Attiyah wins thriller in Cyprus to step closer to 11th driver title

AMMAN — Qatar rally legend Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah can clinch his 11th Middle East Rally Championship title in 13 years when the series moves to Jordan for round six from October 15-17, according to a statement from the Jordan Rally Media Service.

Attiyah stepped closer to the crown after an exhilarating Cyprus Rally that he won for the fourth time by the narrowest of margins from one of Europe’s leading drivers.

With just 1.3 seconds separating Attiyah and Poland’s Kajetan Kajetanowicz heading into the 16th and final 13km stage, the Qatari held on to record his 58th MERC victory and another maximum points haul. Kajetanowicz had led from the third to the start of the 15th stage but eventually lost out by just seven seconds.

Qatar’s Abdulaziz Al Kuwari finished third.

“Nasser has shown once again this year what a fantastic competitor he is so we are looking forward to seeing him coming to Jordan along with the region’s other top drivers,” said Othman Nassif, CEO of Jordan Motorsport, which organises the Jordan Rally.

“For sure, he won’t have it all his own way but he has won our event on a number of occasions and will be tough to beat. It makes for a very interesting event here in a few weeks time.”

Attiyah now leads the championship by 49 points from the UAE’s Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi. Victory in Jordan would give him an unassailable lead at the top with two round left in Oman and Dubai.

The Jordan Rally gets under way with a special spectator event on October 15, followed by two days of action based out of the Dead Sea Service Park.