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Three MINI ALL4 Racing perfectly placed inside top five after two stages of 2016 Sealine Cross Country Rally (Qatar) – round 3 of the 2016 FIA Cross Country World Cup.
On form Yazeed Al Rajhi (KSA) // Timo Gottschalk (GER) comfortable in second place. MINI ALL4 Racing also fill third and fourth places.
Munich. The three MINI ALL4 Racing competing in the 2016 Sealine Cross Country Rally (Qatar) are neatly lined up for a battle royal as the competitors enter the last three stages of this spectacular long distance desert rally.
After a successful first outing this year at the recent Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge (Round 2), the MINI ALL4 Racing (#202) pairing of Yazeed Al Rajhi (KSA) //co-driver Timo Gottschalk (GER) continue their fine form by completing the first day (Stage 1, 18-04-2016) in second place. Stage 2 (19-04-2016) saw a repeat second place finish to maintain second overall.
Speaking after Stage 1, Al Rajhi said: “This is the first time on these tracks for me with the MINI All4 Racing and it was a good stage. We did a good job while we are still learning the car, so there is more to come.”
As expected, the fine desert sands and harsh rocks took their toll on many competitors. Delays from punctures and getting bogged down in loose sand meant the drivers had to maintain their wits. Once again the vastly experienced Russian pairing of Vladimir Vasilyev and Konstantin Zhiltsov raced with determination to complete Stage one in fifth. After an intense battle for the leading places during Stage 2, Vasilyev completed the stage by placing his MINI ALL4 Racing #203 third to take third place overall after day two.
The MINI ALL4 Racing (#205) of Ricardo Porém (POR) and Tom Colsoul (BEL) made an exceptional start to the 2016 Sealine Cross Country Rally with a superb third place at the end of the Stage 1. This result is even more stunning when taking into account this is Porém’s first ever long-distance desert cross country rally. This result combined with a fine seventh place in Stage 2 places Porém fourth overall with three stages to complete.
2016 Sealine Cross Country Rally : MINI ALL4 Racing positions after Stage 2
| Position | Driver | Co-driver | # | Team | Time |
| 2nd | Yazeed Al Rajhi (KSA) | Timo Gottschalk (GER) | 202 | X-raid Team | 5:17:00 +0:7:56 |
| 3rd | Vladimir Vasilyev (RUS) | Konstantin Zhiltsov (RUS) | 203 | G-Energy Team | 5:43:59 +0:34:55 |
| 4th | Ricardo Porém (POR) | Manuel Porém (POR) | 205 | X-raid Team | 5:57:40 +0:48:36 |
Race calendar: 2016 FIA World Cup for Cross Country Rallies.
19/02 – 22/02 Baja Russia
02/04 – 7/04 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge
17/04 – 22/04 Sealine Cross-Country Rally Qatar
08/05 – 15/05 Pharaons Rally
23/06 – 26/06 Italian Baja
22/07 – 24/07 Baja Aragón
11/08 – 14/08 HunGarian Baja
25/08 – 28/08 Baja Poland
03/10 – 08/10 Rallye Oilibya du Maroc
21/10 – 23/10 Baja Portalegre 500