficult navigation and we did it very well to win the stage. We are not too far away but we need to push a little bit tomorrow.”
Dabrowski began the day with a lead of 1min 57.2sec in the motorcycle race and the Pole rode for much of the FIM’s 247.59km second stage with Emirati Mohammed Al-Balooshi and Great Britain’s Maki Rees-Stavros. The trio were close together in the desert up to the refuel and then the leading duo dropped the Briton after he made a navigational error and they continued their duel for supremacy.
Dabrowski began to edge away from his rival and eventually crossed the finish line 1min 26.7sec in front of the Emirati to lead the motorcycle category by 3min 23.9sec.
“I am quite happy and surprised at the same time,” admitted Dabrowski. “At the beginning of the stage I had a crash in the mud. I was surprised by a pile of mud on the ground. It looked the same everywhere. I had a few issues on the way and had to repair. The GPS fell off and my handlebars were bent. I even had to scroll the road book with my hand. Many stories today but, at the end, I managed to pull away from the guys and win again. Stavros wanted to lead and then he made a navigation mistake. I went my own and pulled away from Al-Balooshi and then ended up with the win.”
Second-placed Al-Balooshi said: “Very tough. Very difficult navigation. I caught Konrad at the beginning but I selected the wrong tyre set for Qatar. This was the only option available. When I caught Konrad, I stayed the first half of the stage together. For me, that was good enough to win. But we went behind the car tracks in the second half. There were a lot of tracks, he made a big gap and my tyres were worn out and I had no traction. Congratulations to him. Tomorrow, we will give it our all and see what we can do.”
Both Kuwait’s Abdullah Al-Shatti and Jordanian Abdullah Abu Aishah dropped out of contention and Qatar’s over-450cc class leader Abdulrahman Al-Sheeb and Dane Thomas Kongshøj rounded off the top five behind Rees-Stavros. Britain’s Robert Wallace, Qatar’s Sheikh Mohamed Al-Thani and Bahrain’s Salman Farhan hold sixth, seventh and eighth overall.
Andorra-based Ulsterman Kris Meeke sustained two flat tyres but praised his co-driver François Cazalet for guiding him to fourth in the car category and first in the T3 class for lightweight prototype machines.
“Actually enjoyed it,” said Meeke. “We had two punctures on the first stage and had to stop and change and that left us no spare wheels for the second one, so we really had to take it easy. It was tricky but we had to manage it. Top marks to François, my co-driver, he was on the money, clear and precise. It’s really tricky here. We picked the right roads but his instructions were very clear. I was following five or six cars on the second one so the bike tracks were not a distraction. I really enjoyed the day.”
Khalifa Saleh Al-Attiyah and Max Delfino came home in fifth overall and increased their lead in T4, despite two punctures for the brother of the Baja leader. Seventh-placed veteran Sadoon Al-Kuwari is the Qatari’s closest challenger in the T4 section after front suspension failure side-lined Camelia Liparoti’s Yamaha.
Dani Sordo’s desert debut in a Nasser Racing Can-Am was plagued by navigational delays. The WRC driver originally held sixth overall and second in T3 but he had missed three successive masked waypoints (15 minutes each) and a standard waypoint and was awarded 47 minutes in time penalties, pushing the Spaniard down to 14th place and eighth in T3.
“We are back, a long way back, we had a lot of problems,” said a clearly frustrated Sordo. “I just drive and follow. I am sorry but we were lost a lot.”
Ahmed Al-Kuwari opened the road this morning and avoided serious delays to hold sixth overall in his QMMF Team Can-Am, with team-mate Rashid Al-Muhannadi, Emirati Yasmeen Koloc and former FIA T2 World Champion Adel Abdulla rounding off the top 10 in their T3 machines.
Saudi Arabia’s Muneef Al-Shammeri (Nissan) topped the FIA T2 standings in 13th overall, while Abdulmajeed Al-Khulaifi held a comfortable lead in the FIM quad category. Qatar’s Abdullah Al-Khelaifi was the sole participant in the FIM SSV section.
Saudi Arabia’s Mishaal Al-Ghuneim snatched the stage win and the lead in the FIM National Baja from South Africa’s Jaco Anderson. Emirati rider Mohammed Meerza slipped to third place.
Al-Mashna and Hani Al-Shammeri were again fastest in the FIA National Baja and extended their lead to 11min 04.4sec.
