Bin Sulayem takes Ford Focus World Rally car to double title
triumph in Dubai
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Autoworld.com - David Lee - Mohammed bin Sulayem reached another milestone in his illustrious career by winning the Dubai International Rally for the 12th time in 15 years today to give Ford the Middle East drivers' and manufacturers' championships for the fourth year in a row.  Clinching his 11th Middle East crown, Bin Sulayem recorded his 50th international victory with an immaculate performance in his Ford Focus World Rally Car, winning the sixth and final round of the regional series, and the last FIA championship event of the century, by 10 mins 11secs. UAE-based Lebanese driver Michel Saleh took second place in a Toyota Celica GT-4 after a great personal battle on the second leg with Cypriot driver Andreas Tslouloftas in one of a succession of Mitsubishi Lancers. Unable to make a strong defence of his Middle East Group N title this year, the UAE's Sheikh Abdullah Al Qassimi made a successful finish to the season, taking fourth place overall for a comfortable production class win in the event. With co-driver Ronan Morgan winning the Middle East co-drivers' title for the ninth time, Bin Sulayem was handed a placard at the finish proclaiming his "50th international win". He said: "It's a nice feeling to get this one in my home event. I'm very pleased for myself and for Ronan, and also for Ford, who have shown so much faith in me and deserve this." He added: "We've had a fantastic last few years together, and I'm looking forward to more success with Ford in the new millennium. We don't have much time to relax now, because next year's championship starts in Abu Dhabi in two months time, but we'll be ready for it." Finishing fifth overall in the Mitsubishi Lancer which he hopes to take into his first full championship campaign next year was UAE-based Greek Cypriot driver Nicholas Mandrides, with Oman's new Middle East Group N champion, Nizar Al Shanfari, completing the top six, despite having another bad day. He dropped four minutes at one point after losing his directions, and his problems were compounded when his mechanics mistakingly put petrol in the service vehicle, which runs on diesel. But Al Shanfari has made his mark, and is one of the Middle East's rising stars. British driver Howard Paterson, who secured the Middle East Formula Two title in the previous round in Qatar, scored another class win alongside wife Ruth in his Volkswagen Golf GTI, while Fiona Mulcahy and Maria McIntosh captured the ladies' title in their Peugeot 205 GTI. They now hope their hard work to establish themselves in the championship will attract other lady drivers. Hailed by Ford before the start as a sporting icon for the Arab world, Bin Sulayem underlined his status as the most successful driver in FIA championship history without being forced to extend himself, or the Ford Focus WRC. He won all 14 stages, and the only incident of any note on his path to another emphatic win came when an overhanging branch on a tight corner cracked the Ford's windscreen on Morgan's side. Denied second place behind Sulayem in last year's event after a late mishap, Saleh held of a determined challenge from Tsouloftas, winner of the championship round in Cyprus, who gave an excellent account of himself on his first visit to Dubai. There were casualties on the day, however, including the UAE's Yazan Rijleh whose problems took him over the time limit, Sadiq Fadhal who retired with a broken gearbox, former Middle East Group N champion Ron Oakeley who went out with a broken clutch four stages from the end, and British-based Amrik Sehmbi, whose Opel Corsa rolled and went out on the 14th and last stage. Provisional results: 1.M.bin Sulayem / R.Morgan (UAE/IRL) Ford Focus WRC (A) 2:00:50 2.M.Saleh / A.Ghaziri (UAE/UAE) Toyota Celica GT4 (A) 2:11:01 3.A.Tsouloftas / T.Vassiliades (CY/CY) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (A) 2:12:47 4.A.Al Qassimi / G.Khoury (UAE/UAE) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (N) 2:15:12 5.N.Mandrides / J.Joannou (UAE/UAE) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (A) 2:16:53 6.N.Al Shanfari / T.Steele (OM/OM) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (N) 2:25:57 7.M.Mellisas / G.Alexandrou (CY/CY) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (N) 2:31:34 8.L.Dunn / D.Findlow (HKJ/HKJ) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (N) 2:32:23 9.M.Ziegler / Julia Rabbett (UAE/UAE) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 3 (N) 2:35;28 10.F.Bustami / M.Al Jabry (HKJ/HKJ) Toyota Celica GT4 (N) 2:37:29 FIA Middle East Championship final positions: 1.M bin Sulayem 80pts - champion; 2.N.Al Shanfari (Oman) 61pts; 3.A.Tsouloftas (CY) 44pts; 4.A.Al Qassimi (UAE) 34pts; 5.F.Bustami (HKJ), 21pts. Manufacturers' championship: 1. Ford 40pts; 2. Mitsubishi 34pts; 3. Toyota 17pts; 4. VW 12pts; 5. Subaru 7pts; 6. Lancia, Proton 5pts; 8. Renault, Mazda 3pts. |
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