SUNDERLAND EXPECTS TOUGH CHALLENGE AS EMIRATES DESERT CHAMPIONSHIP HEADS FOR NEW RECORD 

 Bikes star says there will be no easy ride; Dabrowski makes cars debut as Baja Rally series grows again

Sunderland
Sam Sunderland: “This Baja championship is awesome.”

 

Dubai, UAE, 22 October, 2014:  Sam Sunderland returns to action  in the Emirates Desert Championship this weekend expecting a challenging time as he looks for victory in another record-breaking round of the national Baja rally series.

 

Sunderland, a key member of the Red Bull KTM Factory Rally Team, finished runner-up in the recent final round of the 2014 FIM Cross Country Rallies World Championship in Morocco, but knows there will be no easy ride on home territory.

 

Beaten in Morroco only by team-mate and  new world champion Marc Coma, the Dubai-based British rider is now fully focused on the Emirates Desert Championship, which continues with the second of six short-course rallies in the Dubai desert on Friday morning.

 

He will be in good company as the event, taking place in the Margham area, looks certain to eclipse the record entry of 100 competitors set in the first round earlier this month. Former Polish bikes star Marek Dabrowski makes his series debut on four wheels.

 

“It’s great for the sport to have more entries as it’s growing fast in the Middle East and this Baja championship is awesome,” said Sunderland.

 

“For me, there are a few fast guys to race against, and the events are very strategic because the guy in front is doing all the work,” he said. “The guy behind can follow, read his body language and see if there is any danger, so it’s always fun and competitive.”

 

“It’s good to race in the desert any time I get the chance, and it’s good to get me thinking. This time I have my friend, Jake Shipton, over from the UK. He’s fast, and was leading the last round before a flat tyre took him out, so it will be good to race him.”

 

Organised by the Emirates Motor Sport Federation, with TAG Heuer Middle East as the official timekeeper and founding partner, the Emirates Desert Championship is run with the support of the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE.

 

“Reaching 100 entries in the first round was a milestone for the championship, and we expect that number to be surpassed again at the weekend as the series continues to grow in popularity,” said ATCUAE President, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, the FIA Vice President.

 

Sunderland finished runner up in the inaugural Emirates Desert Championship last season behind Sean Gaugain, who has not yet been able to start the defence of his bikes title because of injury. Planning to contest three more rounds of the 2014-15 series, Sunderland will miss only Round 4 on January 16 when he will be chasing glory in the Dakar Rally.

 

Dabrowski is a familiar face in the UAE. He has been a regular competitor in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge over the years, as well as in the Dakar Rally where he drove to seventh place overall in January after switching from bikes to cars.

 

His transition from two to four wheels came after he drove a recovery vehicle as a member of the sweep team during last year’s Desert Challenge.

 

He arrives in the Desert Championship to compete in the national buggies class in the first 200HP Rage Comet to compete in the Middle-East.  Supported by Dubai-based Saluki Motorsport, Dabrowski will then head straight for the final round of this year’s FIA World Cup for Cross Country Rallies in Portugal.

 

The second round gets under way at 9am on Friday, with the bikes and quads running on one loop and the cars and  buggies competing on another at the same time, all aiming to complete as many laps as fast as possible over two hours.

 

Scrutineering takes place at Dubai Autodrome tonight (Wednesday) between 6-8pm, while route details and other competitor information can be found on the Emirates Desert Championship Facebook page, and at www.emsf.ae

Emirates DC
Emirates Desert Championship is set for another record-breaking round of action on four and two wheels on Friday.

 Emirates Desert Championship 2014-15 standings after 1st Round:

 

Cars overall

  1. Ahmed Al Fahim (UAE) Polaris T3               25pts
  2. Mansour Al Helei (UAE) Nissan T2               22pts
  3. Graeme Rose (GB) Polaris T3                                    20pts
  4. Ian Barker (GB) Nissan T1                             18pts
  5. Emil Kneisser (Leb) Nissan Patrol T2             16pts

 

Bikes overall

  1. Mohammed Al Balooshi (UAE) KTM 450    25pts
  2. Mohammed Jaffar (KWT) KTM 450                         22pts
  3. Ross Runnalls (SA) Kawasaki 450                 20pts
  4. Mark Ackerman (SA) Husqvarna 450            18pts
  5. Mark Grams (D) Honda 450                           16pts

 

Quads

  1. Humaid Al Mashghouni (UAE) Honda         25pts
  2. Sebastian Husseini (Ned) Yamaha                 22pts
  3. Colin Mercer (GB) Honda                              20pts
  4. Jaco De Lange (SA) Yamaha                                     18pts
  5. Colin Wilken (SA) Yamaha                            16pts
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