Jordan Rally - 10-12 May 07

Posted: May 14, 2007 4:21 PM

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UAE'S KHALID AL-QASSIMI EXTENDS MERC SERIES LEAD WITH LAST-GASP WIN IN JORDAN RALLY
Jordan's Amjad Farrah leaps into title contention with a solid second place;
Jordanian newcomer Amir Najjar loses potential victory in last stage drama;
His Majesty King Abdullah Bin Al-Hussein II visits Dead Sea service park

The UAE's Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi and British co-driver Nick Beech clinched a famous victory after 18 timed special stages of a pulsating Jordan Rally in the Dead Sea area of the Hashemite Kingdom on Saturday.

They entered the final stage 16.9 seconds behind Jordanian rallying newcomer Amir Najjar and co-driver Nicola Fanous, but the Jordanian dramatically crashed mid-way through the Dead Sea stage and Al-Qassimi was handed a dramatic win in thrilling circumstances.

Al-Qassimi duly took maximum FIA Middle East rally championship points in his Subaru Impreza WRX STi and extended his lead in the eight-round series to six points over second-placed Jordanians Amjad Farrah and Nicola Arena. Farrah has fallen away from a thrilling two-way battle for victory over the closing stages. Lebanon's Michel Saleh was third.

Some of the day's rallying action had royal approval and was witnessed by a visiting His Majesty King Abdullah Bin Al-Hussein II, his wife Queen Rania Al-Abdullah and His Royal Highness Prince Feisal Bin Al-Hussein, chairman of Jordan Motorsport.

"The priority for me was to finish the rally and take maximum points in the championship," said an ecstatic Al-Qassimi. "That was the objective and we have fulfilled that in a fantastic way. Now I am in a very strong position to win the title for the second time. The outcome is in my own hands. The pressure will be on Nasser not to make a mistake on the next four rallies."

"I thought that the best strategy was to push as hard as I could this morning and put my rivals under pressure," said 31-year-old Najjar, who is a sprint and hillclimb champion tackling his third ever rally. "I was confident that a Jordanian would win this event and I wanted it to be me. I am so disappointed."

Amjad Farrah and Nicola Arena began the day in third place and lost touch with the two-way battle for the lead as the day wore on. But the 2004 Jordan Rally winner moved up to second in the championship with his second overall.

Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah was fastest on all eight special stages of leg two and climbed seven places in the overall standings, but his confidence-boosting drive failed to net any championship points.

Lebanon's Michel Saleh and the UAE's Sheikh Abdullah Al-Qassimi completed the top four and there were top 10 finishes for Qatar's Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari, Cypriot Andreas Tsouloftas, Qatar's Misfer Al-Marri, Saudi Arabia's Majed Al-Ghamdi, Kuwait's Salah Bin Eidan and Austria's Andreas Wimmer. Jordan's Ala Khalifeh crashed out of fourth place on the penultimate stage.

Jordanian rally newcomer Amir Najjar and Nicola Fanous began the final day 14.1 seconds behind Al-Qassimi. Qatar's Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah made the decision to continue under SupeRally conditions on Saturday in a bid to restore his shattered confidence. He was classified 33rd overall, once all the time penalties were imposed, but was permitted to restart in fourth position on the road for safety reasons.

Predictably, Al-Attiyah cruised to the fastest stage time and beat Al-Qassimi by 34.9 seconds, although the UAE driver extended his overall lead to 16.2 seconds. Najjar hit back in the first Wadi Shueib special and reduced the advantage by 0.2 seconds, but Farrah was in flying form and moved to within 1.3 seconds of Najjar and second place. Al-Attiyah continued to set the fastest times, although he held little hope of climbing back into the championship points.

The outcome of the first Rumman stage added to the pressure on Al-Qassimi. Najjar crushed his rivals with a stunning time to take the overall lead by 2.7 seconds. Farrah matched his UAE championship rival to maintain his challenge in third place, although Al-Attiyah was again in a class of his own with a third fastest time.

