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Toyota’s Juan Cruz Yacopini and Dani Oliveras emerged victorious from a gruelling Qatar International Baja for the first time yesterday. The win was also sufficient for the Argentine and his Spanish navigator to confirm overall victory in the Ultimate category in the FIA World Baja Cup. The X-raid Mini JCW Team duo of Denis Krotov and Konstantin Zhiltsov began the final day with a lead of 2min 42.4sec but came under pressure from both the FIA World Baja Cup leader Yacopini and Czech veteran Martin Prokop over the last stage. Yacopini and his Spanish navigator Dani Oliveras went on a charge as the stage progressed. The Toyota Hilux crew grabbed the virtual rally lead before the final run through the dunes and sealed victory over Martin Prokop and Viktor Chytka after Krotov suffered a broken front differential and then stopped completely and retired on the final push through the southern desert. Yacopini said: “I’m super happy to finish this race. Today’s stage was super tough for us. Yesterday, there was a gap between us and the first car and we knew we had to push really hard. Since the first kilometre we did our best and then we had to manage the race in the dunes at the end. Now we have won the category in the World Cup. We have worked hard for this all year.” Runner-up Prokop added: “It was a very good test. It was very difficult for navigation and driving this new car for me. It was a great two days and two enjoyable stages. We didn’t win but it was close. We slowed down towards the end behind Krotov and thought that was enough. But Yacopini was full gas and he passed us and he won. He did a very good job. Second position, but it was great fun to drive this car in these conditions. Denis was going very slow and we left him there. He had been fast the whole day.” Polish rider Konrad Dabrowski led the motorcycle standings from start-to-finish on his KTM 450 Rally to seal a third victory at the event in four years (2022, 2023 and 2025). He showed an impeccable ability to manage his pace and navigate from the front on the way to a deserved win by 31min 17.0sec. Saudi driver Dania Akeel teamed up with Frenchman Sebastien Delaunay and gave her FIA Middle East Baja Cup title ambitions a major boost by finishing third overall and first in the regional Baja. She also confirmed the Ultimate title with a round to spare. Akeel said: “Really happy for the podium. This is a good place to train for your driving skills. Today was nice but I lost quite a bit of time in the last 70km. I definitely need to work on that. Sébastien was great. It was tough with the navigation. We have a good chance of a shot at the Middle East Cup now in Dubai.” Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah enjoyed a solid stage with Fabian Lurquin in a Taurus T3 Max to finish fourth overall and win the Challenger category. A vital fifth place and points for second in the FIA World Baja Cup for Miroslav Zapletal guarantees that the final places on the Drivers’ Championship podium will be decided at the final round in Dubai in two weeks’ time. The Qatari duo of Nouef al-Sowaidi and Khalifa Saleh al-Attiyah were both registered for the regional Baja Cup in their QMMF Taurus T3s and finished sixth and 11th overall and second and third in the points for the FIA Middle East Baja Cup. Seventh overall for Nasser Racing Team’s Sergei Remennik enabled him to increase his lead over Emirati rival Khalid al-Jafla in the duel for Challenger honours in the FIA World Baja Cup. Lionel and Lucie Baud were eighth in the second of the X-Raid Minis and Frenchman