The top rally drivers from around the Middle East have arrived in Kuwait as they begin to prepare for round two of the 2014 FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC).
Taking place between March 20 to 22, competitors from 10 countries have travelled to the Middle East for what will be a challenging Kuwait International Rally.
24 teams teams appear on the provisional entry list, with three-time event winner Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah of Qatar topping the field with Italian co-driver Giovanni Bernacchini in a Ford Fiesta RRC.
The Qatari is also the current leader of the Middle East Rally Championship, having won the opening round in Doha to give himself a seven-point lead over his rivals.
The leading Kuwaiti driver, seeded at five on the entry list, is Salah bin Eidan, while Meshari Al-Thafiri – the early leader of the Group N championship category after round one in Qatar – is seeded at nine.
Organised by the Kuwait Quarter Mile Auto & Motorcycle Club, under the chairmanship of Sheikh Athbi Nayef Jaber Al-Sabah, the event gets underway with a timed super special stage at the Sirbb circuit on Thursday evening.
Teams will then tackle two legs of six desert stages on Friday and Saturday, covering over 200km in the process.
With competitors from Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Kuwait all taking part, Meshari Al-Sabti, clerk of the course, is excited by the quality of Middle Eastern drivers on show.
“The entry has strength in depth and all the championship front-runners from around the Middle East,” he said.
“Kuwait is also well supported with eight drivers and six co-drivers.”