The Qatari set the pace again through the second Kafrein stage, as Najjar edged a further 1.1 seconds ahead of the 2004 regional champion and Farrah slipped 25.3 seconds behind. Najjar had pledged the big attack over the midday stages and he was a man of his word. He edged into a 9.7-second lead over Al-Qassimi after the second Wadi Shueib special and returned to the final Dead Sea service after the second Rumman test with a 16.5 second overall advantage. Two stages stood between the rookie and a sensational win.

The Shuna and Dead Sea stages totalled 28.82km, but it started to rain quite heavily as teams left the final service point. Damp, slippery conditions were prevalent in the Shuna special and ?? slithered to the fastest time. Al-Qassimi's team manager Ron Cremen confirmed that the UAE driver had been prepared to play a wait-and-see game in the penultimate stage. "If Khalid was close enough to challenge Amir after SS17, he was going to go for it in the last one," said the Australian.

The final 13.55km of the Dead Sea stage were critical and Najjar maintained his composure to take a 16.9-second lead into the final stage by setting the second fastest time. But he was slow at the first checkpoint, before leaving the road soon afterwards in a desperate bid to claw back the lost time. It was a thrilling end to a dramatic two days at the Dead Sea.

Sponsorship for the 37-car Jordan Rally came from Jordinvest, Chinese car brand Chery, Capital Bank, Marriott Hotels, the King Hussein Ben Talal Convention Centre, Fastlink, Sawt Al Ghad and Riyadah.

Both the Ministry of Housing and Public Works worked on the special stages and extra support from the Ministry of Tourism, Jordan Tourist Board and the Greater Amman Municipality and Higher Council of Youth has been crucial.

Final positions after SS18 (unofficial):
1. Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi (UAE)/Nick Beech (GB) Subaru Impreza WRX STi 3h 17m 44.7s
2. Amjad Farrah (HKJ)/Nicola Arena (I) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 3h 18m 56.4s
3. Michel Saleh (RL)/Ziad Chehab (RL) Subaru Impreza WRX STi 3h 23m 41.3s
4. Sheikh Abdullah Al-Qassimi (UAE)/Steve Lancaster (GB) Subaru Impreza WRX STi 3h 24m 41.6s
5. Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari (QA)/Nasser Al-Kuwari (QA) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 3h 28m 22.5s
6. Andreas Tsouloftas (CY)/Savvas Laos (CY) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 3h 30m 46.0s
7. Misfer Al-Marri (QA)/Hamad Al-Marri (QA) Subaru Impreza WRX STi 3h 31m 36.1s
8. Majed Al-Ghamdi (KSA)/Yousef Al-Asmar (HKJ) Subaru Impreza WRX STi 3h 36m 10.0s
9. Salah Bin-Eidan (KWT)/Abdulaziz Redhai (KWT) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 3h 38m 05.8s
10. Andreas Wimmer (AUT)/Michael Kolbach (D) Subaru Impreza WRX STi 3h 39m 27.6s

Full Results:
Jordan Rally

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• NASSER AL-ATTIYAH & CHRIS PATTERSON LEADS BUMPER ENTRY INTO TWO DAYS OF JORDAN RALLY ACTION
• JORDAN RALLY GETS UNDERWAY IN AMMAN ON THURSDAY EVENING
• WRC GUESTS, OFFICIALS AND JORDAN RALLY COMPETITORS ARRIVE IN AMMAN

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10/05/07
NASSER AL-ATTIYAH & CHRIS PATTERSON LEADS BUMPER ENTRY INTO TWO DAYS OF JORDAN RALLY ACTION
Defending FIA Middle East rally champions, Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and Chris Patterson, will lead 38 starters into the first of 18 timed gravel special stages in the Dead Sea area of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan on Friday morning. The two-day event is the fourth round of the regional rally series and finishes adjacent to the King Hussein Ben Talal Convention Centre on Saturday evening.

Qatar’s Al-Attiyah and Ulsterman Patterson will cross the ceremonial start podium at the King Hussein Ben Talal Mosque in Amman on Thursday evening, three points behind their arch UAE rival Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi and his British co-driver Nicky Beech. Al-Qassimi won the recent Oman Rally and arrives in Jordan with a slender three-point lead in the championship, although Al-Attiyah has taken a pair of outright victories in Qatar and Cyprus so far this year.

