The 2021 Qatar International Rally gets underway at Katara on Friday evening, with the ceremonial start podium at 20.15hrs followed by two runs and two laps of a purpose-built super special stage from 21.30hrs.
Ahead of crews from 12 nations lie two days of high-speed competition across Qatar’s northern deserts in the opening round of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC).
The event runs under strict Covid-19 protocols with all necessary precautions in place. Teams have completed their reconnaissance of the desert stages and are now setting up their cars for the weekend.
A debut for Sheikh Suhaim
Sheikh Suhaim Al-Thani works for the Qatar Olympic Committee, and international rallying is far removed from the Qatari Royal Family member’s usual routine. He has teamed up with Motorsport Italia to run a Škoda Fabia Evo with co-driver Hamad Al-Yafei.
Sheikh Suhaim has never rallied or driven competitively before. He does not expect to challenge his R5 rivals; the goal is to finish and gain experience on some of the Middle East’s toughest desert terrain. He tested the car for the first time earlier this week.
Meeke’s MERC debut
The leading drivers also held a shakedown in the desert near the Losail Sports Arena, a valuable chance for Kris Meeke to sample the conditions before his MERC debut. The Ulsterman and regular WRC navigator Sebastian Marshall drive a privately entered Škoda Fabia Evo run by Sports Racing Technologies (SRT).
It is nice to see the Qatar desert on a small test in the SRT Škoda. It looks nice to drive here, a new challenge in more open and fast terrain. For sure, I need good notes on the recce to understand the road and see the visibility of the stages and make good lines. It’s a big challenge to race the guys with Qatar experience, but I’ll bring my best to the stages.
Kris Meeke
Latvia-based SRT works across many disciplines, including stage rallies and cross-country events, and also runs Qatar’s Khalid Al-Suwaidi on his home event. Al-Suwaidi finished fifth in 2019 with Adel Abdulla; the 2012 Kuwait International Rally winner now partners Portuguese co-driver Hugo Magalhães, who was ninth and third in MERC 2 with Abdullah Al-Kuwari in Qatar in 2019.
Al-Attiyah returns
Defending regional champion Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah also got back behind the wheel of his Autotek Motorsport Volkswagen Polo GTi R5 after spending much of January crossing Saudi Arabia’s dunes to finish second in the Dakar Rally in a Toyota Hilux.
Al-Attiyah won the Qatar International Rally for the 14th time when it was last held in 2019, the Volkswagen’s first regional win. That success set the winner of a record 75 MERC events up for his 15th regional title, and he made it 16 in a 2020 season cut short by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Qatar’s Nasser Khalifa Al-Atya and Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari and Oman’s Abdullah Al-Rawahi drive the other three R5s in a strong line-up.
Al-Atya was a MERC regular through the 1990s and finished runner-up in the 1993 title race to the late Sheikh Hamed bin Eid Al-Thani. He moved into senior FIA officialdom in the early 2000s before returning to the driving seat a few years ago. He partners Lebanese co-driver Georges Nader in a Ford Fiesta R5 run by Motortune under the management of 14-time Rally of Lebanon winner Roger Feghali.
Young Omani Al-Rawahi has graduated from MERC 2 to a full R5. He works with his Oman Rally Team and Jordanian navigator Ata Al-Hmoud, with technical advice from Feghali. The pair were 10th and fourth in MERC 2 in Qatar in 2019, and Al-Rawahi was runner-up to Al-Attiyah in last year’s MERC.
T4 newcomers
The new FIA T4 category is now allowed on gravel MERC rounds and, subject to scrutineering, Qatar’s Khalid Al-Mohannadi (Polaris), Lebanon’s Jad Al-Aawar (Can-Am) and talented Saudi Saleh Al-Saif (Can-Am) will run their lightweight machines. These vehicles are usually seen on cross-country events such as the Dakar or the Qatar Cross-Country Rally.
On Friday, cars face FIA technical checks at Losail before heading to Katara for the start ceremony and opening super special. A National Rally category runs behind the main event.
The rally is held under the chairmanship of QMMF President Abdulrahman Al-Mannai, senior committee member Abdulrazaq Al-Kuwari and QMMF Executive Director Amro Al-Hamad.