The switch from the SSV category back to running an X-Raid Mini JCW Rally Plus in the Ultimate section proved to be a master stroke for the Portuguese pairing of João Ferreira and Filipe Palmeiro. They clinched victory in the FIA World Baja Cup and the Ultimate section by finishing second overall in the Dubai International Baja.

The three-day event was also the final round of the FIA Middle East Baja Cup and victory in the SSV category enabled Saudi Arabian driver Dania Akeel to secure the title in a South Racing Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR. Akeel had already won the Ultimate section with Overdrive Racing before the final round.

Outright victory in the event run by the Emirates Motorsports Organisation (EMSO) went to five-time Dakar Rally winner Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and his co-driver Pablo Moreno in a Taurus T3 Max that also topped the rankings in the Challenger category.  It marked the Qatari’s third success at the event after wins in 2017 and 2023 with a Toyota Hilux and a Prodrive Hunter, although he was not registered for either of the FIA Baja Cups.

Runner-up and new FIA World Baja Cup champion Ferreira said: “We finished second overall and won the Ultimate class and we won the World Cup. I am super proud of the team. We entered three competitions at the start of the year - the Portuguese Championship, the European Cup and the World Cup - and we won all three. A big thanks to X-Raid for supplying me with an excellent car and also to South Racing and to Santag Racing for their support during the season. Filipe (Palmeiro) did an amazing job during the year. Now it’s time to rest and prepare for Dakar.”

Forty-six crews were permitted to start the eighth edition of the event that replaced the former Dubai International Rally in the FIA calendar. The list included eight in the Ultimate category, 17 in Challenger, 12 in SSV, three in Stock and six running to 2025 technical regulations In an Experimental category, although they were not eligible for the general classification.

Competitors were flagged away from the start at Dubai Festival City by His Highness Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Sports Council, in the company of FIA President Mohammed ben Sulayem, Omar Abdullah Al Futtaim, Vice Chairman and CEO of the Al Futtaim Group, and His Excellency Dr. Amer Al Zarooni, CEO of the Al-Jalila Foundation.

Minor route modifications saw the two original 195km stages reduced to 191.57km and 193.15km, respectively.

The two Experimental Toyota Gazoo Racing Hiluxes of Lucas Moraes and Seth Quintero topped the times on the Prologue stage that was held at Hatta for the first time to the south of Dubai. They were not eligible for the general classification in any case and Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah was the quickest of the FIA drivers, the Qatari beating his brother Khalifa by 7.8 seconds.

Al-Attiyah topped the times again on the opening stage to carve out a lead of 2min 15.1sec over X-Raid Mini’s Denis Krotov and the Qatari was third quickest behind Quaddy Racing’s Amerigo Ventura and Overdrive Racing’s Juan Cruz Yacopini on the second stage to secure victory over Ferreira by 3min 14.2sec.

Krotov and his co-driver Konstantin Zhiltsov rounded off the podium finishers in third place and the French father and daughter crew of Lionel and Lucie Baud gave the X-Raid Mini JCW Team a 2-3-4 finish with fourth overall. Overdrive Racing’s Ronan Chabot and Gilles Pillot completed the top five.

X-raid’s team principal Sven Quandt said: “What an incredible year. It started with the Dakar. After three years’ preparation with Audi, we finally won the event with Carlos Sainz. Shortly after, in February, we decided to work on a petrol engine for the Mini and started development with the car until we ran it for the first time in Morocco. We had our first win in Qatar with this car and we won the Polish Championship, João (Ferreira) did incredible races this year and he won the European Baja Cup, the Portuguese Championship and now he’s won the World Cup, his third title of the year. Denis (Krotov) and Lionel (Baud) were also fast here. Now we can look forward to the Dakar.”

Sixth place for Eduardo Pons was sufficient for the Nasser Racing Taurus T3 Max driver to secure maximum points in the Challenger category and clinch the overall title. His arch-rival Khalid Al-Jafla, the winner of the last round in Jordan, rolled on the final stage. The South Racing Can-Am Team’s Diego Martinez picked up points for second in Dubai to confirm a podium finish in the overall standings, although his co-driver Sergio Lafuente won the Co-drivers’ title.

