Interview with Roger Feghali conducted on Sawt El Mada (92.5) with Khaled Karam and Jad Deaibess ahead of the 2014 Spring Rally. You can also listen to the interview with audio below.
First of all Roger, we would like to congratulate you on the participations in the WRC and regional championships. Can you tell us more about Motortune Racing on the international level before we go into details concerning the 30th Spring Rally.
Motortune Racing is a Lebanese team and we are representing Lebanon in the World Rally Championship. It would have been a dream to drive in the WRC, but it’s okay. All of the mechanics and members of the team are Lebanese, which is great, and we are showing that with the right tools, cars and support we can prove ourselves.
Roger, tell us more about Motortune Racing’s role in Nicolas Amiouni’s participation in the World Rally Championship DMAK Cup.
The DMAK Cup was introduced by M-Sport and DMAK in the World Rally Championship and it will be run in five rounds of the WRC. There were a lot of entrants, around 40 to 45 drivers, and they eventually picked 20 serious drivers. Thankfully, we have a good relationship with M-Sport founder Malcolm Wilson, and we had a talk. Nicolas is a young driver, he has got a promising future and a very strong sponsor. With a bit of help from our side, Nicolas was picked for the DMAK Cup. We have to also point out that Nicolas is a very fast driver is well known on the scene and this is a main reason for his selection.
Back to the Spring Rally. You’re taking part in the championship from the first round, the timing was right for you this year. How are your preparations, and did you have time to practice? You have been busy with the team lately…
My presence in the Lebanese Rally Championship is getting harder and harder every year, because as you know, the team is expanding. I am a very competitive person, not just in terms of driving, but in terms of preparing the cars and getting good results from my drivers; this requires a lot of time on my part. My free time is diminishing every year, but it’s all good, I know the stages well and I clocked some good times. Of course, I would like to thank Imad Lahoud and the organizers at ATCL who looked at our international calendar and prepared the local calendar accordingly. Thankfully, it’s all good.
How do you find the communication with the new management at ATCL? Is it more flexible compared to previous years?
They have always been very communicative with us, and perhaps it will be better this year. They [the ATCL] know that without us they cannot organize rallies, and we know very well that without them we cannot take part in rallies. So, I think we’re working together very well, and we’re giving them new ideas inspired by the international events that we’re attending, and they are very open to those ideas. They are studying every idea and implementing the plausible ones. There have been a lot of changes in the regulations from last year and that is fantastic.
Roger, there is a high probability of rain on Sunday. How much do you think it will affect the preparations, and did you miss the rain? It’s been a long time since we last saw a wet weather rally.
The last time we witnessed rain was in the 2009 Cedars Rally, and a little bit in the Batroun stage of the 2010 Rally of Lebanon. Wet weather reveals just how much the drivers are prepared and how much he knows his car and setup. We’re not going to see a lot of spectators on the stages, the media will not be able to cover the rally, and sponsors will not be displayed properly on the cars. So it’s hard, it’s hard on everyone. On one side, drivers want the weather change from time to time. On the other side, the spectators will be few, and it’s very important for us to have spectators on the stages to show our sponsors that there are a lot of followers for this sport in Lebanon. So it has its positives and negatives.
How much do you think there will be a competition between you and Abdo, since the level is higher than the rest of the field? Do you think he will make a challenge?
We have to give credit to everybody. There are 27 cars in the rally and they can all win. The rally is difficult and many factors influence the result. A driver can have a puncture and it will make his job very difficult since its a short rally and its difficult to make up the difference. We should mention that everybody is preparing. All the drivers know the competition well and they are preparing themselves. Its not only about Roger and Abdo, but I do wish at the end of the rally that we end up winning, not just me and Abdo but also all the motortune drivers.
This is one of the subjects we wanted to ask you about, how are the preparations of Motortune as a team and especially that you will be contesting all categories. You have brought in a new FWD car (Citroen DS3 R3T) that will be driven by Robert Aaraj. How do you see both Robert and Henry Massad’s chances in the FWD category.
Robert and Henry were my friends but we have not worked together earlier. Both drivers are professional and they know what to expect. They know about the preparations and all the work that should be done. We should not forget the presence of a big name in the form of Christian Kurban. We all know him and his potential and we used to watch him long time ago. The competition will be very tough its a bit split in half, between who will win the rally and who will win the FWD category. I hope that the weather will be ok since the FWD cars are more effected since they lose a lot of traction due to weather changes and rain. Its a long championship and we will see.
Will it be 4×4 in rallies this year for you? Will there be a revenge to regain the title this year after not winning it last year?
Last year we did not contest the Spring Rally due to our schedule. I have won many consecutive championships and its a great achievement and a great feeling. I will do all what it takes to win from my side and we will see. I would also look forward for my team to win and make good results. Its very important for me.
What does any driver need to do to beat Roger and Abdo?
We are really forgetting Nicolas Amiouni, Nicolas is improving his rhythm and he is developing excellently. He is not in the WRC because he has the sponsor but he was also chosen since he was fast. If you check his times on a group N car in the last day of ROL 2013 you know what I mean. Nicolas will be vert fast.
For a driver to come close or challenge Roger and Abdo he should hit the throttle.
We have a final question. We were expecting to see Joseph Hindi, Gilbert Bannout and Chafic Boulos in the Rally. We practically know that Bannout is occupied with his work, while Chafic has a season in Europe, but why is Hindi Absent?
First of all Chafic will contest the 2014 Hill Climb championship in addition to the Rally of Lebanon and will also drive with the team in some French rallies. Gilbert is very occupied in his work and he has a very special case he is working on. With Gilbert we are preparing to try to get back ASAP, especially for the Rally of Lebanon. Regarding Joseph Hindi, he had a small incident in testing were he went wide of the road. The incident forced the steering wheel to move awkwardly in his hands and caused him an injury. He has to rest for 3 weeks and do his hands are healed. Well he his is unfortunate since his car is ready and everything is ready.
We wish you all the best for the rally and we wish you entertain us and all the fans. Any final word?
As you know I always try my best and we will see on Sunday. I hope everybody will enjoy the rally. Thank you for your concerns.
