Qatar's Nasser bin Khalifa Al Atya and his Italian navigator Giovanni Bernacchini during the ceremonial flag off of the Rally de Portugal 2023. The Qatari driver finished 2:11.4 minutes behind the race leader Pierre-Louis Loubet of France in yesterday's first Special Stage. A former Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) series runner-up in 1993, Al Atya returned to track in 2019 after a gap of 22 years.