September 6, 2016 – Rodolphe Asmar moved into the lead of the Middle East Rally Championship-2 (MERC-2/Group N) at the end of the 39th Rally of Lebanon, which was the fourth round of the 2016 Middle East Rally Championship (MERC).
Rodolphe – who was crowned Lebanese Hill Climb Champion in Group N in Baabdat last month – finished 4th overall and 2nd in Group N in Rally of Lebanon alongside co-driver Ziad Chehab in the Mitsubishi Evo X, beating his main championship rival Abdullah Al Kuwari who retired in Leg 1 and returned in Leg 2 under Rally 2 regulations to finish 20th overall.
Rodolphe is currently on 92 points, compared to 85 for Abdullah Al Kuwari. The 20-year-old Lebanese driver will need to finish at worst one position behind Al Kuwari in the upcoming round in Cyprus in order to seal the title. Moreover, he is now 3rd in the overall standings behind title winner Nasser Al Attiyah and Khalid Al Suwaidi.
Cyprus Rally is scheduled for October 7-9; it will be the fifth and final round of the MERC and the tenth and final round of the European Rally Championship (ERC).
