Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority - News - Emirati Champ Dominates To Clinch 7th MERC Win

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Emirati Champ Dominates To Clinch 7th MERC Win

Emirati Champ Dominates To Clinch 7th MERC Win
March 06, 2010
Categories General

Team Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi showed why he is regarded as one of the Arab world’s top rally drivers after a sterling display saw him win the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) Rally Kuwait 2010 by a commanding 47.1 seconds.

Al Qassimi - who went into the final day already eight seconds ahead of nearest challenger and fellow countryman, Rashid Al-Ketbi - made light work of the sand-swept Kuwait route to clinch his seventh MERC win in emphatic fashion.

“Winning the Kuwait Rally is such an achievement for Team Abu Dhabi, especially that we are still in the beginning of the season and such results will encourage us to keep up the hard work,” said Al Qassimi, who has again partnered with his Ulster co-driver Michael Orr for Kuwait.

Starting where he left off on Friday (March 5th 2010) , the Emirati star –who is backed by Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) and is a member of the BP-Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team – easily won the day’s opening 13.5kms stage, a feat he followed up on the subsequent three other morning stages to put himself out of reach of the chasing 30-strong pack.

And, with a clear sweep ahead of him, Al Qassimi - who is driving his Abu Dhabi emblazoned Ford Fiesta S 2000 in the Northern Gulf state – pulled back on the throttle for the final three stages to ensure he crossed the line without incident.

“Kuwait really this year is much more organised and it went perfectly

smooth. I was in the lead from the very beginning so I was not pressuring myself much,” added Al Qassimi.

The 34-year-old continues to develop his skills as a world-class driver with the World Rally Championship (WRC) outfit, BP-Ford Abu Dhabi, which is also backed by the ADTA.

Entering his fourth year with the international outfit, Al Qassimi had his best season in 2009 after notching up five top 10 finishes, the highlight of which was at the Acropolis Rally of Greece when he finished a career-best sixth.

And with his BP-Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team comrades – Finish duo of Mikko Hirovonen and Jari-Matti Latvala - competing for top honours this weekend in the WRC’s Rally Mexico, the emirate’s motorsports prospects continue to gain momentum – a fact evidenced by the ADTA’s staging of the inaugural Rally Abu Dhabi later this year.

“We continue to develop and refine our rally offering and it is extremely positive to see our Team Abu Dhabi outfits competing on two fronts with great success. Al Qassimi continues to improve and his determination should serve as an inspiration to young drivers hoping to compete on the international stage,” said Ahmed Hussein, Deputy Director General, ADTA.

“With our own candidature WRC event taking place this year, we hope to see an enhanced interest in the sport from the local population as well as greater international focus for the emirate.”

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Content last updated on : July,29,2010 @ 04:23 PM