2007 FIA Middle East Rally Championship

Posted: October 24, 2006 10:50 PM

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MERC SERIES TAKES SHAPE FOR 2007
Troodos moves to April;
June date for Syria;
Flexi-service optional;
Registration changes

The FIA Rally Commission has now approved the 2007 calendar for the FIA Middle East Rally Championship and this has been finalised by the World Motor Sport Council.

The 2007 series will again consist of eight special stage rallies, with the season kicking off in Al-Ain on January 24th and reaching its customary finish in Dubai at the end of November 2007.

The Qatar Rally retains its February slot and Oman remains in March, but the Nicosia-based Troodos Rally switches from October to April and runs three weeks before the Jordan Rally, which was confirmed as a round of the 2008 FIA World Rally Championship at the same FIA meeting.

The Saydnaya-based Syria International Rally moves from September to early June, while the Rally of Lebanon is given its traditional slot at the end of June/early July.

"There are several minor changes to the series for next year, but we have retained the same events," said FIA Vice-President and Middle East representative Derek Ledger. "Flexi Service will be optional for championship rallies and the Super Rally Regulations will be modified for 2007. Registration fees for the 2007 MERC have been changed and will now be 200 Euros for drivers and the same for co-drivers."

In addition, there will no longer be any registration for Entrants and late registration for drivers and co-drivers after the first round will be 450 Euros per person.

This year's MERC series has already been settled in favour of Qatar's Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and Ulster co-driver Chris Patterson, Al-Attiyah winning his third title in four years. That is prior to this weekend's Troodos Rally, which has attracted a number of leading Cypriot drivers, in addition to Al-Attiyah, Jordan's Amjad Farrah and Dubai's Sheikh Suhail Bin Khalifa Al-Maktoum.

2007 FIA Middle East Rally Championship calendar
UAE International Rally January 24-26th
Qatar International Rally February 16-18th
Oman International Rally March 14-16th
Troodos Rally April 20-22nd
Jordan Rally May 10-12th
Syria International Rally June 7-9th
Rally of Lebanon June 29-July 1st
Dubai International Rally November 28-30th