Al-Ketbi reveals rally finish fears

Rashid Al-Ketbi has revealed that he didn’t expect to finish Rally Islas Canarias El Corte Inglés last week after scoring points in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge for the first time.

Al-Ketbi covered Saturday’s opening three stages without the use of a clutch on his Skydive Dubai Rally Team ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000, which he feared would cause his car’s gearbox to fail.

Fortunately he was able to complete the loop of stages and return to service where his mechanics replaced the clutch and fitted a new gearbox within the 30 minutes available.

“I’m lucky to come here after all the problems in the morning, I really don’t think I continue the race,” said Al-Ketbi. “But we are very happy and really thanks for my sponsors Skydive Dubai to give me a chance to go to the IRC. I’ve overcome my first challenge by scoring points. In the future I want to fight in the top five.”