SYRIA, 12 September 2004 — Finally luck smiled on Saudi Arabia’s Ahmed Al-Sabban, leader of the Saudi Rally Dream Team when he took third place at the 5th Syrian International Rally, round six of the 2004 FIA Middle East Rally Championship.
“Yes, I was very lucky this year at the Syrian International Rally because Syria has not been good to me for the last three years.
But this year I was very determined to do better in order to race for this year’s title,” said Al-Sabban.
Despite the obstacles and tough competitions from the 31 participating Arab and European rally drivers, Al-Sabban in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution with Irish co-driver Killian Duffy showed no sign of trauma and never looked back as they stayed with the leading drivers during the 13 rounds.
“I was very delighted with my performance since the first day and how I stayed out of problems when around 15 drivers pulled out of the race,” he said.
Following Khalid Al Qassimi, who came in first, and second place winner Abdullah Al Qassimi, Al-Sabban moved to third place when Qatar’s Nasser Al Attiyah was forced to withdraw because of mechanical problems.
Al-Sabban’s teammate Issa Al-Dowssary, who was named as the best young driver at the previous Jordan Rally, fought very hard during the first two days but could not keep it up when he suffered several flat tires on the final day.
By taking third and gaining 18 points, Al-Sabban is now 5th overall, while Issa Al- Dowssary is in 6th place with 12 points.