Ronan Chabot was 10th in his Overdrive Racing Toyota. Young Qatari rookie Mohammed al-Marri delivered a stunning performance with navigator Szymon Gospodarczyk to finish ninth and top the SSV class standings in a Can-Am Maverick R. He finished well clear of Saudi’s Maha al-Hameli and Van den Brink, although Oman’s Hamed al-Wahaibi won the day’s stage. Italian Amerigo Ventura suffered rear differential issues after hitting a rock in his Yamaha YXZ 1000. A change of engine block and the resultant 20-hour penalty dropped Francesco Barreto out of the top 10 and he retired midway through the stage. There were also serious problems on the final day for the QMMF Team’s Abdulaziz al-Kuwari and Sweden’s Mattias Ekstrom. Both Paul Severn and Eugenio Amos stopped in the dunes and lost chunks of time. **media[379298]** Qatar’s Abdullah al-Rabban held off Saudi rival Majed al-Thunayyan to win the Stock category for series production cross-country machines in his Nissan Patrol. Dabrowski was the class of the motorcycle field for the entire weekend. He won the Prologue, crushed his rivals on the first stage and rode in a masterly way from the front through the final stage, despite one navigational indiscretion in the dunes. The Pole said: “Really happy. Stella made me work for it today in the dunes. The GPS device we use here caught the waypoint from 20km before and, because of that, it wasn’t calibrated to open the arrow for the next one that I was heading to. So, I had no idea where I was. I still won the stage because Alex missed some waypoints. That means I have won all nine stages that I have ever done here. Qatar seems to suit me. It has been good for my navigational skills and opening the track on both days. This is a good confidence boost ahead of Dakar.” British rider Alex McInnes shadowed and caught the Pole and then got lost near the end of the final stage. Missing vital waypoints cost the Husqvarna stage success and second place. He dropped back to seventh. McInnes said: “I missed some waypoints at the end. I threw it away. The GPS picked up a waypoint in advance and I couldn’t go back. That’s where I lost the time.” MX Ride Dubai’s Mohammed al-Balooshi took another giant step towards a fourth FIM Bajas World Cup title with the runner-up spot on the motorcycle podium. A strong run by Frenchman Jean Loup Lepan netted the KTM rider third place. Briton Makis Rees-Stavros and Germany’s Philip Horlemann rounded off the top five. Al-Balooshi’s main FIM World Bajas Cup title rival Rafic Eid finished 12th. Emirati Abdulaziz al-Ahli held off Saudi racer Hani al-Noumesi to win the quad category. Abdulaziz al-Atawi wasn’t classified and Qatar’s Yaghoob Azadi retired with mechanical issues on the last stage. Al-Noumesi won the FIM quad title for the second successive season. The FIA and FIM series both reach a conclusion in Dubai on November 20th-23rd. **media[379297]** Qatar International Baja results Cars (top 10 only) 1. Juan Cruz Yacopini (ARG)/Dani Oliveras (ESP) Toyota Hilux IMT Evo; 4hr 50min 30.6sec* 2. Martin Prokop (CZE)/Viktor Chytka (CZE) Ford Raptor; 4hr 53min 02.6sec 3. Dania Akeel (KSA)/Sébastien Delaunay (FRA) Toyota Hilux; 5hr 07min 14.0sec+ 4. