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The MINI ALL4 Racing cars are off to a great start at the 2016 FIA Cross Country World Cup in Abu Dhabi. Two MINI ALL4’s are at the overall ranking podium: Yazeed Al Rajhi (KSA) and co-driver Timo Gottschalk (GER) in second place, while and Mikko Hirvonen (FIN) and Michel Perin (FRA) in third place. The success doesn’t stop there. A total of five MINI ALL4 Racing who competed are also in the top 10.
It was a good decision for the teams to pair Yazeed Al Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk because they both did well with the challenges of the rally. They managed to control the race despite the dangerous dunes and even a bit of rain.
The Mikko Hirvonen (FIN) and Michel Perin (FRA) driving pair was also very powerful. Hirvonen faced his longest desert race ever in Abu Dhabi and managed to sustain to a podium finish. It was definitely harder than he thought, he says. Spending five days in the dunes is no easy task but the result made it worth all the sweat.
For Bryce Menzies (US), it is his first time to race with a MINI ALL4 at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. He considers it as a mistake on his part that they got stuck in the dune twice and says he could have done better hadn’t it been for the accidents. However, he still loved racing in the MINI ALL4 and calls the experience “a blastâ€.
Driving the #209 MINI ALL4 Racing cars is Jakub Przygonski (POL) and Tom Colsoul (BEL). The former had to adjust racing with four wheels but still did well as they finished fifth place in the last day of the race. Despite the learning curve, Przygonski is still happy with the results.
Racing in #203 is Sh. Khalid Al Qassimi (KSA) and co-driver Khalid Al Kendi (Abu Dhabi) also made it to the top ten. They finished at seventh place.
Securing 11t8th place overall is the German duo: Stephan Schott and Holm Schmidt. They recovered gracefully even after they slipped back in the race order on the third day of the race.
Early frontrunners Vladimir Vasilyev/Konstantin Zhiltsov frpom Russia unfortunately had to retire their MINI ALL4 after an incident on the track.
