Nasser Al-Attiyah wins in Morocco, all is set for 2018 Dakar Rally

Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah and his French co-driver Mathieu Baumel are the winners of the Rallye du Maroc, the penultimate round of the 2017 FIA World Cup for Cross Country Rallies. The six-stage race in Morocco was also the last big test for most of competitors ahead of the 2018 Dakar Rally, which will take place in January in Peru, Bolivia and Argentina.

To win in Morocco, Al-Attiyah (#300 Toyota Hilux) had to beat Sebastien Loeb in the #312 Peugeot 3008 DKR. The nine-time WRC champion was leading for most of the event but mechanical issue slowed him down on the penultimate stage. At the end, after 1089 competitive kilometers, Al-Attiyah was faster for 7 minutes and 55 seconds. Joan ‘Nani’ Roma finished third in a Mini All4 Racing.

Sebastien Loeb missed a victory because of mechanical issue

“This is the best possible preparation for the Dakar Rally. This is one of the toughest races you can do and it was so satisfying to be collecting those stage wins over the past week. The support we had from our team here was really fantastic and helped us secure the win. We’ve now won this race four times in a row and we’re going to bring this great feeling to South America for the next Dakar,” Nasser Al-Attiyah said.

Other top 10 finishers are Kuba Przygonski (Mini), Vladimir Vasilyev (Mini), Aron Domzala (Toyota), Mikko Hirvonen (Mini), Bryce Menzies (Mini), Orlando Terranova (Mini) and Carlos Sainz (Peugeot). The Austrian rider Matthias Walkner (KTM) is the winner in the motorcycle category.

Photos: Kin Marcin/Red Bull Content Pool,