We’re seeing Motortune in the Middle East Rally Championship once again. It wasn’t a great start for you; what happened? Abdulaziz Al Kuwari retired and Abdulla Al Kuwari was slow, and he was slow at the start of the stages as well.
The rally kicked off in a great way yesterday, Abdulaziz clocked the second fastest time in the first special stage, and he wanted to increase his pace in the following stages, but he suffered from a puncture in the second special, and as you know, in these sorts of rallies when you have Nasser and other drivers competing, it is hard to keep up. So, that’s why he lost out and the target from then on was to finish second and remain on the podium. However, he had a second puncture and was forced to stop for a tyre change, so he lost a lot of time and dropped to fourth overall.
Today, he enjoyed a better start in the first two special stages and moved to third place overall, while Khalid (Al Qassimi) had drive shaft issues, so he gained a bit of time. On the third special stage, his top mount broke, and you how bumpy the stages here are, so his drive shaft also broke because the shaft was carrying all of the car’s weight, and then the water pipe broke and the car overheated, but Abdulaziz continued, thinking that it was just a temperature issue, because everything was fine with the car before, he didn’t think it could’ve been a water pipe issue. The engine lost all of its water, and it kept running until it overheated and stalled.
The car was significantly damaged of course, will you rebuild it before the Kuwait International Rally?
Yeah of course, we already started rebuilding the car, and it’s normal, it’s a rally, but this is the first time we encounter such a problem in this car, and thankfully, it’s the first rally of the season. It’s not a great way to start the season, we should’ve gained points.
Do you think the pressure is on Abdulaziz now?
His pace and speed last year raised our expectations as a team and it raised everyone else’s expectations. But after the second special, the focus shifted towards finishing in second place, because Khalid (Al Qassimi) lost a lot of time on the second special as well due to a puncture, so we wanted to finish on the podium, but then the second puncture came, followed by the top mount issue. He lost a lot of championship points unfortunately.
Abdulla Al Kuwari was not comfortable throughout the weekend, he said he was suffering from pain in his arm…
It was a very difficult rally for Abdulla as well, it’s one of those rallies that you try to forget. If you ask me “what rally do you want to forget?”, I would definitely say that this is the rally to forget as a team. We had issues with Abdulla’s car and he was able to continue, but he lost a lot of time. Yesterday, he took a 4 or 5-minute time penalty because he cut a few corners and he got lost in some places. He also got lost today today. We had an issue with the steering rack yesterday and we had to change it. Today, he suffered from a brake problem and we had to change the pedal box and brake pumps. He will hopefully finish in seventh place with some good points now.
Roger, moving to the Lebanese Rally Championship. There are no regulations for the upcoming championship yet and most drivers have no idea what should be done. We know that you might have an idea about the regulations that are being prepared. Tell us, what is your stance on the delay and what do you think of the proposed plans so far?
The problem is, if I wanted to talk about the delay or everything that is going on… some people in Lebanon and elsewhere claim that I’m always favored by the ATCL and that everything I want or Motortune wants happens, but I think it’s the exact opposite of that.
Is it proof that this is not true?
I don’t care what they think or say, I’m convinced that the situation is the opposite (of the what they’re claiming), and the biggest proof is the current regulations that are being prepared, and the big delay.
Actually, they need to be planned ahead of time, before being implemented.
They should’ve been planned last year perhaps even…
They should’ve been planned at the start of this year. We don’t live in a dictatorship, so there’s no one forcing any rules. The rules and regulations need to be planned and researched in collaboration with the teams and drivers. They should take different opinions into consideration, because ATCL can’t do anything without the drivers, and the drivers can’t do anything without the ATCL. So, they need to give and take. I don’t want to discuss the matters that are already well known and that I think are wrong; that is my opinion in the end, but we have to see; they must act. We were happy to see Imad Lahoud’s arrival two years ago, and the fact that he implemented a lot of changes, and that he listened to a lot of drivers and that he talked to a lot of drivers in a bid to improve the championship. If the new regulations go forward…
Does it have a setback?
It is wrong. The problem is that there isn’t anything we can do.
How much does it affect you and the Motortune drivers in Lebanon?
It doesn’t affect us, because the regulations still aren’t there. Why should we discuss something that isn’t there? There is nothing. The regulations were delayed, and I think they need to be discussed with all of the teams and drivers. They are regulations in the end, and if someone doesn’t agree to them, they can discuss it later, but I think it’s early now.
You have a new rookie and a new car onboard. He’s the Lebanese Karting Rally champion, a good talent. Where do you see Patrick Njeim’s progress, and where is he in terms of preparation for the new season?
It’s too early to talk about Patrick because he still hasn’t even contested his first rally, he only completed one test. It’s too early to discuss this matter, it takes time, and the most important thing is not to put him under pressure. It will take a lot of time, just like it took me and others a lot of time when we first started, it took a lot of work and preparation.
He’s very young.
It takes a bit of time, it’s okay.
Do you think he’s making good progress?
Like I said, we just started. We’ve seen a lot of people who started out well, and then reached a point where they weren’t making any progress. The most important thing for him is to keep working on himself. For now, the most important matter for our drivers and last year’s team is to improve. I’m not speaking in terms of quantity, it’s about quality.
And the results of course.
The most important thing for every Motortune driver who faced any issues last year or wasn’t lucky enough is to try to improve.
Thank you Roger. Good luck to the team and to yourself.