Friday – as it happened
A strong wind greeted riders and drivers to their respective selective section starts, with the FIM category tackling the longer of the two sections (124.86km) to the west of Doha, while the cars crossed the slightly shorter 122.73km special. After a 20-minute neutralisation and refuel, riders headed straight into the second part, but the cars took a different route to their SS3 and started after a regrouping.
While the cars headed up the west coast, the bikes tackled a slightly more southerly stage through the western deserts to the east of Dukhan. Ahmed Al-Kuwari opened the road, ahead of Ahmad Al-Muhannadi and Adel Abdulla, with Sordo, Al-Rajhi, Meeke and Al-Attiyah running in sixth, eighth, ninth and 10th. The bikes started in the order in which they had finished the Qualifying Stage, with Dabrowski leading from Al-Balooshi and Rees-Stavros.
Khalifa Saleh Al-Attiyah and Abdulla lost some time early on with navigational errors, as overnight leader Al-Attiyah closed on the pack of Can-Ams ahead. The leading three bikes rode together through the early kilometres and dropped the chasing Al-Shatti and Abu Aishah, who were riding close together.
Al-Attiyah passed all his rivals except for Al-Kuwari and then was repassed by Al-Rajhi when he stopped for a short time with a puncture. But the Qatari was able to win the stage by 5min 14.8sec and led the rally by 5min 19.1sec. Meeke lost a little time midway through the special with a flat tyre of his own but recovered strongly to finish fourth overall, behind Seaidan, and managed to beat Sordo by 5min 06sec to take a T3 advantage of 5min 13.8sec into SS3.
Khalifa Saleh Al-Attiyah won the T4 special in his Can-Am, but Liparoti stopped with broken front left-suspension on the west coast, close to the beach at Dohat al Usanaid. Liparoti said: “I didn’t have an accident. The car felt out of control and then we stopped.”
Dabrowski, Al-Balooshi and Rees-Stavros rode together to the finish and entered a neutralisation section and the refuelling point before continuing on the track used by the cars in the morning.
Al-Rajhi and Al-Attiyah quickly overtook Ahmed Al-Kuwari to open the road on the third FIA stage and the pair caught the back-markers competing in the FIM National Baja. Seaidan lost further time searching for the correct track.
Dabrowski and Al-Balooshi dropped Rees-Savros and began to pull away after the latter made a navigational error. The Pole also edged clear of his Emirati rival but was forced to stop for a short time and the defending champion caught him again.
Despite opening the road, Al-Rajhi and Orr managed to snatch the stage win from Al-Attiyah and trim the Qatari’s advantage to 3min 52.6sec. Dabrowski also fended off Al-Balooshi to increase his advantage in the two-wheel category.
Saturday
Strong winds are forecast for the final day of the event and Baja officials will be hoping that doesn’t restrict the flying of safety helicopters.
All things being equal, both the FIM and FIA categories will tackle a stage of 200.39km towards the south of Qatar, with a liaison of 93.43km bringing the finishers back to the ceremonial podium at Lusail. The first bike will be into the stage at 08.15hrs, with the top car on track from 10.55hrs.
