Peterhansel leads stellar cast at Riyadh Rally

The Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation is set to host the Riyadh Rally, round four of the Saudi Toyota Desert Rally Championship, out of the Kingdom’s capital this weekend.

Heading another impressive entry across the car, motorcycle and quad categories is the ultimate legend Stephane Peterhansel. He is the most successful biker and rider in the history of the event with six wins on a Yamaha motorcycle, three in a Mitsubishi and two in a Peugeot and a Mini.

On this occasion the Frenchman will use the new Riyadh off-road event as a useful shakedown for the Dakar Rally before it is staged in Saudi Arabia for the first time at the start of January 2020.

Peterhansel wheel out one of the latest specification MINI John Cooper Rally Works Buggies built by X-raid with his wife Andrea, a former Dakar enduro rider and factory rally driver in her own right,  sitting alongside.

The couple have already won the gruelling Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge this season and clinched the prestigious FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies title for the first time.

Two-time Dakar Rally winner and former WRC star Carlos Sainz and fellow Spaniard Lucas Cruz will join forces with the X-raid team to take part in the final round of the Championship in mid-December.

The German-based team also confirmed on Tuesday that local rallying star Yasir Seaidan will tackle the Riyadh event in one of the latest Buggies.

The Riyadh Rally is based at the Green Halls stadium complex in Riyadh City and is being organised by the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation (SAMF), under the chairmanship of Prince Khalid Bin Sultan Al Abdullah Al Faisal and the supervision of former FIA Middle East champion Abdullah Bakhashab.

Teams will tackle 470 competitive kilometres in a route of 958km. Administration and scrutineering checks will take place on Wednesday before the official ceremonial start takes centre stage from 15.40hrs on Thursday afternoon in nearby Ad Diriyah.

This precedes the opening Toyota Super Special stage of four kilometres, starting at 15.45hrs.

A longer Rumah selective section of 307km gets underway at 09.45hrs on Friday morning and a second timed section of 160km through the scenic Saad National Park brings the competitive action to a conclusion on Saturday. The ceremonial finish will take place later in the afternoon in Ad Diriyah.

The event is running with the support of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation, the General Sport Authority, Abdul Latif Jameel Motors (Toyota), the MBC Group, Al Arabia outdoors and the Saudi Research and Marketing Group. He has won the Dakar Rally for a record 13 times.

Peterhansel made his Paris to Dakar Rally debut in 1988 in the motorcycle category for Yamaha, later winning the event in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, and 1998. He switched to the car category for 1999, joining the works Mitsubishi in 2003. He went on to win the event for the Japanese marque in 2004, 2005 and 2007, and took his 11th victory in 2013 driving an X-Raid prepared Mini Countryman – making him the most successful competitor in the history of the Dakar Rally.