Al Qassimi disappointed to miss Cyprus Rally

Khalid Al Qassimi says he was disappointed to have missed out on contesting the final round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge in Cyprus earlier this month but added that he was left with no alternative.

Al Qassimi, from Abu Dhabi, was due to contest the mix-surface event in his M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000 where he was expected to be one of the frontrunners.

However, an engine failure on a Middle East championship event in Syria the previous month forced him to revise his plans after he dropped out of contention for the regional title, which was also up for grabs in Cyprus.

“It was very disappointing [not to go to Cyprus] but we were no longer in a fight so it was pointless,” said Al Qassimi.

Nasser Al-Attiyah won the island rally from Lebanese Škoda Fabia driver Roger Feghali and M-Sport Fiesta pilot Martin Prokop, who hails from Czech Republic.