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Fabian Lurquin (BEL) Taurus T3 Max; 5hr 12min 59.3sec 5. Miroslav Zapletal (CZE)/Marek Sykora (SVK) Ford F-150 Evo; 5hr 31min 30.4sec* 6. Nouef Al-Suwaidi (QAT)/Aisvydas Paliukenas (LTU) Taurus T3 Max; 5hr 33min 36.7sec+ 7. Sergei Remennik (UAE)/Aleksei Ignatov (KGZ) Taurus T3 Max; 5hr 42min 02.7sec* 8. Lionel Baud (FRA)/Lucie Baud (FRA) Mini John Cooper Works Rally 3.0D; 5hr 42min 18.1sec 9. Mohammed Al-Marri (QAT)/Szymon Gospodarczyk (POL) Can-Am Maverick R; 5hr 43min 49.0sec 10. Ronan Chabot (FRA)/Xavier Panseri (FRA) Toyota Hilux; 5hr 44min 29.8sec *denotes registered for the FIA World Baja Cup + denotes registered for the FIA Middle East Baja Cup Bikes (Top 20 only) 1. Konrad Dabrowski (POL) KTM 450 Rally; 6hr 37min 11.7sec 2. Mohammed Al-Balooshi (UAE) KTM 450 RR; 7hr 08min 28.7sec 3. Jean Loup Lepan (FRA) KTM 450 Rally; 7hr 18min 30.8sec 4. Makis Rees-Stavros (GBR) KTM EXC 450; 7hr 18min 56.2sec 5. Philip Horlemann (GER) KTM Rally Replica 450; 7hr 24min 10.5sec 6. Michael Anderson (POR) KTM Rally Replica; 7hr 35min 19.6sec 7. Alex McInnes (GBR) Husqvarna Rally Replica; 7hr 42min 47.5sec 8. Harith Noah (IND) Sherco 450 SEF; 7hr 43min 43.4sec 9. Peter Solnor (NOR) Kove Rally 450 EX; 7hr 56min 14.2sec 10. Hans Christian Dovland (NOR) Husqvarna FR450; 7hr 57min 01.8sec 11. Simon Marcic (SLO) Kove Rally EX; 8hr 03min 40.4sec 12. Rafic Eid (LBN) KTM 450 Rally; 8hr 06min 07.1sec 13. Justin Gerlach (GER) KTM 450 FR Replica; 8hr 17min 31.6sec 14. Andrew Houlihan (AUS) Husqvarna FR450 Rally; 8hr 40min 24.4sec 15. Thomas Childs (GBR) KTM 450 Rally; 8hr 42min 44.5sec 16. Badr Al-Hamdan (KSA) Kove EX 450; 8hr 54min 28.2sec 17. Emanuele Gallone (ITA) Husqvarna FE450; 8hr 56min 25.9sec 18. Abdullah Abu Aisheh (JOR) Yamaha WR 450F; 9hr 04min 13.9sec 19. Marcin Talaga (POL) GasGas RX 450F Rally Replica; 9hr 06min 41.2sec 20. Mohammed Al-Kubaisi (QAT) KTM EXC-F 350; 9hr 08min 57.4sec Quads 1. Abdulaziz Ahli (UAE) Yamaha Raptor 700R; 8hr 04min 21.1sec 2. Hani Al-Noumesi (KSA) Yamaha Raptor; 9hr 42min 40.9sec Abdulaziz Al-Atawi (KSA) Yamaha Raptor 700; Retired Yaghoob Azadi (QAT) Yamaha Raptor 700R; Retired

Qatar’s Abdulaziz al-Kuwari and Polish rider Konrad Dabrowski topped the times in the car and motorcycle categories on the afternoon’s Prologue stage before the 2025 Qatar International Baja was officially flagged away at the ‘Way to the World Cup’ landmark on Doha Corniche in the evening. Forty-three cars, 53 motorcycles and four quads graced the official start lists for the penultimate rounds of the FIA World and Middle East Cups and the FIM Bajas World Cup. While the afternoon’s Prologue to the north-west of Lusail sorted the starting order for today’s opening desert stage, the highlight of the day was the ceremonial start at the ‘Way to the World Cup’ landmark with the stunning backdrop of Doha’s spectacular hi-rise West Bay skyline. Cars were flagged away by Abdulrahman al-Mannai, President of the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF), and the QMMF’s general secretary Abdulrazzaq al-Kuwari in the presence of distinguished guests and senior officials from both the FIA and FIM. Czech duo of Martin Prokop and Viktor Chytka were initially fastest in the FIA category with a run of 6min 46.0sec. That enabled the Ford Raptor driver to win the Prologue by just four-tenths of a second from last year’s event winners Denis Krotov and Konstantin Zhiltsov (X-Raid Mini). But both drivers were later handed time penalties that dropped them down to 18th and sixth positions, respectively. The QMMF Team’s Abdulaziz al-Kuwari and Khalifa Saleh al-Attiyah eventually finished first and second in the car category after numerous time penalties were imposed on their rivals. Sweden’s Mattias Ekstrom was third in a Can-Am and the current FIA World Baja Cup leader Juan Cruz Yacopini finished fourth in his Toyota Hilux with his championship rival Miroslav Zapletal in fifth. **media[378368]** Yacopini said: “We were the first car on the road. It was a tricky Prologue between the flags. We made it properly. We have the chance of a good starting position for this race. We will have a clear road and some lines (to follow). Let’s see what happens.” Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah had been the fastest driver at the mid-stage split before losing time late on with a fuel pump issue on his Taurus T3 Max. The Qatari finished the Prologue down in 25th position. Al-Attiyah said: “We had a good run and then we had a small issue with the fuel pump and we stopped for one minute. We will try to do our best tomorrow. It will be a long day.” A dominant Dabrowski clocked a time of 7min 02.8sec on the Prologue on his KTM 450 Rally to beat British Husqvarna rider Alex McInnes to the win by 39.3 seconds in the motorcycle category. Frenchman Jean Loup Lepan (KTM), Slovenian Simon Marcic (Kove) and regular Indian factory Sherco rider Harith Noah rounded off the top five. The FIM Bajas World Cup’s front-running Mohammed al-Balooshi and Rafic Eid were classified in sixth and ninth. Emirati Abdulaziz al-Ahli was the quickest of the quad riders and faster than all but four of the bikers. **media[378369]** Al-Balooshi said: “Not a good result for us. This is not the way we wanted to start the race. Tomorrow is a new day. I am happy that we are here safe. Hopefully we make the most of tomorrow.” Title rival Eid added: “It was super hot and super rocky. It was a tricky ride with tight corners. Now I am position 10 (including leading quad) and that means I will open the road for everybody. With Qatar’s difficult navigation this will be a good training for me for Dakar 2026!” Qatar’s Mohammed al-Kubaisi and Abdulrahman al-Sheeb finished the Prologue in 43rd and 49th positions in the two-wheel contingent, the latter suffering niggling electrical issues on his Fantic XEF. Jordan’s Eyad Salmirza (Yamaha) was a non-starter and received a 30-minute penalty. On Friday, competitors face a revised opening stage of 220.31km. This will be split into three shorter timed sections. The first bike is scheduled to get the action underway at 07.45hrs. Prologue result: Cars (top 20 only) 1. Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Stéphane Duplé (FRA) Taurus T3 Max 6min 50.3sec+ 2. Khalifa Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Bruno Jacomy (ARG) Taurus T3 Max 6min 51.8sec+ 3. Mattias Ekström (SWE)/Emil Bergkvist (SWE) Can-Am Maverick R 6min 53.6sec 4. Juan Cruz Yacopini (ARG)/Dani Oliveras (ESP) Toyota Hilux IMT Evo 6min 58.7sec* 5. Miroslav Zapletal (CZE)/Marek Sykora (SVK) Ford F-150 Evo 6min 59.8sec* 6. Denis Krotov (KGZ)/Konstantin Zhiltsov (KGZ) Mini John Cooper Works Rally 3.0i 7min 01.4sec 7. Mitchel van den Brink (NED)/Bart van Heun (NED) Can-Am Maverick R 7min 02.8sec* 8. Hamed Al-Wahaibi (OMA)/Ilka Minor (AUT) Can-Am Maverick R 7min 06.3sec* 9. Lionel Baud (FRA)/Lucie Baud (FRA) Mini John Cooper Works Rally 3.0D 7min 09.1sec 10. Eugenio Amos (ITA)/Paolo Ceci (ITA) Can-Am Maverick R 7min 12.5sec* 11. Nouef Al-Suwaidi (QAT)/Aisvydas Paliukenas (LTU) Taurus T3 Max 7min 17.5sec+ 12. Sergei Remennik (UAE)/Aleksei Ignatov (KGZ) Taurus T3 Max 7min 17.9sec* 13. Hamza Bakhashab (KSA)/Marcin Pasek (POL) Can-Am Maverick R 7min 20.4sec+ 14. Dania Akeel (KSA)/Sébastien Delaunay (FRA) Toyota Hilux 7min 21.0sec+ 15. Amerigo Ventura (ITA)/Erika Mingozzi (ITA) Yamaha YXZ 1000R Short Shift 7min 21.7sec* 16. Erik van Loon (NED)/Martin van den Brink (NED) Can-Am Maverick R 7min 23.6sec* 17. Ronan Chabot (FRA)/Xavier Panseri (FRA) Toyota Hilux 7min 28.9sec 18. Martin Prokop (CZE)/Viktor Chytka (CZE) Ford Raptor 7min 31.0sec 19. Paul Severn (GBR)/Delphine Denfino (FRA) Polaris RZR Pro R Sport 7min 34.7sec* 20. Khalid Al-Feraihi (KSA)/Candido Carrera (ESP) Toyota Hilux IMT Evo 7min 35.6sec *denotes registered for the FIA World Baja Cup + denotes registered for the FIA Middle East Baja Cup Bikes (Top 20 only) 1. Konrad Dabrowski (POL) KTM 450 Rally 7min 02.8sec 2. Alex McInnes (GBR) Husqvarna Rally Replica 7min 42.1sec 3. Jean Loup Lepan (FRA) KTM 450 Rally 7min 50.6sec 4. Simon Marcic (SLO) Kove Rally EX 7min 53.0sec 5. Harith Noah (IND) Sherco 450 SEF 7min 55.2sec 6. Mohammed Al-Balooshi (UAE) KTM 450 RR 8min 19.5sec 7. Abdullah Lanjawi (UAE) Kove 450 Rally 8min 20.0sec 8. Michael Anderson (POR) KTM Rally Replica 8min 23.0sec 9. Rafic Eid (LBN) KTM 450 Rally 8min 25.3sec 10. Abdullah Abu Aisheh (JOR) Yamaha WR 450F 8min 26.2sec 11. Leoncio Sosa (MEX) KTM 350 ECX 8min 29.3sec 12. Andrew Houlihan (AUS) Husqvarna FR450 Rally 8min 30.1sec 13. Ehab Al-Hakeem (LBN) Yamaha WR450 8min 30.6sec 14. Robbie Wallace (GBR) Honda CRF 450R 8min 30.7sec 15. Mauricio Sosa (MEX) Kove 450 Rally 8min 37.8sec 16. Makis Rees-Stavros (GBR) KTM EXC 450 8min 39.3sec 17. Oran O’Kelly (IRL) KTM Rally 450 8min 46.6sec 18. Philip Horlemann (GER) KTM Rally Replica 450 8min 50.1sec 19. Hans Christian Dovland (NOR) Husqvarna FR450 8min 51.1sec 20. Frederic Fontarosa (FRA) Husqvarna FE450 8min 57.0sec Quads 1. Abdulaziz Ahli (UAE) Yamaha Raptor 700R 7min 50.9sec 2. Hani Al-Noumesi (KSA) Yamaha Raptor 8min 52.8sec 3. Yaghoob Azadi (QAT) Yamaha Raptor 700R 45min 00.0sec 4. Abdulaziz Al-Atawi (KSA) Yamaha Raptor 700 45min 00.0sec

The Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) has put the finishing touches to this weekend’s Qatar International Baja and competitors have now set up their equipment in the expansive Baja service park, adjacent to the Lusail International Circuit, north of Doha.Forty-three cars, 54 motorcycles and four quads are expected to tackle the penultimate rounds of the FIA World and Middle East Baja Cups and the FIM Bajas World Cup.Rally officials have also made minor tweaks to the route in the days building up to the event. The Prologue to determine the starting order for the first stage will now run for 10.59km Thursday afternoon. This precedes a slightly revised opening stage of 220.31km on Friday and the final run through the dunes of southern Qatar on Saturday that has been slightly lengthened to 234.19km.Five-time Dakar Rally winner Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah proved last December that it is possible to beat the Ultimate category cars and take an outright victory in a round of the FIA World Baja Cup (he and Pablo Moreno won the Dubai round in a Taurus T3 Max) in a Challenger class machine.The Qatari has a busy weekend ahead offering support vehicles to the QMMF Team. As he explained in the service park Tuesday: “We tried hard in Dubai last year and we won. It was really nice. Now, we have made a lot of development with the car (Taurus) in South Africa also. We have worked on the cooling and the power of the engine.”He added: “It is very nice to have the Nasser Racing and QMMF teams for our region and to help the people. It is amazing. We try to improve every time. It’s also a good chance for me to keep focused before the Dakar with Dacia. That’s another reason we are here. I am also with Fabian (Lurquin), my co-driver for Dakar, and we are here to learn more together. I didn’t want to miss this race.”One of the entrants in the SSV category at the wheel of an RX-Sport-supplied Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR is Nora Al-Jassasi. The first Emirati female to be licenced by the FIA as a driver is teaming up with navigator Egor Okhotnikov. After starting out in equestrian endurance racing, Nora switched to motorcycling and has also taken part in the Jameel Rally in Saudi Arabia on a couple of occasions.