BY RIZWAN REHMAT
DOHA: Dakar Rally champion Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah starts the 2015 FIA Middle East Championship campaign on home soil, knowing his mantra of success is based on making few mistakes on what is expected to be a challenging terrain.
The first round of the Qatar International Rally kicks off today with Al Attiyah itching to get behind the wheel of his Ford Fiesta along with co-driver Mathieu Baumel.
“We have prepared well for this event. This event doesn’t mean we have to show speed all the time,” Al Attiyah said ahead of today’s start.
“You don’t have to be clever. You should have less number of punctures, less damage to your car. That will help you win Qatar Rally,” the 43-year-old Qatari said with his trademark smile in place.
Al Attiyah, a bronze medallist at the London Olympic Games in skeet shooting, said he wants to make use of the home advantage that he enjoys.
“This is an event I have won 11 times. This race is special for me. It feels like home. I would like to win again,” Al Attiyah said.
Al Attiyah, clearly Qatar’s most popular sports personality, said he had regained energy after a gruelling Dakar Rally challenge he won in Argentina and Chile.
“I am quite ready. I am ready. We did 9000kms in Dakar Rally. We didn’t have any problem. But in the last 10 days I was tired but thanks to Aspetar I recovered really quickly. Thanks to their expert help I feel ready,” he warned.
Al Attiyah said the 12 special stages were carefully charted by QMMF, the hosting body.
“I would like to thank QMMF and the people who make this event successful. The stages here won’t be easy to handle. You need a lot of experience. I think organisers have laid out a challenging course. Good job on their part,” Al Attiyah said.
Al Attiyah said he is ready for what would be a busy season with plenty of events to look at. “We are so happy to start the season in Dakar Rally. That was a good race for us. We hope we can continue in the same fashion. We have a lot of experience. We can do result here as well. Our target is to win the race,” he said.
“This will be a busy year. I would like to welcome Iranian drivers to Qatar for the first time. We look forward to going to Iran for the first ever race in Iran,” Al Attiyah said.
Al Attiyah said he had teamed-up with Baumel, his new co-driver who brought immediate luck to the Qatari camp. “Yes, I have new co-driver. Mathieu was with me for a few events last year. Mathieu is one of the best co-drivers in the world. He shows great skill,” he said.
“We started from Dakar 2015. He make a good job and we decided to bring him to Middle East.
“I have decided to stick to one driver to make my plans easier to handle. I am so happy to have his services. I think we will have a lot of fun this year,” he added.
The Peninsula
