Latest news with #NasserAlAttiyah
IOL News
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- IOL News
No Formula One, Formula E or W2RC for SA in 2026: sources
By: Double Apex The FIA World Motor Sport Council recently met in Macau and made a few vital decisions regarding the top echelons of the sport. Among the decisions that were ratified include 2025 calendars for all the FIA World Championship events. Sadly, there will be no F1, Formula E or W2RC for SA in 2026. The 2026 F1 calendar commences in Australia on 8 March with the season finale in Abu Dhabi on 6 December. The 2026 schedule will, once again, feature 24 races. Interestingly, Imola has been replaced by Madrid. So we have gone from there being two races in Italy to having two races in Spain. The USA still hosts three rounds (Miami, Austin and Las Vegas). More attention has been paid to geographical flow for better efficiency. As a result there are groupings of races in particular geographical areas. Local F1 fans have been dreaming of a race taking place on local soil for years. The minister of sport has been quite vocal about the success of his tenure resting on him being able to bring a race to SA. The department has even taken bids from a few interested parties. The idea being that the most successful bid would be presented to the FIA. The entire process seems to have gone quiet. Our sources tell us that none of the bids were of an adequate level to impress the FIA and Formula One. As a result, no local company ie promoter has yet been appointed to pitch to the sport's governing body. Stefano Domenicali, president and CEO of Formula 1, said: '2026 will be a new era for Formula 1 where we will witness a brand-new set of regulations for our sport, the cars and the engines that will be powered by 100% sustainable fuel. "We are excited to welcome Madrid to the calendar, and to see huge automotive brands like Audi, Cadillac and Ford join the Formula 1 grid. It promises to be an unforgettable season, where once again we will come together at 24 amazing global venues to watch the best drivers in the world push themselves to the limit and produce incredible wheel to wheel racing for our millions of fans watching around the globe.' No W2RC or Formula E Either Surprisingly, there will be no W2RC in SA either. The third round of the 2025 series, which started with the Dakar Rally, visited SA just a few weeks ago. By all accounts it was a success with visiting teams impressed by the organisation of the event as well as the variety of terrain. Rally raid legend Nasser Al Attiyah said of the event: 'It was really nice to be here in South Africa. We'd like to come back.' It was a sentiment echoed by WRC icon Sebastien Loeb: 'It is my second time in South Africa, but my first outside Cape Town where I raced in World Rallycross. Going on safari and seeing so much of the landscape during the stages was very beautiful.' Formula E won't be making a return to SA either in 2026. The sole event in SA, which took place a few years ago, was voted the best of the 2023 season. Cape Town's street circuit provided exciting racing and a picturesque backdrop in the form of Table Mountain and the Atlantic Seaboard. There is, however, a double-header blank spot in the 2026 schedule. But will we see the series race on local soil again…? Article courtesy of Double Apex
Times of Oman
01-06-2025
- General
- Times of Oman
Al Zubair wins Merc 2 in Jordan International Rally
Muscat: Omani rally driver Abdullah Al Zubair topped the N group in Merc 2 in Jordan International rally which was a strong and more than impressive result, achieving fifth place in the overall rally standings in his Subaru Impreza, followed directly by his teammate Zakaria Al Amri. The rally, which consisted of 12 stages, between mountainous and near the Dead Sea, witnessed success in terms of organization and participation, as 22 cars participated in various categories. Champion Abdullah Al-Rawahy topped the morning stages on Friday in Til Hilali, Karamah, and Baptism, but he lost the title against Nasser Al Attiyah meanwhile Abdullah Al-Zubair and his navigator Taha Soomar continued to dominate the Merc 2 group despite the attempts of the rest of the competitors to catch him, especially his direct competitor Zakaria Al-Amri and his navigator Mohammed Al-Mazrui and other local competitors from Jordan and Lebanon. Nevertheless, Al-Amri still leads the category by 9 points over Al-Zubair, who aspires to win the title this year. Abdullah Al Zubair secured the lead in his group from the day one and took it easy on himself on the second day, slowing down after securing a significant lead over the competitor chasing him. Al Amri, meanwhile, had a great race but encountered some problems with his car on the day one, which he was able to recover on the following day and gain good times. The second day of the rally, which took place in Panorama, Suwayma and Wadi Nar, in the Merc 2 group witnessed competition between colleagues Abdullah Al-Zubair and Zakaria Al-Amri to seize the category title, but Al-Zubair presented a balanced and exceptional performance and implemented a clear strategy to maintain the difference between him and the rest, he was able to decide the matter in advance during the first day's competition, and his strong and fast time in the group gave