Pons said: “It was a tricky weekend. The first day was tough and complicated. It was a big fight with Al-Jafla and then he rolled on the last section. We are the new champions. Now we focus on the Dakar with Nasser Racing.”

Martinez’s team-mates Fernando Alvarez and Xavier Panseri had clinched the SSV titles in Jordan two weeks ago and were confirmed as the runners-up in the championship by finishing third in the SSV section (first in the FIA World Baja Cup) in the UAE behind Akeel and Kuwait’s Meshari Al-Thefiri.

Alvarez said: “We got the points and had already won the SSV category. I am really proud of my co-driver and my team of mechanics. We never stopped and we finished all the races. Finally, we were second in the overall championship. I am very happy and proud of our job.”

Czech driver Miroslav Zapletal finished seventh overall in his Ford F-150 and did enough to finish as runner-up to Ferreira in the Ultimate class. Dutchman Michael van der Brink impressed on his run in a South Racing Can-Am to finish eighth.

Amerigo Ventura incurred time penalties for failing to finish the opening stage in his Quaddy Racing Yamaha YXZ 1000 R. Santag Racing’s João Dias and Gonçalo Reis had finished on the overall podium at the last two rounds in Qatar and Jordan and they also hit trouble on stage one and were heavily penalised. Ventura bounced back to set the fastest time on the final stage.

Dania Akeel wins the FIA Middle East Baja Cup

Saudi driver Dania Akeel had already confirmed the regional Ultimate class title before the Dubai encounter and she opted to drive a South Racing Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR for the final round with co-driver Stéphane Duplé. The decision proved to be a good one for the Saudi as she secured the FIA Middle East Baja Cup with victory in the SSV category and ninth in the overall classification.

Akeel said: “With this result we have won the Middle East Baja Championship. Thanks to South Racing for coming through and helping me out on this last race. The event was challenging with nice dunes and plateaux where he had to change the cap quite a lot. It was a good navigation exercise. The Middle East Cup was very competitive and very interesting.”

Qatar’s Ahmed Al-Kuwari had arrived in the UAE with a two-point lead over Akeel but the Quaddy Racing Yamaha driver was not able to match Akeel on the final round and settled for a podium finish in the title race after finishing third behind Al-Thefiri in Dubai.

Hamad Al-Harbi finished seventh and did enough to win the regional Challenger championship. Fellow Saudi Abdullah Al-Haydan came home in 13th overall and fourth of the FIA Middle East Baja Cup contenders ahead of Qatar’s Rashid Al-Muhannadi and Moaaz Hariri. Time penalties proved costly for Maha Al-Hameli and she slipped down the field but still finished second in Challenger behind Al-Harbi.

Majed Al-Thunayyan and Fahad Al-Sufyani stormed to another emphatic victory in the Stock category for series production cross-country vehicles. They finished 32nd overall in their Nissan Patrol, a result which also earned Al-Sufyani the overall co-drivers’ title and ensured that Al-Thunayyan finished on the podium in the Drivers’ Championship. Qatar’s Mohammed Al-Meer and Abdullah Al-Rabban failed to finish in their Nissans.

The South Racing Can-Am Team also ran a trio of Can-Am Maverick Rs for Mattias Ekström, Erik van Loon and Sara Price in the Experimental category. Both Price and Van Loon picked up time penalties for failing to complete the opening stage and then Ekström retired on the final day.

The event was held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, and ran in tandem with the UAE’s National Day celebrations. It was supported by official automotive partner Al-Futtaim Toyota, energy partner ENOC and the strategic collaboration of the Dubai Government, including the Dubai Police, RTA and Dubai Municipality.

