Team Abu Dhabi driver Khalid Al Qassimi says his run to eighth place on the Jordan Rally last week has kick-started his world championship season.
Al Qassimi, driving a factory-assisted Ford Fiesta RS WRC, hopes the result will lead to a challenge for a top 10 finish in the final drivers’ standings after he climbed to 13th in the table following the fourth event of the year.
“It was a very tough rally on a treacherous surface, but the fight I showed has reinvigorated my season and re-energised me personally,” said Al Qassimi, who was making his 40th world championship start in Jordan. “The result has inspired me to aim for a top 10 place by the end of the year - it’s a challenging but realistic goal.”
Al Qassimi won the Jordan Rally in 2007 when it ran as a combined Middle East championship and WRC candidate event. He said his knowledge of the demanding gravel stages was pivotal to his success on the Dead Sea event.
“I finished 10th here in 2008 and wanted to at least match that,” said the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority-backed driver. “The personal milestone of WRC starts only fuelled my determination to get a result, as did the late arrival of our equipment [due to the transport delays]. It caused a bit of a distraction for many drivers, but it shaped my plan - to concentrate on the technical basics and drive cleverly on stages I know well.
“A bit of luck went my way when I managed to avoid several huge stones, but Jordan was a great result and has brought my season to life.”
Al Qassimi resumes his WRC campaign with Northern Irish co-driver on Rally d’Italia Sardinia next month. The all-gravel event is based in the port town of Olbia and runs from 5-8.
Credit: World Rally Championship (www.wrc.com)
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