Jordan Motorsport has announced a quality international entry for the Jordan Baja, the new seventh round of the 2019 FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas, based in Aqaba and centred on Wadi Rum on September 19th-21st.
Eighteen cars and crews from 15 nations are entered in the main FIA section of the three-day event (subject to FIA approval), joined by nine motorcycles and quads and eight more teams in a national category. The motorcycle event is also being observed as an official candidate for next year’s FIM Cross-Country Bajas World Cup.
Title contenders
Russia’s Vladimir Vasilyev, Argentina’s Orlando Terranova and Poland’s Jakub Przygonski are locked in a three-way fight for the FIA Drivers’ Championship, and all three will compete in the Hashemite Kingdom in X-raid-built Mini All4 Racings.
They face T1 competition from Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi and Saudi Arabia’s Yasir Seaidan.
Russian Fedor Vorobyev holds a useful T3 lead in his Can-Am Maverick X3. Recent category winner in both Hungary and Poland, he faces rivals including Italy’s Michele Cinotto and Saudi Arabia’s Saleh Al-Saif.
Bikes and national entries
Sultan Al-Balooshi, winner of the motorcycle category at the Ha’il International Rally in 2018 and 2019, heads the two-wheel entry. Ata Al-Hmoud was the runaway class winner at last year’s FIA candidate event in southern Jordan and will be aiming for the top step on home soil.
Kuwaiti pair Salem and Fares Al-Thefiri lead the national section in their Nissan Patrol.
The super special and ceremonial start are on Thursday (September 19th) in Aqaba City, before crews head into the legendary deserts of Wadi Rum, made famous by Hollywood films including the recent Aladdin, the classic Lawrence of Arabia and the latest Star Wars film, as well as countless cinematic links to the reddish surface of Mars.