ED Racing Team’s Essa Al-Dossari has decided to compete in the first season of the Saudi Desert Rally Championship in 2019. He will enter the new series in the Nissan Navara Pickup T1 which will be prepared and tuned by the South African firm Red-Lined Motoring Adventure.
The Saudi Desert Rally Championship is scheduled to take place between July and December 2019 with five rounds to be held in different parts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Arabian Motor Federation (SAMF) is organising the motorsports events after they announced the details of the championship on February 1.
Al-Dossari and his team have achieved good results in the last two years which includes double Hail – Nissan International Rally victories in 2018 and 2019 respectively – the largest desert rally event in the Kingdom. The team also won the first edition of Jordan Baja in 2018 and has participated in many other events like the Baha Dubai and the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, which is part of the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies (FIA Cross-Country), and in the Bahrain Karting Sprint Championship (BKSC).
His Royal Highness Prince Khaled Bin Sultan Al Abdullah Al Faisal, president of Saudi Arabian Motor Federation named the five rounds to be held in 2019 which starts with Asir Rally in July, followed by Al Ula – NEOM Rally in September, Al Qassim Rally in October, Jeddah Rally in November and Eastern Region Rally in December.
Among the five rallies, Al Ula – NEOM Rally has been classified as a Cross Country Rally event while the rest of the four rounds are termed as Baja, owing to the short distance. Following his latest triumph in Bahrain Karting Series, Essa was happy to announce his 2019 plans.
“We are very pleased to announce our participation in the Saudi Desert Rally Championship and also the fact that we are the first to enter the new series,” says Essa. “We look forward for a good season and continue with the positive momentum on the basis of our showing in the past desert rallies.”
“It is good to continue on with ED Racing Team as we aim to excel together as we move ahead. Inshallah, we can register our names in the history books of Saudi motorsport as the inaugural winners of the championship.”
The Saudi Arabian Motor Federation also revealed that Hail International Rally, which Essa has won twice in his career, will join the championship calendar from the 2020 season.