him the lead in the Jordan International Rally category, and he secured 30 points in the category in the Middle East Rally Championship after concluding his fourth round in Jordan, towards competing for the lead. The winner of the first place in the in (N) category, Abdullah Al Zubair, with his navigator Taha Soomar, said that the rally was special in terms of the competition, which was fierce in many stages, but thank God I outperformed many of the competitors who had stronger cars and in a larger category than my category, and we succeeded in achieving the goal, which was to win first place in the category to reduce the lead in the group with my colleague Zakaria Al Amri, and I am happy with this, I also hope that private sector companies will support the competitors who achieve international successes in the name of the Sultanate, especially since these sports are very expensive. I thank everyone who stood behind us in this rally and championship, the supporters, Taha Soomar's my assistants, and the technical team for the great job, it is worth mentioning that many of those witnessed and drivers at the rally asked Al Zubair to participate next year with an R5 category car, as he was one of the fastest drivers in the rally. For his part, competitor Zakaria Al Amri said that the rally was difficult and arduous and he faced some problems in some stages, but he was able to overcome them and and recover and presented an ideal race despite the fierce competition, rough stages and hot weather. He added, 'Thank God, we are still at the top of the Merc 2 group and we will try to maintain this lead in the upcoming rallies and win the category. I thank my navigator Mohammed Al Mazrui for all the support, as well as the audience who came to support us in this rally in Jordan from Oman.'
Times of Oman
01-06-2025
- General
- Times of Oman
Al Zuabir leads Merc 2 in Jordan International rally after superb driving followed by Al Amri
Muscat: Omani rally driver Abdullah Al Zubair topped the N group in Merc 2 in Jordan International rally which was a strong and more than impressive result, achieving fifth place in the overall rally standings in his Subaru Impreza, followed directly by his teammate Zakaria Al Amri. The rally, which consisted of 12 stages, between mountainous and near the Dead Sea, witnessed success in terms of organization and participation, as 22 cars participated in various categories. Champion Abdullah Al-Rawahy topped the morning stages on Friday in Til Hilali, Karamah, and Baptism, but he lost the title against Nasser Al Attiyah meanwhile Abdullah Al-Zubair and his navigator Taha Soomar continued to dominate the Merc 2 group despite the attempts of the rest of the competitors to catch him, especially his direct competitor Zakaria Al-Amri and his navigator Mohammed Al-Mazrui and other local competitors from Jordan and Lebanon. Nevertheless, Al-Amri still leads the category by 9 points over Al-Zubair, who aspires to win the title this year. Abdullah Al Zubair secured the lead in his group from the day one and took it easy on himself on the second day, slowing down after securing a significant lead over the competitor chasing him. Al Amri, meanwhile, had a great race but encountered some problems with his car on the day one, which he was able to recover on the following day and gain good times. The second day of the rally, which took place in Panorama, Suwayma and Wadi Nar, in the Merc 2 group witnessed competition between colleagues Abdullah Al-Zubair and Zakaria Al-Amri to seize the category title, but Al-Zubair presented a balanced and exceptional performance and implemented a clear strategy to maintain the difference between him and the rest, he was able to decide the matter in advance during the first day's competition, and his strong and fast time in the group gave him the lead in the Jordan International Rally category, and he secured 30 points in the category in the Middle East Rally Championship after concluding his fourth round in Jordan, towards competing for the lead. The winner of the first place in the in (N) category, Abdullah Al Zubair, with his navigator Taha Soomar, said that the rally was special in terms of the competition, which was fierce in many stages, but thank God I outperformed many of the competitors who had stronger cars and in a larger category than my category, and we succeeded in achieving the goal, which was to win first place in the category to reduce the lead in the group with my colleague Zakaria Al Amri, and I am happy with this, I also hope that private sector companies will support the competitors who achieve international successes in the name of the Sultanate, especially since these sports are very expensive. I thank everyone who stood behind us in this rally and championship, the supporters, Taha Soomar's my assistants, and the technical team for the great job, it is worth mentioning that many of those witnessed and drivers at the rally asked Al Zubair to participate next year with an R5 category car, as he was one of the fastest drivers in the rally. For his part, competitor Zakaria Al Amri said that the rally was difficult and arduous and he faced some problems in some stages, but he was able to overcome them and and recover and presented an ideal race despite the fierce competition, rough stages and hot weather.
