DOHA: Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah’s ‘smart strategy’ helped the Qatari win the Dakar Rally for the second time in his career, QMMF President said yesterday.
Three days ago, Qatar Rally Team driver Al Attiyah and co-driver Matthieu Baumel won the 2015 Dakar Rally after leading from day two all the way to the finish.
QMMF President Nasser bin Khalifa Al Attiyah was joined by the Minister of Youth and Sports H E Salah bin Ghanem bin Nasser Al Ali and QOC Secretary General Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani to welcome Nasser Saleh in a rapturous welcome at Hamad International Airport on Monday night.
“Nasser is a hero. For us, he is a motor sport ambassador for the region. From day one he gave the message that he was heading for the win. He showed his intent of winning from the outset. There is a technique on how to drive and win and he showed us how to do it. He showed the rest of the competitors that he belongs to this stage. He showed his passion,” Al Attiyah said.
“I think he had a good strategy. He used his brains smartly. He wasn’t into any crazy maneuvering during the rally. He knew he did not want to create any problems and he did not want to waste any time on recovery (if he lost his way),” Al Attiyah added.
“He was cool. He was driving in a good style. He finds himself confident. Now he knows he can enjoy the race and win. He knows he doesn’t have to be over-confident. He didn’t do any accidents or any mess. He had a good strategy. He was observing on the second, third and fourth-placed drivers and seeing how they were doing. And he paced himself accordingly.
“I think between the gravel and the dunes, he was playing good strategy - not allowing the car to overheat in the sand dunes. He did not spin too many tires and allowed little heat into the engine. He was thinking about the car more than winning the stages.
“He struck a great balance. He kept the car in good shape and he kept himself also in good (physical) condition. He ran a great marathon. He had a very good car. That gave him a great incentive to go all the way,” Al Attiyah, who is the Vice President at FIA, explained.
“We are proud of him. This achievement is for all Qatar motor sport fans. It (the win) shows that Qatar is very strong in motor sport in the entire region. I think it will motivate more people to take up motor sport. The future looks bright.
“Nasser is doing wonderful things to promote the motor sport culture. He is providing good leadership to the young drivers,” Al Attiyah said.
“I have received maybe more than 100 phone calls from the motor sport family around the world. There were messages and e-mails on the great win. He has done a great thing for himself. He can develop himself further. His co-driver did a good job. They had a great combination. They make us happy,” he added.
Al Attiyah said the 2015 win did not come as a surprise.
“No, I am not that surprise at Nasser winning the Dakar Rally,” Al Attiyah said.
“We started planning for such events since 2005. Nasser has been achieving great results. He has been working on his strategies. He went for MINI and they gave him the best support. Previously he had to organize his team and drive at the same time.
“He corrected that situation and now he just drives because he has a proper team and a perfect car.
“Now he just trains and focuses on the rallies. He has data from last many years. He is getting more experience since it is more or less the same terrain and most of the route is also same.
“We hope he has starts the season here on a similar note,” Al Attiyah said.
“All of this has been possible because of the absolute support of His Highness the Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
“The Emir has supported the motor sport programes in a massive way and we are looking at the rewards now,” Al Attiyah said.
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