2024 Dubai International Baja (final result – top 30):

1. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Pablo Moreno (ESP) Taurus T3 Max                                                          6hr 20min 34.6sec

2. João Ferreira (PRT)/Filipe Palmeiro (PRT) Mini John Cooper Works Rally Plus                               6hr 23min 48.8sec*    

3. Denis Krotov (KGZ)/Konstantin Zhiltsov (ANA) Mini John Cooper Works Rally 3.0i                       6hr 28min 12.1sec*    

4. Lionel Baud (FRA)/Lucie Baud (FRA) Mini John Cooper Works Rally 3.0i                                                          6hr 31min 02.4sec

5. Ronan Chabot (FRA)/Gilles Pillot (FRA) Toyota Hilux Overdrive                                                              6hr 31min 13.8sec*

6. Eduardo Pons (ESP)/Jaume Betriu (ESP) Taurus T3 Max                                                                           6hr 36min 38.3sec*    

7. Miroslav Zapletal (CZE)/Maciej Marton (POL) Ford F-150 Evo                                                                 6hr 40min 30.2sec*

8. Michael van der Brink (NLD)/Bart van der Brink (NLD) Can-Am Maverick X3                                                     6hr 44min 12.1sec+

9. Dania Akeel (SAU)/Stéphane Duplé (FRA) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                                                          6hr 53min 52.4sec+    

10. Meshari Al-Thefiri (KWT)/Michael Metge (FRA) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                       6hr 55min 06.9sec+

11. Fernando Alvarez (ARG)/Xavier Panseri (FRA) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                       6hr 57min 30.2sec*

12. Ahmed Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Manuel Lucchese (QAT) Yamaha YXZ 1000R Short Shift                    6hr 57min 39.5sec+

13. Abdullah Al-Haydan (SAU)/Bader Al-Ajmi (KWT) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                       6hr 57min 40.3sec+

14. Heder Hosås (NOR)/Mohammed Al-Hameri (ARE) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                       7hr 02min 52.2sec

15. Diego Martinez (ARG)/Sergio Lafuente (URY) Can-Am Maverick X3                                                          7hr 04min 39.3sec*    

16. Hamed Salimi Mavi (IRN)/Kiarash Zare Rafie (IRN) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                       7hr 05min 40.5sec

17. Rashid Al-Muhannadi (QAT)/Szymon Gospodarczyk (POL) Taurus T3 Max                                                  7hr 08min 10.5sec+

18. Moaaz Hariri (SAU)/Kirill Shubin (KGZ) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                                                          7hr 28min 48.9sec+

19. Hamad Al-Harbi (SAU)/Aleksei Kuzmich (ARE) Can-Am Maverick X3                                                          7hr 32min 08.9sec+

20. Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Nasser Al-Kuwari (QAT) Taurus T3 Max                                                          7hr 51min 41.2sec+

21. Ibrahim Al-Muhanna (SAU)/Faisal Al-Suwayh (SAU) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                                  7hr 58min 54.2sec*

22. Mark Mustermann (AUT)/Michael Zajc (AUT) Can-Am Maverick X3                                                          8hr 01min 28.4sec

23. Jonathan Hart (ARE)/Ali Mirza (ARE) Can-Am Maverick X3                                                                   8hr 10min 40.7sec

24. Vic Flip (AUT)/Gerhard Schmiedberger (AUT) Can-Am Maverick X3                                                          8hr 38min 32.1sec

25. Amerigo Ventura (ITA)/Erika Mingozzi (ITA) Yamaha YXZ 1000R                                                          10hr 36min 06.2sec* 

26. Juan Cruz Yacopini (ARG)/Dani Oliveras (ESP) Toyota Hilux Overdrive                                                          10hr 40min 32.3sec*

27. Vladas Jurkevicius (LTU)/Aisvydas Paliukenas (LTU) Mini John Cooper Works Rally 3.0i           10hr 41min 09.6sec

28. João Dias (PRT)/Gonçalo Reis (PRT) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR                                                          10hr 56min 11.9sec*

29. Khalifa Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Enio Bozzano (BRA) Taurus T3 Max                                                          11hr 16min 15.0sec+

30. Maha Al-Hameli (SAU)/Adrien Metge (FRA) Can-Am Maverick X3                                                          11hr 16min 20.5sec+

*denotes registered for the FIA World Baja Cup

+ denotes registered for the FIA Middle East Baja Cup