JYVASKYLA // It was a real rollercoaster weekend for Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi, who finished 11th yesterday to miss out on his fourth top-10 finish in the World Rally Championship (WRC). The Abu Dhabi-based driver dropped to 18th after a spin during the second day here, but fought back in style - with a massive 55-metre leap during stage 15 a highlight. The jump drew huge cheers from the masses of fans, who packed around the narrow forest roads in the Finnish countryside.
But although the leap was Qassimi's favourite moment of the weekend, he was content to come away from Finland with a finish. "The event on the whole was really good and I was extremely happy with how everything went," he said. "We had a couple of moments and it could have gone either way for us. This is a very competitive event and everyone is fighting for those precious seconds. To clock up an 11th place finish, especially as I have limited experience in this region, is great."
One of the biggest challenges for Qassimi in the WRC has been adapting to new surfaces - he had never raced in rain before, while tarmac racing is still unfamiliar to him - but he is optimistic for the next race. He will barely have had time to put his feet up when he will have to fly back to Europe for Rally Germany in two weekends' time. "Germany is a tarmac event and it has been quite a while since I competed on that surface," he said. "It will be interesting: you have to change your driving style."
@Email:lthornhill@thenational.ae