“It is important for me to take as many points as possible,” said last year’s winner Al-Attiyah. “But it would also be nice to win the event outright, especially with such large media attention and interest in the event before it joins the WRC next year.”

Jordan’s Amjad Farrah became the first Jordanian winner of his home event in 2004, but Farrah and his Italian co-driver Nicola Arena will also be mindful of the need to collect valuable championship points in the baking heat of a May weekend at the lowest place on earth. Farrah is currently third in the championship, a mere one point behind Al-Attiyah and is well-placed to become the first Jordanian ever to lead the FIA Middle East Drivers’ Championship.

Sheikh Abdullah Al-Qassimi’s preparations for the event suffered a slight set-back with the late return of his British co-driver Steve Lancaster from a WRC event in Argentina. But the UAE driver will be hoping to build upon the 14 points and fourth place he has so far achieved in the series. Lebanese veteran Michel Saleh is also in contention for top honours and has so far amassed 11 points this season.

Farrah heads a 12-strong Jordanian team, which includes a pair of new Jordan Challenge Rally Team Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions for Ala Khalifeh and Amir Al-Najjar, running under the management of former co-driver Malek Al-Hariri. Al-Najjar is the Rumman hillclimb record holder and is keen to repeat his successes in rallying.

Faris Bustami is more than capable of taking a top five finish in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII, Mazan Tantash represents the Sports Academy Racing Team and Hamza Dirani wheels out a Team Jordan Mitsubishi. Fares Hijazi, Issa Abu Jamous and Ziad Masannat also line-up in Jordanian colours, alongside three female drivers, Nancy Al-Majali, Abir Batikhi and Tala Al-Shawa.

Cypriot Andreas Tsouloftas is a regular visitor to the Jordan Rally and badly needs to get his championship challenge back on track after crashing out of the Troodos Rally last month. Tsouloftas has been competitive on Dead Sea-style special stages in the past and will be pushing for a podium place this weekend. Fellow Cypriot Spyros Pavlides is also entered in a Subaru Impreza, but is not registered for the regional series.

The State of Kuwait hopes to enter the regional rally series in the next two years and several Kuwaiti drivers will be battling for honours in Jordan. Mufeed Mubarak leads the way in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII and is joined at the Dead Sea by Salah Bin Eidan, Meshari Al-Thafiri, Hassan Voroudi, Essam Al-Nejadi, 1600 2WD leader Ahmad Al-Khrass and Shaker Al-Raies.

Al-Attiyah’s Qatar Team colleagues include Misfer Al-Marri, Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari, Ahmed Al-Kuwari and Khalifa Al-Attiyah. Abdulaziz currently lies eighth overall in the regional series, two places and five points behind Khalifa Al-Attiyah.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is represented by Majed Al-Ghamdi in a Subaru Impreza WRX STi, while London-based Lebanese driver Nicholai Georgiou is also entered with co-driver Joseph Mattar.

Austria’s Andreas Wimmer and his German co-driver Michael Kolbach head an international entry, which includes Britain’s David Scialom and international drivers Daniel Levy, Yuval Melamed, Ehud Powitzer and the Cypriot Yiangos Yiangiou.

The competitive action kicks off on Friday morning with a 14.20km run through the Turki stage at 07.08hrs and this is followed by special stages in the Mount Nebo and Mai’n areas. Service and regrouping takes place from 09.49hrs on the shores of the Dead Sea and the three stages will be repeated from 10.44hrs. After a second lunchtime service break, two special stages close to the Dead Sea and Mahes will be run twice in the afternoon, before the opening leg draws to an end from 18.00hrs. Leg two consists of a further eight special stages and takes place on Friday.

The three-day Jordan Rally has received valuable sponsorship from many companies and organisations in both the public and private sectors, including Jordinvest, Chinese car brand Chery, Capital Bank, Marriott Hotels, the King Hussein Ben Talal Convention Centre, Fastlink, Sawt Al Ghad and Riyadah.

Both the Ministry of Housing and Public Works have also worked tirelessly on the special stages and support from the Ministry of Tourism, Jordan Tourist Board and the Greater Amman Municipality and Higher Council of Youth has been crucial.

