Al-Attiyah aims to secure W2RC title in Rallye du Maroc

DOHA: Qatar’s Nasser al-Attiyah will begin Stage 1 of the Rallye du Maroc from 14th place after finishing in the same position during the prologue. The two-time world champion, who holds a 20-point lead over Yazeed al-Rajhi in the FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) title race, enters the fifth and final round in Morocco with the upper hand.

Al-Attiyah, racing in a new Dacia Sandriders vehicle, admitted to “sandbagging” during the 73km prologue (25km timed) to avoid opening the road for today’s 372km stage to Zagora. His tactical move allowed him to strategically position himself for the longer and more challenging stages ahead.

Guerlain Chicherit of X-raid Mini JCW set the fastest prologue time, followed by teammate Joao Ferreira. In the Challenger section, Qatar’s Khalifa al-Attiyah finished 13th, while Ahmed al-Kuwari took 17th place. The team of Abdulaziz al-Kuwari and Nasser Saadoon al-Kuwari placed 18th.(Gulf Times)