Dead Sea, Jordan: A first pass through the daunting new 32km Tal Hilali special stage will kickstart the action at the 2025 Jordan Rally today.
Competitors led by 16-time event winner Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and his Spanish co-driver Candido Carrera will then tackle a further 11 gravel stages over two days before the ceremonial finish at the lowest place on earth tomorrow afternoon.
The event was officially flagged away from a new start venue at the Royal Automobile Club of Jordan (RACJ) after the pre-event press conference yesterday evening.
Teams had put their cars through customary technical scrutineering at the Dead Sea where a couple of potential front-runners were upbeat about their chances for the weekend.
Oman’s Abdullah Al-Rawahi won the event outright in 2023 on his way to the MERC title.
Defending regional champion Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari praised the condition of the rally tracks. The Citroën C3 driver said: “I would like to thank the people who prepared the stages. They are amazing. The new stages and the old parts of stages are fantastic. I just worry a little bit about the grip on the first loop. Competition will be very high with eight Rally2s. We are looking forward to it.
“There is no pressure (being champion). I play other different sports, like padel, and people ask me why I don’t ever feel pressure. I always try to enjoy. I am getting used to the new car, especially the last day in Saudi where we were much faster than the previous rallies. More kilometres and we will get even faster.”
Thirty-five-year-old Rakan Al-Rashed is taking part in the event for the third time after retiring a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX in 2016 and 2017 alongside Finnish co-driver Jarkko Kalliolepo. He is aiming for a podium finish tomorrow evening to continue his quest to become the regional champion.
Rashid Al-Muhannadi could mathematically confirm the FIA MERC4 title this weekend with two rounds to spare in the absence of rookie rival Mohammed Al-Marri. The Qatari said: “This is my first time in Jordan. The stages are nice but quite demanding and technical. I like the rally. I am looking to forward to it and I hope to win the championship.”
Today, the opening Tal Hilali special starts at 09.44hrs and features a small section of the former Bahath special in the Jordan Valley and precedes runs through a high-speed Karameh (11.08km) stage and a special at the Baptism Site (11.34km) close to the Dead Sea.
The three stages will then be then repeated in the afternoon after a return to the Dead Sea for a midday regroup and service.
