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Leg 2 of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge will today (Monday, April 4) see the world-class field of rally drivers and riders head deep into the famed Rub Al Khali, or Empty Quarter. The 285 kilometres will test the competitors from over 30 countries to the max, as they get to grips with the towering sand dunes that help make the rally one of sport’s most testing competitions.
The second leg of the rally is named after ADNOC, one of the world’s leading oil companies, which has been a long-term supporter of the Desert Challenge and is integrally involved with the development of the Western Region of Al Gharbia, through which the rally passes for most of the 1,570 km of competitive stages.
Day two of the rally proper starts at 08.00, just west of the E45 MZ road, around 36 kilometres north of Mezaira’a. The drivers and riders will race over 100 kilometres west before swinging round and heading into the massive sand dunes that make up the Rub Al Khali desert, south of Liwa. They finish back at the event’s bivouac desert base, which this year, for the first time, is located next to the luxurious Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara
The competitive stages of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge got underway on Sunday with Leg 1 of the rally departing Al Dhafrah, outside the capital. In the cars category, French rallying legend, Stéphane Peterhansel started the day in first place in his Mini All4 Racing, ahead of his Team X-Raid colleague, Leonid Novitskiy (Russia) and Miroslav Zapletal (Czech Republic).
For the bikes, Spaniard Joan Barreda, riding a Beta PKL 450, set off first, having finished ahead of David Fretigne (France) and Dubai-based Sam Sunderland in the Super Special Stage. Luis Henderson from Uruguay started first for the Quads, while Russian driver Eduard Nikolaev Mohammed led off in his KAMAZ-Master truck.
The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is one of the world’s top cross-country rallies and continually attracts some of the most famous rally drivers and riders from across the globe. It continues until April 7, and this year a landmark partnership with Eurosport TV will see daily global broadcasts of all the action.
This year, the route has been deliberately designed to allow spectators to access key viewpoints, where they can take in the breath-taking sight of the cars, trucks, quads and bikes taking on the toughest terrain the world has to offer at high-speed.
The event is organised by the ATCUAE under the title sponsorship of ADTA, and is held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler’s Representative in the Western Region. It is backed by a high-profile line-up of sponsors and supporters that includes Al Gharbia, ADNOC, Rotana - Yas Island, Al Ain Water, TAG Heuer, Explorer and Nissan – the all-terrain Nissan Patrol, dubbed ‘The Hero of All Terrain’, is the official vehicle of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.
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