2022 Qatar International Baja – Positions after Friday (unofficial @ 15.55hrs):
FIA – Cars
1. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Mathieu Baumel (AND) Toyota GR DKR Hilux 2hr 21min 11.5sec
2. Yazeed Al-Rajhi (SAU)/Michael Orr (GBR) Toyota Hilux Overdrive 2hr 25min 04.1sec
3. Yasir Seaidan (SAU)/Laurent Lichtleuchter (FRA) Toyota Hilux Overdrive 2hr 48min 41.3sec
4. Kris Meeke (AND)/François Cazalet (FRA) Can-Am Maverick X3 (T3) 2hr 50min 40.6sec
5. Khalifa Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Max Delfino (FRA) Can-Am Maverick XRS (T4) 3hr 04min 01.7sec
6. Ahmed Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Manuel Lucchese (QAT) Can-Am Maverick X3 (T3) 3hr 12min 05.9sec
7. Sadoon Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Nasser Al-Kuwari (QAT) Can-Am Maverick XRS T4) 3hr 18min 34.5sec
8. Rashid Al-Muhannadi (QAT)/Szymon Gospodarczyk (POL) Can-Am Maverick XRS (T3) 3hr 21min 48.3sec
9. Yasmeen Koloc (ARE)/Stéphane Duplé (FRA) Can-Am Maverick DV21 (T3) 3hr 29min 23.6sec
10. Adel Abdulla (QAT)/Hugo Magalhães (PRT) Can-Am Maverick X3 (T3) 3hr 34min 38.8sec
11. Aliyyah Koloc (ARE)/Sebastien Delaunay (FRA) Can-Am Maverick DV21 (T3) 3hr 36min 35.6sec
12. Khalid Al-Muhannadi (QAT)/Edward Lines (GBR) Can-Am Maverick XRS (T3) 3hr 46min 53.1sec
13. Muneef Al-Shammeri (SAU)/Tamer Hijazeen (SAU) Nissan Patrol 3hr 55min 58.1sec
14. Dani Sordo (ESP)/Xavier Panseri (FRA) Can-Am Maverick X3 (T3) 3hr 56min 30.8sec
15. Hamad Al-Harbi (SAU)/Waleed Al-Shegawi (SAU) Can-Am Maverick X3 (T3) 3hr 57min 52.4sec
16. Ahmad Al-Muhannadi (QAT)/Mubarak Al-Khelaifi (QAT) Can-Am Maverick X3 (T3) 3hr 59min 54.2sec
Abdullah Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Marc Sola (ESP) Can-Am Maverick X3 (T3) DNF SS3 – mechanical
Camelia Liparoti (SMR)/Xavier Garcia (ESP) Yamaha YXZ 1000R (T4) DNF SS2 – suspension
FIM – Bikes
1. Konrad Dabrowski (POL) Husqvarna FR450 3hr 49min 04.5sec
2. Mohammed Al-Balooshi (ARE) Husqvarna FR450 3hr 52min 28.4sec
3. Maki Rees-Stavros (GBR) KTM 450 EXC-F 4hr 04min 36.1sec
4. Abdulrahman Al-Sheeb (QAT) Beta RR 4hr 20min 06.1sec
5. Thomas Kongshøj (DNK) Husqvarna FR450 4hr 36min 07.1sec
6. Robert Wallace (GBR) KTM 450 Rally 4hr 38min 03.5sec
7. Sheikh Mohamed Al-Thani (QAT) Beta RR 4hr 44min 03.0sec
8. Salman Farhan (BHR) Husqvarna FE450 4hr 45min 33.0sec
9. Abdulla Al-Shatti (KWT) KTM 450 Rally Replica 4hr 46min 11.0sec
10. Abdulhalim Al-Mogheera (SAU) KTM 450 4hr 54min 54.0sec, etc
FIM – Quads
1. Abdulmajeed Al-Khulaifi (SAU) Yamaha 700 CC 5hr 30min 02.9sec
2. Hani Al-Noumesi (SAU) Yamaha 6hr 34min 55.5sec
3. Emiel Stuckens (BEL) Can-Am DS450 6hr 54min 27.0sec
FIM – SSV
1. Abdullah Al-Khelaifi (QAT)/Abdulaziz Al-Jabri (QAT) Yamaha YXZ 1000RR TBA
2022 Qatar National Baja – Positions after Friday (Unofficial):
Cars
1. Al-Mashna Al-Shammeri (SAU)/Hani Al-Shammeri (SAU) Nissan Patrol 1hr 41min 14.7sec
2. Motab Saud Al-Shammeri (SAU)/Bader Al-Ajmi (SAU) Nissan Patrol 1hr 52min 19.1sec
3. Abdullah Al-Rabban (QAT)/Pedro Santos (PRT) Jeep 2hr 32min 27.8sec
4. Salem Al-Thefiri (KWT)/Firas Al-Thefiri (KWT) Nissan Patrol 3hr 00min 35.1sec
5. Dhari Al-Dhafeeri (KWT)/Saffah Al-Dhafeeri (KWT) Can-Am Maverick X3 4hr 15min 02.7sec
Bikes
1. Mishaal Al-Ghuneim (SAU) KTM 450 Rally 2hr 19min 52.4sec
2. Jaco Anderson (ZAF) KTM 500 EXC 2hr 24min 47.2sec
3. Mohammed Meerza (ARE) Husqvarna 2hr 41min 46.8sec
4. Bader Al-Bader (SAU) KTM EXC 500 2hr 41min 57.9sec
5. Ali Al-Ansari (QAT) KTM SXF 2hr 43min 06.1sec
6. Abdulrahman Al-Nasr (QAT) Yamaha 2hr 44min 03.1sec
7. Dom Arnoud (BEL) Suzuki LT-R450 2hr 45min 16.7sec, etc
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Youth vs Experience at South India Rally: 2021 INRC final round
Chennai, 25 March 2022: The South India Rally will be a fight between experience and youth. Experienced giant of Indian motorsports Gaurav Gill will for once will be on the back foot as youngsters Aditya Thakur of Himachal Pradesh and Palakkad lawyer Fabid Ahmer will go all-out to have a shot at their first INRC overall title. The man, the machine and the team are the trinity that power success in motorsports but has proved time and again that despite having bad day with the other two components, he can bulldoze his way up. That is exactly what he did at K1000 in Tumkur after he suffered a casualty in the opening round in Coimbatore due to Electrical issues. His car bonnet opened up suddenly, damaging the windshield and later he had mechanical issues, but the Arjuna Awardee from Delhi made up his loss in the first round and managed to stay in the hunt, lying third in the championships with a 15-point deficit.
