Nasser sets new MERC mark

Records are meant to be broken, they say, but yesterday Qatar’s Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah achieved a milestone that would perhaps be etched in the record books till eternity.
The twice Dakar Rally winner and Olympic shooting medallist powered his Skoda R5 to victory in the Qatar International Rally to overtake the tally of 60 first-place finishes in the FIA Middle East Rally Championship by UAE great Mohamed bin Sulayem who did it between 1986 and 2002 when he was the overall champion 14 times.
Al-Attiyah, who has virtually no competition in the region, yesterday won the Qatar leg of the regional event for the 13th time beginning 2003. In fact, such has been his domination on home turf that his streak of wins since 2003 was interrupted only once – in 2012 by compatriot Abdulaziz al-Kuwari.
Al-Attiyah had equalled bin Sulayem’s record of 60 leg wins in November last year when he won in Oman.  He clinched his 11th MERC crown in the previous round in Jordan and had decided to skip the Oman leg as it coincided with the Asian Shooting Championships, which was meant to be a qualifying event for 2016 Rio Olympics.
However, with the Asian event being stripped of its Olympic status, Nasser made a last-minute dash to Oman leg, which was making its return to the MERC calendar for the first time since 2007, and proved his mettle once again.
The 45-year-old, who said he will be cutting down on his rallying to focus on shooting in order to qualify for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics later this year, was understandably thrilled with his success in Qatar.
“I am so happy to have achieved the record of winning 61 MERC legs and overtaking Mohamed bin Sulayem’s record,” al-Attiyah said. “I am particularly delighted to have achieved the milestone in my own country because the Qatar International Rally holds a special place in my heart. I thank the Qatar Motor and Motorcyle Federation (QMMF) chief Nasser Khalifa al-Attiyah for the efforts he and his team have put in to make the event a grand success.”
Yesterday, al-Attiyah took the final 112km stage in a time of one hour, 2 minutes and 50.2 seconds, 34.50 seconds ahead of compatriot Khalid al-Suwaidi in his Ford Fiesta. Both incurred zero penalty points. Rashid al-Naimi finished third to make it a Qatari podium sweep.
The Qatar International Rally is the first leg of the MERC, and yesterday’s achievement by al-Attiyah puts him in pole position to dominate the regional event this year and go on to win his 12th title.
“That’s certainly my target,” said al-Attiyah. “Anything can happen in a major event but this victory has certainly boosted my confidence.”
The president of QMMF Nasser Khalifa al-Attiyah was all praise for the champion. “What he achieved was incredible and there is surely more to come from him. He is capable of achieving more glory for Qatar.”