Abu Dhabi Racing’s Khalid Al-Qassimi and Chris Patterson stayed in contention throughout, but it was Qatar’s Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and Italian co-driver Giovanni Bernacchini who snatched victory in the 22nd Kuwait International Rally, round 2 of the 2014 FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC), which finished in Fintas on Saturday.

Al-Attiyah began the day with a lead of 12.5sec and won four of the second leg’s six stages to reach the finish with a winning margin of 27.5 seconds. It was the Qatari’s 52nd MERC win and his co-driver’s 23rd. The Ford Fiesta RRC crew now lead their respective championship categories by 17 points after two rounds.

“I was looking forward to the stages on the second day,” said Al-Attiyah, who equalled Mohammed Ben Sulayem’s record of four wins in Kuwait. “They were not as fast and straight, more technical and twistier and more enjoyable to drive. Like last year, I felt that they would suit my car better. I was confident that I could extend my lead and win today.”

Driving a Citroën DS3 RRC, Al-Qassimi was the class of the rest of the field, but he did not quite have the pace to match Al-Attiyah. Nevertheless, the Abu Dhabi driver finished 1min 44.8sec in front of the third-placed Saudi Yazeed Al-Rajhi, who was joint quickest with Al-Attiyah on one stage.

Abdullah Al-Qassimi came under severe pressure from the charging Kuwaiti Salah bin Eidan over the final day. A lead of 47.3sec was reduced to 29.5sec after SS10, 24.5sec after SS11 and 16.0sec with one stage to go, but the Sharjah driver held on to confirm fourth position on his first MERC event with French female co-driver Catherine Derousseaux.

After losing substantial time with boost issues on Friday, there was no way back for Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari and the Qatari finished in sixth place, despite a bent suspension arm. His uncle Abdullah Al-Kuwari recovered from a four-minute time penalty for losing his way on the second stage to reach Fintas in seventh. Eighth-placed Khalifa Al-Attiyah, brother of event winner Nasser, comfortably won the Group N category in his QMMF-backed Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X.

The talented young Emirati Mohamed Al-Mutawee dominated the Abu Dhabi Racing-Citroën Middle East Trophy and finished the event 2min 05.6sec in front of Mohamed Al-Sahlawi to claim his second successive 2WD Junior class win.

Germany’s Edith Weiss and Qatar’s Nada Zeidan battled hard at the rear of the field and it was Weiss who reached Fintas as the leading female driver.

The FIA Middle East Rally Championship resumes along the sinuous and dusty desert trails of the Jordan Rally on May 1-3.

2014 Kuwait International Rally – positions after SS13 (@15.00hrs):

1. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Giovanni Bernacchini (ITA) Ford Fiesta RRC 2hr 09min 38.4sec

2. Khalid Al-Qassimi (ARE)/Chris Patterson (GBR) Citroën DS3 RRC 2hr 10min 05.9sec

3. Yazeed Al-Rajhi (SAU)/Michael Orr (GBR) Ford Fiesta RRC 2hr 11min 50.7sec

4. Abdullah Al-Qassimi (ARE)/Catherine Derousseaux (FRA) Ford Fiesta RRC 2hr 14min 05.9sec

5. Salah Bin Eidan (KWT)//Nasser Al-Kuwari (QAT) Ford Fiesta R5 2hr 14min 26.3sec

6. Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Killian Duffy (IRL) Ford Fiesta RRC 2hr 16min 11.1sec

7. Abdullah Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Nicola Arena (ITA) Ford Fiesta R5 2hr 21min 53.8sec

8. Khalifa Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Adel Hussein (QAT) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X 2hr 24min 03.6sec

9. Mohamed Al-Mutawaa (ARE)/Stephen McAuley (GBR) Citroën DS3 R3 2hr 30min 57.7sec

10. Mohamed Al-Sahlawi (ARE)/Craig Parry (GBR) Citroën DS3 R3 2hr 33min 03.3sec

FIA Middle East Rally Championship – positions after round 2 (unofficial):

1. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT) 50pts

2. Khalid Al-Qassimi (ARE) 33pts

3. Yazeed Al-Rajhi (SAU) 27pts

4. Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari (QAT) 26pts

5. Abdullah Al-Kuwari (QAT) 14pts

6. Abdullah Al-Qassimi (ARE) 12pts

7. Salah bin Eidan (KWT) 10pts

7. Mohamed Al-Mutawaa (ARE) 10pts

9. Mohammed Al-Sahlawi (ARE) 7pts

10. Khalifa Al-Attiyah (QAT) 4pts

10. Ala’a Rasheed (JOR) 4pts