The reduced three-round championship, however, put a new face Adity Thakur, a farmer from Solon, Himachal Pradesh, in the overall championship lead after his stunning win Coimbatore and, consistent and reliable driver, Fabid Ahmer in second, just a point behind Thakur, who is behind a Chettinad Sporting-tuned Volkswagen Polo 1.6. Fabid and Gill, will be hoping to keep the yellow colours flying for JK Tyre. While Gill is behind the wheel of a bulky Mahindra SUV 300, Fabid is also in a VW Polo 1.6.
Shivani Parmar (Mumbai), who won K1000 INRC4 in Round 2 at the Press Conference on Friday. Photo courtesy Faisal Khan, Indianmotoring.com SIR is faster this year than 2019
The stages in the South India Rally (SIR) are faster this year than in 2019, when it was last held as a round of INRC. Fast and flowing was how a cross-section of competitors described the Sepecial Stages (SS) after a recce run in the morning on the eve of the 44th South India Rally, which is also a round of the FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (Asia Cup) and the concluding round of the FMSCI Indian National Rally Championship with MRF Tyres as the Associate Sponsor.
The competition in the Rally, organised by the Madras Motor Sports Club celebrating its 70th anniversary, begins tomorrow (Saturday) and concludes on Sunday afternoon.
While three times APRC champion Gaurav Gill (co-driver Musa Sherif) headlines the Asia Cup as the top contender, the entry list that includes APRC debutants Amittrajit Ghosh (Ashwin Naik), Younus Ilyas (Aniruddha Ranganekar) and Karna Kadur (Nikhil Pai), the attention would also be on Himachal’s Aditya Thakur (Virender Kashyap) who heads the Overall standings in the INRC, following a win in the first round in Coimbatore last month.
“The stages are fast and technical. We have some catching up to do after the DNF (Did Not Finish) in Round 1. Now our focus is to make up and gain maximum points,” said the Delhi-based 7-time INRC champion and Arjuna Awardee, who logged a win in the K-1000 Rally earlier this month to remain in contention for the title. He trails Thakur by 15 points.
Thakur said: “I am looking forward to the South India Rally. Though my focus is to win in my category (INRC-3), I will give my best shot to win the Overall title as this is the best chance to go for it. As for the Stages, they are very fast and flowing.”
Aditya Thakur at MMRT on Friday. All photo by Faisal Khan Likewise, Palakkad’s Fabid Ahmer (Sanath G), currently placed second in the Overall standings a point behind Thakur, but leading in the INRC-2 category, felt that the Special Stages would be forgiving on the cars, but hoped to turn the deficit into a victory, something he had come close to in 2019 before a time penalty cost him the Overall title.
“Now I have a better car with some upgrades and the Stages here are to my liking. I missed the championship by a whisker in 2019, but this time, I am in the top-3 Overall, and want to go for the title. I believe in clean and consistent driving which is the best way to get points,” said Ahmer.
