Rally driving in Saudi Arabia

Michael Carmen
For Al-Shorfa.com
2008-09-18

Issa al-Dossari of Saudi Arabia and co-pilot Ramzi Mansour participate in the first leg of the Rally of Lebanon. (Ramzi Haidar/AFP/Getty Images)

Motor racing and Saudi Arabia used to go together as well as oil and water. Despite being the largest automobile market in the region with 500,000 new vehicles sold every year, the owners of 25 percent of the world’s proven petroleum reserves and having citizens who have been very competitive on the FIA Middle East Rally Championships circuit since the early 1990s, Saudi Arabia banned motor racing.

But faster than an F1 car can go from 0 to 200 km, things are changing in the kingdom as Saudi Arabia is now planning to host its first international special stage car rally. That event, the Saudi Rally, will be held from Nov. 10-14, 2009, and will be an official candidate event for next year’s FIA Middle East Rally Championship

Organized by the Saudi Arabian Motor Federation (SAMF), the event will be held in the eastern region of the country at Al Khubar Half Moon Bay under the patronage of Prince Mohammed bin Fahad bin Abdulaziz, the provincial governor. It has the support of the sport’s governing body, the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile, and the regional rallying co-coordinator Derek Ledger, the vice president of FIA. The Gulf Daily News reported on Aug. 29 that the SAMF is offering incentives to GCC and non-Middle Eastern competitors to enter the event. Competitors from GCC countries will be entitled to seven days at a five-star hotel, with the driver and co-driver sharing accommodations. A flight allowance of $1,000 and a shipping assistance payment of $500 also are being offered. Non-GCC teams can get seven nights in the five-star hotel, $2,000 toward their flights and $1,000 toward shipping costs, in addition to visa support.

Saudi Prince Saud Bin Abdul Mohsen Bin Abdul Aziz, governor of Hail Province, flags off the Hail Baja rally. (Jorge Ferrari/AFP/Getty Images

Another lure of the inaugural Saudi Rally is that the SAMF is planning on having the rally headquarters, spectator stage and rally accommodations located in the same area. Also, the desert special stages will be located between 20 and 30 km from rally headquarters.

The men behind the wheel of the rally are experienced regional rally organizers, according to the Arab News. Elie Semaan, a Bahrain-based Lebanese consultant, is the main organizer, and Hamoud Al-Jabry is his technical adviser and assistant clerk of the course.

“The potential for running a superb special stage rally in Saudi Arabia is enormous,” Semaan told the Arab News on July 3.

Semaan was the clerk of the course of the Qatar Rally this year and he is also a former organizer of the Bahrain International Rally. Al-Jabry has been involved with the Oman International Rally for many years, as well as the United Arab Emirates national rally series.

While the country’s leaders have gotten behind motor racing to possibly help tourism, Saudi businesses have been involved in the sport on the financial end since the late 1970s. The actual running of the sport has been on the nation’s map since 2007 when it was included in the FIA International Cup for Cross-Country Bajas.

Things really took off this year when laws were changed to allow for the construction of racing circuits. The Reem Auto Club Experience is a privately owned circuit near Riyadh, and there is a dragstrip in Jeddah.

All of which should be making the Saudi Automobile Touring Association (SATA) very happy. SATA, which is based in the capital, is planning to establish the first motor sport club in the nation. Its goal: To train qualified candidates to participate in regional and international motor sport events.

Bookmarking

Please comment on this article so that we can improve the experience of viewing this website.