“I’m excited to be a part of the Qatar Baja,” said Nora. “I know Qatar’s terrain will be challenging but that’s what pushes you to improve. I will also compete in Dubai as preparation for the 2026 FIA Middle East Baja Cup. I took part in the Abu Dhabi Baja Challenge at the end of October and was third in T4 and second in the Ladies Cup.”Rashid al-Ketbi is a former rally driver himself and would often give Mohammed Ben Sulayem and Abdullah Bakhashab a run for their money on rounds of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship. He is now running Dubai-based RX-Sport and overseeing the exploits of Oman’s Hamed al-Wahaibi in this year’s FIA World Baja Cup.Al-Wahaibi is currently tied third in the SSV standings with Briton Paul Severn and behind runaway series leader Mitchel van den Brink and Italy’s Amerigo Ventura. Al-Ketbi said: “I am very excited to be here and to see so many old friends again. We have been managing Hamed all season in the World Championship and we are aiming for the podium. We reach a certain time in our motorsport careers as we get older and we decide to support each other as best we can. It is becoming a motorsport family more than just a motorsport challenge.”Al-Attiyah’s brother Khalifa Saleh is in pole position to win the FIA Middle East Baja Cup outright. The QMMF Team Taurus driver takes an 11-point lead over Saudi Arabia’s Dania Akeel into the weekend in the overall Drivers’ Championship. He leads team-mate Abdulaziz al-Kuwari by 32 points in the SSV standings. “I need to be cautious, not take risks, find a fast pace and make sure that I score points,” said Khalifa Saleh.Rival Akeel kept in match practice last weekend by finishing second overall at the Qassim Rally in Saudi Arabia. She will run an Overdrive Racing Toyota Hilux this weekend.Last year, Akeel was on the verge of history by becoming the first woman ever to win a Baja-type event in the Middle East. She led at the start of the final stage in Qatar and then stopped shortly before the finish with a broken steering arm. Desperate emergency repairs enabled her to reach the finish in fifth place.Juan Cruz Yacopini arrives in Doha trying to defend a 22-point lead in the Drivers’ Championship in the FIA World Bajas Cup. The Argentine’s closest rival is Czech veteran Miroslav Zapletal. Yacopini has only scored points on four rounds so far this year. He finished second to Yazeed al-Rajhi at the Saudi Baja and scored maximum points in Jordan, Italy and Spain.Mohammed al-Balooshi starts as the favourite in the FIM Bajas World Cup category and is also the leader of the local Qatar Baja series. Michael Anderson has a growing reputation in the area for his speed, while this year’s Saudi Baja winner Alex McInnes has changed the engine on his bike in the bivouac after last weekend’s Qassim Rally.Both Barry Howe and Hamdan al-Ali will be absent from the start list because of injury but Qatari riders Mohammed al-Kubaisi and Abdulrahman al-Sheeb will be raring to go. Meanwhile, Briton Ben Harvey-Grounds will line-up full of confidence after his win on a Kove in the prestigious 24-hour Dawn to Dusk Enduro in Wales.On Wednesday, competitors go through their administration and scrutineering checks at the Lusail International Circuit before a dozen of the leading drivers and riders attend the pre-event press conference in the circuit’s media centre 6pm.