Mumbai’s Shivani Parmar (Vani Parmar), in her debut INRC season, heaped praise on the Special Stages and said she looked forward to a strong performance. “This is my first INRC season and it has been an enjoyable experience. So, I look forward to the South India Rally and hope I can improve on my performances in Coimbatore and the Karnataka-1000 rounds,” said Shivani who is placed third in the INRC-3 category where Bengaluru’s Deepak Chandra (Raghuram CG) is leading.
Karna Kadur said: “I am happy to make debut in the APRC and being the home rally, it is a perfect place to step up and gain experience.”
Ghosh, who has driven in European Rally Championship, said: “I have done ERC, and APRC will be a good to get back to bigger things. The Stages are faster than in 2019 when we last took part here.”
Later, Gill announced that he would be competing in three rounds of APRC this season. “I am back into APRC and have registered for three rounds. I will take part in the Japan round for preparation and then the final round in Australia,” said the 40-year old Gill.
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Qatar Baja gets underway with short qualies
LOSAIL (QATAR): The 2022 Qatar International Baja gets underway with a 9.20km Qualifying Stage on Thursday afternoon.
The outcome will determine the starting order for the first of two demanding selective sections on this second round of the FIM Bajas World Cup and round two of the FIA Middle East Cup for Cross-Country Bajas.
Many of the leading drivers were able to carry out a shakedown in the desert close to Losail on Wednesday afternoon. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah, Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Yasir Seaidan dusted the cobwebs off their Toyota Hiluxes, with Al-Attiyah using the latest South African-built Toyota Gazoo Racing machine that won the Dakar Rally in January.
WRC star Dani Sordo and co-driver Xavier Panseri spent an enjoyable few hours with Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah, his brother Khalifa, Mathieu Baumel, François Cazalet and friends driving Al-Attiyah’s personal Can-Ams through the dunes near Sealine beach, south of Doha, on Tuesday.
Sordo was impressed after his first couple of days in Qatar. The Spaniard is competing in a Nasser Racing-entered Can-Am Maverick on his first desert rally this weekend.
He said: “Honestly, it was an amazing experience yesterday with Nasser and all his team. It was really good. First of all, in the dunes, it was a little bit tough. Not to drive, because I was not fast. But the feeling when you go up and down in the dunes. It was something really new for me. It was even more complicated than I thought.
“I drive before this kind of buggies but just for fun, not the Can-Am. But the car has a nice feeling when it is normal corners and it is really good. When you go to the dunes and the co-driver tells you, you need to go up, it’s different. Of course, you never do something for nothing. I would like to know this discipline and, in the future, I would like to do a little bit more, you know.”
Four-time Dakar winner Al-Attiyah said: “I say this is the last race before Ramadan. I am really happy to create teams for the next Dakar. Kris (Meeke) and Dani (Sordo) and my brother are the right people for the Nasser Racing Academy. We will have an extra two Can-Ams for female drivers. We also need to support them. I am quite happy to start with this project. It’s nice to see new people and new cars coming to compete.
“For me, I will do my best to get a good road position on the Qualifying Stage. The reason we are here in Qatar with Toyota is to continue the testing. This race was not in our programme. Kazakhstan was the plan but that race was cancelled. So we decided to come here and to test more things and get ready for the next race in Andalucia. I will also try and do some more testing before Andalucia.”
Kris Meeke arrived in Doha on Tuesday evening and will be taking part in his third event in Qatar, but this will be the Andorra-based Ulsterman’s first taste of Baja-style racing in the local desert.
He said: “I didn’t realise that I would be back in Qatar as quick, but Nasser called me last week and said there was an opportunity to do the Baja in T3 with a South Racing Can-Am. I thought, yes, why not. I’ve been here two times for the rally but the Baja is something different and something I would like to learn more. It’s more Dakar-orientated style of racing. I’m just excited to come again and try something new and a bit different. So many buggies here.”
“I have no idea really about the future. François (Cazalet) has been with the Red Bull Junior Team with the OT3. I called him last minute and he was able to come. Let’s see. I am working on some plans for the Dakar. But François has a seat with Cristina Gutierrez, so it’s just a one-off at the moment.”
Yasir Seaidan will drive the second of three Overdrive Racing-run Toyotas. The Saudi driver said: “I’ve been racing in Qatar already, maybe seven times. I started my first World Cup in T3 in 2012. It’s the most difficult rally for navigation and hard also for drivers, too much rocks and punctures. Drivers must be focused. It looks like you can drive fast but no – it’s very tricky!”
