Qatar’s Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah and Chile’s Ignacio Casale Catracchia shared the winner’s spoils on the opening 226.42km selective section of the Sealine Cross-Country Rally between Al-Zubara and Sealine yesterday.


QMMF president Abdulrahman al-Mannai flags off Sam Sunderland.

The Toyota Hilux Overdrive pilot and the Yamaha rider won their respective car and quad categories from Saudi Arabia’s Yazeed al-Rajhi (Mini All4 Racing) and Poland’s Rafal Sonik. Portugal’s Ricardo Porem (Mini), al-Attiyah’s brother Khalifa (Toyota) and former FIA World Cup winner Vladimir Vasilyev (Mini) rounded off the top five in the car category.
“It was okay today, not easy navigation and I think Yazeed is pushing,” said al-Attiyah. “Tomorrow is a long stage and we try to get a good time. We could not push today. We were the first car (on the stage) and to see the line and the navigation is not easy. Now we can push.”
“It was a good stage and the first time on these tracks with the Mini for me,” said a delighted al-Rajhi. “We learn the car and we did a good job. We need to push a bit to make the gap smaller. That’s our goal.”
The shortest stage of the five-day event provided competitors with an ideal opportunity settle in to what lies ahead over four longer and more difficult stages. The leading three motorcyclists rode together virtually all through the timed test and Dubai-based Briton Sam Sunderland and Chilean rival Pablo Quintanilla reached the flying finish tied and two seconds in front of the defending Dakar champion and FIM World Championship leader Toby Price.
“The mass start is definitely something strange that we have to account for,” said Sunderland. “It was a little bit dangerous with all the guys together in the dust.
“But I like the idea and, when you make a mass start on the first day, everybody starts the same. It’s fair for everyone.”


Qatar's Khalifa al-Attiyah in flying form in his Toyota Hilux Overdrive.

Quintanilla said: “Today was an important stage for the road book and the navigation. I did really well. I was in front almost all the stage trying to not make any mistakes.
“I feel really good. I think on this race the mass start was a good idea. If we had the start order from the last race, in theory, some guys have more chance to do well.”
Toby Price was impressed with the pace of his two rivals. “It’s difficult coming from Abu Dhabi where you follow the way. Here, the navigation is a big change up and the first time we have done this since the Dakar. It was hard to see out there with the sun right above you and everything looks exactly the same, all flat. Sam and Pablo were on a good pace.
“Their speed was good and I maybe only led for about five kilometres all day. The rest of the time they were out in front. But I am looking forward to the rest of the week.”
Local driver Adel Hussein Abdullah earned a stunning lead in the T2 category in his Nissan Middle East-backed Patrol. “I was competing with Yasir Seidan all the stage and then I had a flat tyre between PC2 and PC3,” he said.
“Then I caught Yasir, who was stopped, stuck in the sand. We must respect our land, because if you don’t it will be so tricky. I am not aiming for the first, but if I come to the podium it will be fantastic.”
Michelle Cincotto and Zini Fulvio claimed the early T3 lead in the first of four Polaris RZR 1000s and the Spanish girl Cristina Gutierrez, partnered by Sandra Labuscagne, was the first of the three QMMF-backed Nissan Patrol drivers to reach the finish.
In today’s second stage, competitors will tackle the second selective section from a start in Al-Kharrara from 07.15hrs for the first of the motorcycles and 08.45hrs for the first of the cars. The stage runs for 345.89km to finish near the old bivouac location at Sealine, south of Doha.


Yazeed al-Rajhi set the second quickest time in cars section yesterday.

 
Positions after SS1 (unofficial)
Cars
1. Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah (QAT)/Matthieu Baumel (FRA) Toyota Hilux Overdrive (2hr 00min 28sec)
2. Yazeed al-Rajhi (SAU)/Timo Gottschalk (DEU) Mini All4 Racing (2hr 01min 12sec)
3. Ricardo Porem (POR)/Tom Colsoul (BEL)   Mini All4 Racing (2hr 08min 38sec)
4. Khalifa al-Attiyah (QAT)/Jean-Michel Polato (FRA) Toyota Hilux Overdrive (2hr 10min 17sec)
5. Vladimir Vasilyev (RUS)/Konstantin Zhiltsov (RUS) Mini All4 Racing (2hr 11min 51sec)
6. Marek Dabrowski (POL)/Jacek Czachor (POL) Toyota Hilux Overdrive (2hr 17min 24sec)
7. Yuriy Sazonov (KAZ)/Dmytro Tsyro (UKR) Hummer H3 III (2hr 19min 12sec)
8. Jutta Kleinschmidt (DEU)/Philipp Beier (DEU) X-raid CBRA (2hr 21min 24sec)
9. Khaled al-Feraihi (SAU)/Abdulhaleem al-Busaidi (OMN) Nissan Patrol (2hr 39min 13sec)
10. Adel Hussein Abdullah (QAT)/Nasser al-Kuwari (QAT) Nissan Patrol (T2) (2hr 45min 50sec)
11. Michelle Cincotto (ITA)/Zini Fulvio (ITA) Polaris RXR 1000 (2hr 50min 56sec)
12. Emil Khneisser (LEB)/Alexei Kuzmich (RUS) Nissan Patrol Y62 (T2) (2hr 57min 20sec)

Bikes
1. Sam Sunderland (GBR) KTM 450 Rally (2hr 27min 18sec)
1. Pablo Quintanilla (CHI) Husqvarna 450 Rally (2hr 27min 18sec)
3. Toby Price (AUS) KTM 450 Rally (2hr 27min 20sec)
4. Pierre Alexander Renet (FRA) Husqvarna 450 Rally (2hr 28min 52sec)
5. Juan Carlos Salvatierra (BOL) KTM 450 Replica (2hr 29min 40sec)
6. Helder Rodrigues (POR) Yamaha WR450 (2hr 33min 26sec)
7. Laia Sanz (ESP) KTM 450 Rally (2hr 39min 05sec)

Quads
1. Ignacio Casale Catracchia (CHI) Yamaha Raptor 700 SE (3hr 04min 32sec)
2. Rafal Sonik (POL) Honda TRX 700 (3hr 04min 33sec)