The Qatar International Baja will be the penultimate round of the FIM Bajas World Cup on November 6th-8th. While competitors in the FIA World Baja Cup wait for the outcome of this weekend’s Baja Portalegre 500 in Portugal before the latest championship standings are known before the Lusail-based event, riders competing in the FIM category are already making final preparations for their title-deciding rounds in Qatar and Dubai.This year’s FIM Bajas World Cup is being fought out over just seven counting rounds after the Hungarian Baja pulled out of the series in August. Action began across the deserts of north-central Saudi Arabia for the Hail Baja at the start of February and then moved on to the narrow and twisty gravel tracks of Portugal for the Baja Escuderia Castelo Branco in wet conditions.British rider Alex McInnes claimed his maiden win on the series opener and then Junior rider Martin Ventura got the better of Jorge Brandao and Paulo Cardoso to win in Portugal.MX Ride Dubai’s Mohammed al-Balooshi then confirmed his fifth victory at the Jordan Baja in April, an event that was held across the spectacular desert terrain of Wadi Rum in the south of the Hashemite Kingdom. That victory pushed the defending champion into title contention.The series then returned to Europe for back-to-back Bajas in Spain. Professional Honda rider Tosha Schareina overcame tricky muddy conditions to get the better of Javi Vega at the Baja TT Dehesa Extremadura at the start of May. Lorenzo Santolino then guided his Sherco to victory over Neels Theric and Vega in the Teruel-based Baja Spain Aragón in the heat of the Spanish summer.Entries closed Wednesday for the event being organised by the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) and the final lists will be announced on October 29th.But Dubai-based al-Balooshi is expected to take the start with a nine-point advantage over his Lebanese team-mate Rafic Eid in the overall 450cc riders’ championship. Vega is third in the rankings, ahead of Brandao, Cardoso and a tying Santolino, Schareina, Ventura and McInnes. Tragically, Brandao lost his life while competing at the recent W2RC event in Morocco. Rafic Eid leads the Veterans’ category by six points from al-Balooshi.The FIM Bajas World Cup also has a well-supported Ladies’ category. Alona Ben Natan leads the way on 58 points and has an eight-point cushion over Spaniard Sara Garcia Alvarez. Equador’s Maria Taranto is third, five points in front of Sarah Khuraibet from Kuwait. Kove Factory Racing’s Lili-may Mansuy and the Duust Rally Team’s Joanna Modrzewska are also in the points’ hunt.Polish rider Konrad Dabrowksi won the Qatar International Baja outright on two wheels in 2022 and 2023. He currently trails Spain’s Victor Manuel Moya Aguilera by 13 points in the race to become the leading Junior rider in 2025. Dabrowski rides for the Duust Rally Team and is tied in second place in the standings with Jordan’s Abdullah Al-Batayneh, Ventura and McInnes.Experienced Saudi rider Hani al-Noumesi won last year’s Qatar International Baja in the quad category and has a 16-point advantage in the FIM’s quad standings over Frenchman Antoine Sanchez and Portugal’s Fernando Jorge Sampaio.Frenchman Jerome Connart and the Saudi duo of Haitham al-Tuwaijri and Abdulaziz al-Shayban are also in the hunt. Administration and technical scrutineering will be based at Qatar’s Lusail International Circuit on Tuesday, November 4th with re-scrutineering for any FIA vehicles on Wednesday, November 5th.Competitive action will then take centre stage from Thursday, November 6th through to Saturday, November 8th over a total route of 773.83km and 453.21 competitive kilometres.

The Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) has put the finishing touches to a challenging three-day route for the Qatar International Baja, taking place on November 6th-8th. The event is the seventh round of the FIA World Baja Cup, round three of the FIA Middle East Baja Cup and the sixth and penultimate round of the FIM Bajas World Cup. The iconic ‘Way to the World Cup’ landmark on Doha Corniche will be the backdrop for start and finish formalities for the first time. With a reputation as being one of the most demanding Baja events on the international calendar, the event offers tricky navigation, varied desert terrain and a mixture of gravel, rocky and sandy surfaces to ensure that drivers, navigators and riders are fully focused from the outset. Running under the chairmanship of QMMF President Abdulrahman Al-Mannai, QMMF’s Executive Director Amro Al-Hamad and board member Abdulrazaq Al-Kuwari, the event runs to a traditional Baja-type format with a short Prologue determining the starting order for the first of two stages in a total route of 773.83km through the Qatar desert. Administration and technical scrutineering will be based at the Lusail International Circuit on Tuesday, November 4th and Wednesday, November 5th. The circuit will also host the pre-event press conference at 18.00hrs on November 5th. Competitors will then tackle the opening Prologue of 10.66km, located 31.51km from the Lusail International Circuit, from 12.30hrs (first car 13.45hrs) on Thursday, November 6th. Teams and members of the media will then transfer to Doha for the ceremonial start by the ‘Way to the World Cup’ landmark from 18.20hrs (bikes) and 19.00hrs (cars). In a route devised by Clerk of the Course Pedro Almeida, his deputy Rashid Al-Sulaiti and their team, the opening stage on Friday, November 7th will be split into three timed parts of 67.38km, 32.32km and 118.55km by a pair of non-competitive neutralisation sections. The first bike starts the stage at 07.45hrs (first car - 09.40hrs) with all competitors tackling the same stage. Second stage action on Saturday, November 8th will be split into five timed sections of 35.14km, 12.05km, 33.35km, 39.95km and 108.31km by four neutralisations. The first bike will be live on stage at 07.15hrs (first car - 09.10hrs). The stage will finish in the spectacular dunes of the Sealine area of southern Qatar for the first time since the event replaced the Qatar Cross-Country Rally in 2022. Competitors will then return to the Doha Corniche and the ‘Way to the World Cup’ landmark for the post-event press conference (19.30hrs) and the podium ceremony and prize giving from 20.00hrs. The Baja is now an established event in the FIA and FIM calendars. The X-Raid Mini JCW Rally 3.01 crew of Denis Krotov and Konstantin Zhiltsov are the defending champions in the FIA Ultimate category. Last year, Anja Van Loon and Floor Maten prevailed in the Challenger section in a Can-Am Maverick X3, João Ferreira and Filipe Palmeiro topped the SSV standings in a Can-Am XRS Turbo RR and Abdullah Al-Rabban and Hassan Ali Obaid guided a Nissan Patrol to Stock honours. Emirati Mohammed Al-Balooshi (KTM) recorded his second win in four years on two wheels and Saudi Arabia’s Hani Al-Noumesi (Yamaha) won the quad class. Entries close at reduced rates on October 8th with a final cut-off set for October 22nd. Full details on the generous concessions being offered by the QMMF are available in the event’s Supplementary Regulations. Entrants in the FIA categories from the GCC will be offered a shipping allowance of $3,000, with international entrants receiving $6,000. Flight ticket allowances extend to $800 per GCC crew and $1,600 for overseas competitors. FIM entrants will receive $1,500 and $3,000 for shipping, respectively, and $400 or $800 towards air travel. Accommodation in a twin room for five nights with breakfast is available to FIA and FIM competitors, in addition to 5000 QAR start money for entries received before the first cut-off (2500 QAR – FIM) and 4000 QAR (2000 QAR – FIM) thereafter until the closure date. For further event information, competitors and teams can contact Davy Patterson, Competitor Liaison Officer (CRO), Email: [email protected] and WhatsApp: +44 7980 613944. For general information about the 2025 Qatar International Baja, contact the Qatar Motor and Motor Cycle Federation (QMMF), P.O. Box 8708, Doha, Qatar, Tel: + 974 443 79885, Fax: + 974 443 79732, E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] and www.qmmf.com