JEDDAH: Saudi rally champion Yazeed Al-Rajhi claimed his fifth consecutive Jeddah Toyota Baja title, beating Qatari rival Nasser Al-Attiyah at the second round of the Saudi Toyota Baja Championship.
The victory was Al-Rajhi’s seventh at the Jeddah event and extended his winning streak to five editions.
Speaking at the post-rally press conference, Al-Rajhi praised the competition between himself and six-time Dakar Rally champion Al-Attiyah.
“Honestly, it was a fantastic race, with an exciting battle between us and the Qatari international driver Nasser Al-Attiyah. We really enjoyed the competition and the course of the rally,” he said.
“As I predicted before the race, we would be the champions of this edition. We managed to control the rally today, and the result was our victory.”
Al-Rajhi also challenged Al-Attiyah ahead of the upcoming Qassim Rally.
“From this platform, I raise the challenge once again to champion Nasser Al-Attiyah and tell him that we will win the upcoming Qassim Rally,” he said.
Al-Attiyah, who finished second with co-driver Max Delfino, congratulated his rival but said he expected to challenge again in future competitions.
“Honestly, we are proud of the level of competition today. Yazeed Al-Rajhi beat us in the end, but the best is yet to come,” he said.
He also pointed to their respective Dakar Rally records.