Meanwhile, the QMMF Team’s Rashid Al-Muhannadi confirmed that he had recruited the services of Szymon Gospodarczyk as his co-driver for the Baja. The Pole is better known as the regular navigator for fellow countryman Michal Goczal in the FIA World Rally-Raid Championship. Abdullah Al-Kuwari will be partnered by the Spanish off-road rider Marc Sola.
Six FIA drivers and four leading FIM bikers attended the pre-event press conference at the Losail International Circuit on Wednesday evening.
Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah, Ahmed Al-Kuwari and Sheikh Mohammed Al-Thani represented the host nation alongside Saudi Arabia’s Yazeed Al-Rajhi, the UAE’s Mohammed Al-Balooshi and Aliyyah Koloc, Kris Meeke, Dani Sordo, Jordanian Abdullah Abu Aishah, Polish junior rider Konrad Dabrowski and 2019 European Baja Champion Joanna Modrzewska.
The press conference took place in the presence of QMMF President Abdulrahman Al-Mannai and Executive Director Amro Al-Hamad.
Tomorrow (Thursday), riders will tackle a Qualifying Stage of 9.20km, with the first bike on stage from 15.00hrs. The time set will be multiplied by a co-efficient of four to encourage each rider to race competitively. The first of the FIA cars will start the special at 16.00hrs.
2022 Qatar International Baja – leading entries (updated March 23rd):
FIA – T1
200. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Mathieu Baumel (AND) Toyota GR DKR Hilux
201. Yazeed Al-Rajhi (SAU)/Michael Orr (GBR) Toyota Hilux Overdrive
202. Yasir Seaidan (SAU)/Laurent Lichtleuchter (FRA) Toyota Hilux Overdrive
204. Abdullah Al-Rabban (QAT)/Pedro Santos (PRT) Jeep
205. Khalid Al-Feraihi (SAU)/Ali Mirza (ARE) Nissan Pick-Up
FIA – T3
300. Saleh Al-Saif (SAU)/TBA Can-Am Maverick X3 RR
301. Ahmed Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Manuel Lucchese (QAT) Can-Am Maverick X3
302. Kris Meeke (AND)/François Cazalet (FRA) Can-Am Maverick X3
303. Dani Sordo (ESP)/Xavier Panseri (FRA) Can-Am Maverick X3
304. Aliyyah Koloc (ARE)/Sebastien Delaunay (FRA) Can-Am Maverick DV21
305. Ahmed Al-Muhannadi (QAT)/Mubarak Al-Khelaifi (QAT) Can-Am Maverick X3
FIA – T4
401. Camelia Liparoti (SMR)/Xavier Garcia (ESP) Yamaha YXZ 1000R
402. Khalifa Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Max Delfino (FRA) Can-Am Maverick XRS
403. Khalid Al-Muhannadi (QAT)/Nick Lines (NZL) Can-Am Maverick XRS
404. Rashid Al-Muhannadi (QAT)/Szymon Gospodarczyk (POL) Can-Am Maverick XRS
405. Sadoon Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Nasser Al-Kuwari (QAT) Can-Am Maverick XRS
FIM – Bikes
1. Mohammed Al-Balooshi (ARE) Husqvarna FR450
2. Konrad Dabrowski (POL) Husqvarna FR450
3. Abdulla Al-Shatti (KWT) KTM 450 Rally Replica
4. Thomas Kongshøj (DNK) Husqvarna FR450
5. Martin Chalmers (AUS) Yamaha WR 450F
6. Abdullah Abu Aishah (JOR) KTM 450 EXC-F
7. Robert Wallace (GBR) KTM 450 Rally Replica
8. Michael Anderson (RSA) KTM 450 EXC-F
9. Kurt Burroughs (GBR) KTM Rally
10. Alex McInnes (GBR) Husqvarna FE450
FIM – Quads
101. Emiel Stuckens (BEL) Can-Am DS450
102. Abdulmajeed Al-Khulaifi (SAU) Yamaha 700 CC
103. Hani Al-Noumesi (SAU) Yamaha
104. Faisal Al-Suwayh (SAU) Yamaha
105. Abdulaziz Al-Atawi (SAU) Yamaha YFZ 450
106. Sultan Al-Masoud (SAU) Yamaha YFZ 450
