Qatar’s Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah and Italian co-driver Giovanni Bernacchini clinched an emphatic victory by a margin of 12 minutes 23.4 seconds in the 10th Syrian International Rally, round six of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC), which finished in Sednaya on Saturday afternoon.
The pair won nine of the event’s 13 gravel special stages, as Al Attiyah moved into second position in the Drivers’ Championship with his 36th outright MERC success and a record-breaking fourth win in Syria.
Bernacchini clinched his seventh MERC win as a co-driver and now ties Jordan’s Khaled Zakaria as the fourth most successful navigator in championship history. It was the Italian’s first win in Syria.
“This is a fantastic win for me,” said a delighted Al Attiyah. “I have missed three rounds of the championship this season, but I still have a chance to win the title again now. Misfer (Al Marri) is doing what he has to do, but I will go into the last two rounds knowing that I have a great chance if I can win both rallies.”
Sharjah’s Sheikh Abdullah Al Qassimi continued his run of excellent form to take second position and move into a similar place in the Drivers’ Championship standings after six of eight rounds.
Syria’s Haitham Al Yousefi retired from second position on the final stage with radiator problems and Ahmad Hamsho finished as the leading local driver in sixth overall.
Qatar’s Misfer Al Marri started cautiously on Friday, but found a sensible pace over the closing stages to claim third overall and six points for being the third registered driver home.
He will now take a 10-point championship lead to Cyprus next month and a pair of third places on the remaining two rounds will be enough to see him claim a maiden regional title. His Italian co-driver Nicola Arena continues to lead the Co-Drivers’ Championship.
The event took place under the patronage of the Ministry of Tourism with the full support of MTN – official sponsor, SMI, the Sheraton Ma’arat Sednaya, Jupiter Rent-a-Car, Zaman Alkhair, Aldunia television and Al-Madina radio.
The next round of the 2010 FIA Middle East Rally Championship will be the Limassol-based FX Pro Cyprus Rally on November 5-7.
Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.
