Fighting off the lingering effects of the flu in temperatures falling towards 15 degrees below freezing, the UAE’s Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi has warmed to the task ahead on his return to World Rally Championship action in Sweden over the next four days.
Nominated to score points for the team, the Emirati driver is competing in his fourth Rally Sweden, having scored his best finish last time out in an event where the cars reach speeds of 180kph on special stages that sometimes look more like a bobsleigh track.
“It’s not really a surface that comes naturally to me, but I have improved here every year, so much so that I finished in the points last time I competed in 2011,” said Al Qassimi. “This is my first rally with the team and the DS3 WRC, so I don’t want to set myself too high a target. It would be a great start if I could finish in the points.”
The bout of flu he collected in the build-up to the Qatar International Rally two weeks ago refuses to go away. “I’m feeling better, but still carrying some of the symptoms, and the weather obviously isn’t helping,” he said. “I just hope it doesn’t get worse.”
The frozen roads of Sweden and Norway are a far cry from the desert trails of Qatar where he began his 2013 FIA Middle East Championship campaign in impressive style, but considerable help has been at hand to help him acclimatize.
“Everything has been spot on. This team is so professional in everything they do, from the food to the preparation of the car. We had a fantastic day of testing (on Sunday) when the engineers were working just for me and set up the car the way I like it.”
Added Al Qassimi, who is partnered by British co-driver Scott Martin: “After driving the DS3 Regional Rally Car for the first time in Qatar, this was my first time in the DS3 World Rally Car, which is a little different, and my first drive in the snow for two years.”
Today’s opening leg of the Sweden Rally features the qualifying stage and the traditional super special specatator stage in Karlstad, with eight, nine and seven stages running over the following three days before the event finishes back in Karlstad on Sunday.