Times of Oman
31-05-2025
- Automotive
- Times of Oman
Second place for Oman Rally Team's Al-Rawahi after tyre issues in Jordan
Muscat: A puncture on the first special stage of the final morning proved to be mightily expensive for the Oman Rally Team's Abdullah Al-Rawahi and it ultimately cost him the chance to threaten the 19-time FIA Middle East champion Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah for victory at the Jordan Rally at Dead Sea in Jordan. Al-Rawahi and his Jordanian co-driver Ata Al-Hmoud pushed as hard as they could when conditions permitted but they were always running the risk of collecting a flat tyre on the day's six demanding gravel special stages in the Dead Sea and Jordan Valley areas of the Hashemite Kingdom. Another time delay with a flat tyre on the 10th stage eventually decided the outcome in Al-Attiyah's favour and Al-Rawahi had no alternative but to bring his Autotek Škoda Fabia R5 to the finish in second overall. Nevertheless, his day's result also netted a second Jordan National Championship event win of the weekend. Al-Rawahi said: 'It was a long two days for us. The first day was quite good, especially with the pace and we were very close to Nasser. Unfortunately, today we had some punctures and we lost some time. Overall, we are very happy with our performance. It has been the closest we have been to him in the battle. 'We don't really have enough seat time in the car. After this rally I have three months off not really driving my car. My car is also an older generation and there is experience difference between me and Nasser. That is why it is good that he is in the championship. He helps us to push and get closer to him. It is still good. We wanted to win but we are still happy.' A first pass through the iconic Panorama stage of 17.12km opened proceedings on the final morning. Outside temperatures were already up to 31°C at the start of the stage with a peak of 37°C in the afternoon. Surface cleaning was evident on the opener but Al-Attiyah laid down the gauntlet with a time of 11min 38.0sec. Al-Rawahi dropped 32.3 seconds with tyre damage on a front-right wheel and that enabled Al-Attiyah to extend his lead to 45.8 seconds. The first pass through Suwayma was next in the itinerary. Al-Attiyah stopped the clocks in 5min 47.0sec and was able to extend his advantage over Al-Rawahi to 52.5 seconds with another stage win. Wadi Nar was the last stage of the loop. Al-Attiyah made it a clean sweep of morning stage wins and headed for the midday service and regroup with an advantage over Al-Rawahi of 53.1 seconds. He beat the Omani by just six-tenths of a second in the special. After the opening loop of three stages, Al-Rawahi said: 'The first stage this morning we got a puncture and lost over 30 seconds. When you try to keep up and push this can happen sometimes. We were able to continue but the gap is bigger. It's not impossible but it was closer before. Now we are trying to maintain our speed. We have three more stages to go.' A second delay occurred in the afternoon with another puncture but the Omani held on to take second place and maintain his push for a podium finish in this year's FIA Middle East Rally Championship. The Oman Rally Team has backing from Al-Manar Investments, the Oman Automobile Association, WMS, Zamakan, OQ, Strike, Size, the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Culture of Oman and National Finance. The FIA Middle East Rally Championship continues in Lebanon on September 5th-7th. 2025 Jordan Rally – positions after SS12 (unofficial): 1. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Candido Carrera (ESP) Škoda Fabia RS Rally 2 2hr 13min 47.7sec 2. Abdullah Al-Rawahi (OMA)/Ata Al-Hmoud (JOR) Škoda Fabia R5 Rally 2 2hr 16min 42.5sec 3. Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Lorcan Moore (IRL) Citroën C3 Rally 2 2hr 19min 01.3sec 4. Bassel Abu Hamdan (KSA)/Firas Elias (LBN) Škoda Fabia R5 Rally 2 2hr 33min 25.3sec 5. Abdullah Al-Zubair (OMA)/Taha Al-Zadjali (OMA) Subaru Impreza N14 2hr 37min 26.0sec 6. Nasser Khalifa Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Ziad Chehab (LBN) Ford Fiesta Mk II Rally 2 2hr 38min 58.3sec 7. Sheikh Bader Al-Fayez (JOR)/Vili Oslaj (SLO) Škoda Fabia Rally 2 2hr 40min 34.9sec 8. Zakariya Al-Aamri (OMA)/Mohammed Al-Mazroui (OMA) Subaru Impreza N14 2hr 41min 53.0sec 9. Shadi Shaban (JOR)/Samer Issa (JOR) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX (NAT) 2hr 42min 10.2sec