Leading starters
1. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QA)/Chris Patterson (GB) Subaru Impreza WRX STi
2. Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi (UAE)/Nick Beech (GB) Subaru Impreza WRX STi
3. Amjad Farrah (HKJ)/Nicola Arena (I) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX
4. Sheikh Abdullah Al-Qassimi (UAE)/Steve Lancaster (GB) Subaru Impreza WRX STi
5. Michel Saleh (RL)/Ziad Chehab (RL) Subaru Impreza WRX STi
6. Andreas Tsouloftas (CY)/Savvas Laos (CY) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX
7. Faris Bustami (HKJ)/Burhan Abu Quora (HKJ) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII
8. Mufeed Mubarak (KWT)/Saad Al-Melaifi (KWT) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII
9. Misfer Al-Marri (QA)/Hamad Al-Marri (QA) Subaru Impreza WRX STi
10. Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari (QA)/Nasser Al-Kuwari (QA) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX



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09/05/07
JORDAN RALLY GETS UNDERWAY IN AMMAN ON THURSDAY EVENING
Former WRC champion Petter Solberg soaks up the Jordanian atmosphere
Leading drivers attend pre-event press conference at Dead Sea headquarters
Rally officials lay on free bus service for spectators in Amman to visit stages


The Jordan Rally 2007 gets underway with a spectacular ceremonial start close to the King Hussein Ben Talal Mosque in downtown Amman from 18.00hrs on Thursday evening.

Five of the leading FIA Middle East Rally Championship entrants were scheduled to join Jordan Rally clerk of the course Ziad Louza at the official pre-event press conference at the King Hussein Ben Talal Conventional Centre on Wednesday evening.

Qatar’s Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah was invited to the press conference, along with arch championship rival Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi, Kuwaiti front-runner Mufeed Mubarak, Cypriot Andreas Tsouloftas and Jordan’s Amjad Farrah, winner of the Jordan Rally in 2004.

Drivers have now completed two days of reconnaissance of the 18 timed special stages in the Mount Nebo and Dead Sea areas and several VIPs from the FIA World Rally Championship have arrived at the Dead Sea, including two leading rally stars.

Subaru World Rally Team star Petter Solberg jetted into Amman on Tuesday afternoon after taking part in last weekend’s Rally of Argentina. The Norwegian first came to the region to take part in the Rally of Lebanon in a privately-entered Toyota in 1995 and that performance on slippery Lebanese asphalt against seasoned championship regulars attracted the attention of none other than Ford and M-Sport team manager Malcolm Wilson. Solberg has since won 13 WRC rallies.

Over the last 12 years, the 33-year-old Norwegian has reached superstar status in the WRC. He won the world title in 2003 and finished second overall in 2002, 2004 and 2005. He is one of the fastest drivers in the world and relished the chance to visit Jordan for the first time with Welsh co-driver and long-time rally partner Philip Mills.

Solberg took his first WRC podium with second place in the 2001 Acropolis Rally in Greece and clinched a maiden WRC victory in Wales Rally GB the following year with Subaru. The Norwegian sealed four wins in 2003 in Cyprus, Australia, Corsica – his first on tarmac – and Wales and added victories in New Zealand, Greece, Japan, Wales and Sardinia to his tally in 2004. Victories followed in Sweden, Mexico and Wales in 2005, but the Norwegian hasn’t won a WRC event since his last UK success.

“It’s great to be back in Jordan after all these years,” recalls co-driver Mills, who won the world title with Solberg in 2003 and who co-drove for the then HRH Prince Abdullah Bin Al-Hussein of Jordan back in the 1990s. “I had some enjoyable times in the Middle East with Ford, although life has changed a lot over the years. Petter and I will have a chance to take a good look at the special stages over the next couple of days and this could be beneficial when Jordan enters the WRC next March.”

Meanwhile, rally officials in Amman have laid on a courtesy shuttle bus service to ferry rally fans from Amman to the Jordan Rally service park on the banks of the Dead Sea. The shuttle will leave from a stop near the Royal Jordanian terminal at the 7th Circle every two hours on Friday and Saturday from 07.00hrs.

