Nasser upbeat despite home setback
IT HAS been a dreadful start to the season for Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah.First, he saw his move to compete in the World Rally Championship in a Volkswagen with Sebastian Ogier fall flat after the Frenchman signed a deal with M-Sport. Then, he pulled out of the third stage of Dakar Rally.
And now he had to pull out of a rally on home turf after leading till the penultimate stage.
“This has always been a special rally for me and one where I’ve had a fantastic record,” said Nasser, who has won the Qatar International Rally a record 13 times and nine in a row (2003 to 2011).
It was for the first time since 2012 that Nasser failed to win the traditional Middle East Rally Championship’s (MERC) season opener.
In 2012, he had to settle for second place behind compatriot Abulaziz Al Kuwari owing to technical problems.
But this time, the damage to his Skoda Fabia was beyond control and he pulled out.
“We damaged the radiator and after that we couldn’t continue because we lost all the water. I was sure that we would’ve damaged the engine had we carried on. I didn’t want to cheat or bend the rules by taking water from somebody,” explained Nasser as his wait for a 64th MERC round win was put on hold.
The 12-time regional champion is eyeing the record of 14 triumphs held by the UAE’s Mohammed bin Sulayem.
A truncated MERC season will see just four more rounds, but Nasser exuded confidence.
“I’ve 12 Middle East titles so far and the goal is to beat the record. I hope that it’ll be better in Jordan. After that, we’ve Cyprus, Lebanon and Iran. so we try to score maximum points for the championship. It isn’t so easy now, but we’ll see,” he said.
While welcoming new drivers to the competition, Nasser said it boded well for the sport.
“I’m 46 years old now and won’t go on forever. It’s great to see young drivers coming through now. One day, I’ll stop racing, but another Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah should come,” he concluded.