Times of Oman
29-05-2025
- General
- Times of Oman
Daunting new Tal Hilali stage to kickstart Jordan Rally on Friday
DEAD SEA (JORDAN): A first pass through the daunting new 32km Tal Hilali special stage will kickstart the action at the 2025 Jordan Rally on Friday morning. Competitors led by 16-time event winner Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and his Spanish co-driver Candido Carrera will then tackle a further 11 gravel stages over two days before the ceremonial finish at the lowest place on earth on Saturday afternoon. Twenty-one FIA cars and an additional seven crews competing only in two separate national rallies will compete this weekend. The event was officially flagged away from a new start venue at the Royal Automobile Club of Jordan (RACJ) after the pre-event press conference on Thursday evening. Teams had put their cars through customary technical scrutineering at the Dead Sea where a couple of potential front-runners were upbeat about their chances for the weekend. Oman's Abdullah Al-Rawahi won the event outright in 2023 on his way to the MERC title. He said: 'This year has been very tough for us. We haven't had the results I was expecting. We have been trying really hard to push and close the gap to Nasser in terms of pace. Every year we try to learn more and more. The first three rallies didn't go as expected, especially in Oman. The first day we had to retire, in Qatar we got faster and faster and then we had punctures in Saudi Arabia. 'Jordan is where I started. It is different to other years but I love the terrain and the stages. They are tough. We need to be careful. It is very slippery and the notes have to be precise. We are coming here to try and take the win. I am prepared better than last year where we were leading and had to retire.' Defending regional champion Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari praised the condition of the rally tracks. The Citroën C3 driver said: 'I would like to thank the people who prepared the stages. They are amazing. The new stages and the old parts of stages are fantastic. I just worry a little bit about the grip on the first loop. Competition will be very high with eight Rally2s. We are looking forward to it. 'There is no pressure (being champion). I play other different sports, like padel, and people ask me why I don't ever feel pressure. I always try to enjoy. I am getting used to the new car, especially the last day in Saudi where we were much faster than the previous rallies. More kilometres and we will get even faster.' Thirty-five-year-old Rakan Al-Rashed is taking part in the event for the third time after retiring a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX in 2016 and 2017 alongside Finnish co-driver Jarkko Kalliolepo. He is aiming for a podium finish on Saturday evening to continue his quest to become the regional champion. Al-Rashed said: 'For me, I like these stages. They are hard. We will take care on the first stage, the long one, because of the risk of punctures because we have two more stages of around 11km each in the loop. A flat tyre there would be a big problem for me. My strategy is to finish the rally. Being in Portugal and having recent gravel experience should also help.' Rashid Al-Muhannadi could mathematically confirm the FIA MERC4 title this weekend with two rounds to spare in the absence of rookie rival Mohammed Al-Marri. The Qatari said: 'This is my first time in Jordan. The stages are nice but quite demanding and technical. I like the rally. I am looking to forward to it and I hope to win the championship.' This year's Jordan Rally is supported by Zain Jordan, Guarantee Travel Group, Hala and Bliss FM, Markazia and Toyota Gazoo Racing Jordan. Tomorrow (Friday), the opening Tal Hilali special starts at 09.44hrs and features a small section of the former Bahath special in the Jordan Valley and precedes runs through a high-speed Karameh (11.08km) stage and a special at the Baptism Site (11.34km) close to the Dead Sea.