The Jordan Rally has received valuable sponsorship from many companies and organisations in both the public and private sectors, including Jordinvest, Chinese car brand Chery, Capital Bank, Marriott Hotels, the King Hussein Ben Talal Convention Centre, Fastlink, Sawt Al Ghad and Riyadah.

Both the Ministry of Housing and Public Works have worked on the special stages and support from the Ministry of Tourism, Jordan Tourist Board and the Greater Amman Municipality and Higher Council of Youth has been crucial.



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08/05/07
WRC GUESTS, OFFICIALS AND JORDAN RALLY COMPETITORS ARRIVE IN AMMAN
Subaru's Solberg and Mills and Spaniards Sordo, Marti and Pons arrive in Amman;
MERC competitors begin reconnaissance for three-day Jordan Rally bonanza;

Vibrant atmosphere builds at rally headquarters on the banks of the Dead Sea Officials, regional rally teams, VIPs and several competitors from the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) have begun to arrive in Amman in preparation for this weekend's Jordan Rally, round four of the 2007 FIA Middle East Rally Championship.

The event is based at the King Hussein Bin Talal Conventional Centre on the baking shores of the Dead Sea ­ the lowest place on earth ­ and gets underway with a ceremonial start from 18.00hrs onwards on Thursday, May 10th at the Al Hussein Gardens in the heart of Amman, close to the King Hussein Ben Talal Mosque.

Several well known faces from the WRC have arrived in Amman, direct from competing in the Rally of Argentina in South America last weekend. Subaru World Rally Team driver Petter Solberg, from Norway, will be joined at the Dead Sea by Welsh co-driver Philip Mills.

Solberg and Mills are former FIA World Rally Champions, although Mills has been to Jordan before and is making his first visit to the Hashemite Kingdom for over 10 years, since he co-drove for His Majesty King Abdullah Bin-Hussein II during the 1996 Jordan Rally in a works Ford Escort. That event was the King's final appearance in rallying following a successful career, which spawned two national championship titles.

Solberg and Mills will use this opportunity to make a tour of Jordan's state-of-the-art rally headquarters, which will host the 2007 World Economic Forum next weekend. The pair will also view Jordan's highly-acclaimed rally operation, sample traditional Arabic hospitality and see for themselves the testing gravel roads that may be used in March 2008 when Jordan creates history by hosting the Middle East's first ever WRC rally.

The pair will be joined at the Dead Sea by Citroën team members Dani Sordo and Marc Marti and Xavier Pons and Xavier Amigo. Also making the trip to check out what lies in wait in around 10 months' time are Citroën team management member Sven Smeets, BP Ford World Rally Team co-ordinator John Millington and several senior FIA officials.

"There is a real buzz of expectation building around the headquarters," said clerk of the course Ziad Louza. "The early feedback we have received from our guests has been very encouraging and that bodes well as we continue our preparations for the FIA World Rally Championship in 2008."

Competitors taking part in this year's rally include Qatar's defending champion Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and the UAE's former champion Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi. They are permitted to carry out a full recce of the special stages tomorrow (Tuesday) and Wednesday, before spectators will be treated to the first ever WRC-type shakedown stage between 16.00hrs and 19.00hrs on Wednesday afternoon.

The shakedown is an integral part of the timetable on traditional WRC events and Jordan Rally officials have arranged a similar test this year to enable teams from as far afield as the UK and Austria to join FIA Middle East Rally championship regulars with the opportunity to set up their cars before the first special stage fires into life on Friday morning.

The 2.3km shakedown stage will take place on the back road between the Dead Sea and Sweimeh, two kilometres from the hotel army checkpoint en route to Madaba.

The three-day Jordan Rally has received valuable sponsorship from many companies and organisations in both the public and private sectors, including Jordaninvest, Chinese car brand Chery, Capital Bank, Marriott Hotels, the King Hussein Ben Talal Convention Centre, Fastlink, Sawt Al Ghad and Riyadah.

Both the Ministry of Housing and Public Works have also worked tirelessly on the special stages and support from the Ministry of Tourism, Jordan Tourist Board and the Greater Amman Municipality and Higher Council of Youth has been crucial.