2017 Middle East Rally Championship

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The 2017 Middle East Rally Championship was an international rally championship sanctioned by the FIA. The championship was contested over five events held in five Middle East countries from February to September.

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Qatar's Nasser Al-Attiyah won his thirteenth MERC championship and his seventh consecutively. Al-Attiyah won three rallies over the course of the season creating a gap unable to be approached. Kuwaiti driver Meshari Al-Thefiri led the points after three rallies but was unable to score any points subsequently. Lebanese veteran Roger Feghali's one-off appearance and victory at his home event was enough to finish the year third in the championship.

Event calendar and results

The 2017 MERC was as follows: [1]

RoundRally namePodium finishersStatistics
RankDriverCarTimeStagesLengthStartersFinishers
1 Flag of Qatar.svg Qatar International Rally
(3–4 February) [2]
1 Flag of Qatar.svg Rashid Al-Naimi Subaru WRX Sti 1:56:28.312205.16 km105
2 Flag of Qatar.svg Nasser Al-Kuwari Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 2:11:17.2
3 Flag of Kuwait.svg Meshari Al-Thefiri Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X 2:22:17.0
2 Flag of Jordan.svg Jordan Rally
(4–6 May) [3]
1 Flag of Qatar.svg Nasser Al-Attiyah Ford Fiesta R5 2:56:37.018238.20 km138
2 Flag of Jordan.svg Marouf Abu Samra Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 3:12:46.3
3 Flag of Kuwait.svg Meshari Al-Thefiri Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X 3:17:15.0
3 Flag of Cyprus.svg Cyprus Rally
(16–18 June) [4]
1 Flag of Qatar.svg Nasser Al-Attiyah Ford Fiesta R5 2:31:44.314219.74 km6746
2 Flag of Cyprus.svg Simos Galatariotis Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X 2:37:56.3
3 Flag of Cyprus.svg Panikos Polykarpou Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 2:38:03.8
4 Flag of Lebanon.svg Rally of Lebanon
(25–27 August) [5]
1 Flag of Lebanon.svg Roger Feghali Škoda Fabia R5 2:01:33.511206.30 km3122
2 Flag of Lebanon.svg Gilbert Bannout Škoda Fabia R5 2:07:33.7
3 Flag of Lebanon.svg Rodolphe Asmar Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X 2:11:41.2
5 Flag of Iran.svg Shiraz International Rally
(13–15 September) [6]
1 Flag of Qatar.svg Nasser Al-Attiyah Ford Fiesta R5 1:55:02.012202.14 km128
2 Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Vojtěch Štajf Škoda Fabia R5 1:56:32.3
3 Flag of Iran.svg Hormoz Kalhor Kia Cerato 2:31:57.2

Championship standings

The 2017 MERC for Drivers points was as follows: [7]

Pos.DriverVehicle Flag of Qatar.svg
QAT
Flag of Jordan.svg
JOR
Flag of Cyprus.svg
CYP
Flag of Lebanon.svg
LBN
Flag of Iran.svg
SHI
Total
1 Flag of Qatar.svg Nasser Al-Attiyah Ford Fiesta R5 Ret1161136
2 Flag of Kuwait.svg Meshari Al-Thefiri Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X 2351371
3 Flag of Lebanon.svg Roger Feghali Škoda Fabia R5 139
4 Flag of Qatar.svg Rashed Al Naimi Subaru WRX Sti 137
5 Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Vojtěch Štajf Škoda Fabia R5 231
6 Flag of Cyprus.svg Simos Galatariotis Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X 230
7 Flag of Lebanon.svg Gilbert Bannout Škoda Fabia R5 228
8 Flag of Cyprus.svg Savvas Savva Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 325
9 Flag of Jordan.svg Ihab Al-Shorafa Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 424
10 Flag of Lebanon.svg Rodolphe Asmar Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X 323
11 Flag of Iran.svg Ali Mesgarha Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 320
Flag of Jordan.svg Asem Aref Renault Clio Ret58Ret20
13 Flag of Cyprus.svg Costas Laos Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 417
Flag of Lebanon.svg Patrick Njeim Citroën DS3 R3T 417
15 Flag of Lebanon.svg Nadim Halabi Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 514
16 Flag of Lebanon.svg Eddy Abou-Karam Hyundai i20 R5 712
17 Flag of Cyprus.svg Mehmet Yucel Ford Fiesta S2000 610
18 Flag of Germany.svg Edith Weiss Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX 77
19 Flag of Qatar.svg Khalid Mohammad Al-Suwaidi Škoda Fabia R5 Ret6
20 Flag of Lebanon.svg Nabil Abdelhak Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X 85
Flag of Jordan.svg Khaled Juma Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X Ret5
Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Daniel Landa Škoda Fabia R5 Ret5
23 Flag of Cyprus.svg Michalis Posedias Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X Ret4
24 Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Rakan Al-Rashed Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX Ret3
Flag of Cyprus.svg Demetris Papasavvas Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX Ret3
26 Flag of Lebanon.svg Elie Nehme Renault Clio R3 92
Flag of Kuwait.svg Essam Al-Nejadi Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX Ret2
Flag of Cyprus.svg Andreas Filippou Subaru Impreza STi N15 Ret2
Flag of Lebanon.svg Joseph Hindy Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X Ret2
30 Flag of Lebanon.svg Matthias Njeim Peugeot 208 R2 101
Flag of Kuwait.svg Salem Al-Thafferi Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X Ret1
Flag of Lebanon.svg Nassib Nassar Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX Ret1
Key
ColourResult
GoldWinner
Silver2nd place
Bronze3rd place
GreenPoints finish
BlueNon-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
PurpleDid not finish (Ret)
BlackExcluded (EX)
Disqualified (DSQ)
WhiteDid not start (DNS)
Cancelled (C)
BlankWithdrew entry from
the event (WD)

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References

  1. "Season 2017 Middle East Rally Championship". FIA.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 11 January 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  2. "42. Qatar International Rally 2017". EWRC-Results.com. EWRC-Results. 4 February 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  3. "Jordan Rally 2017". EWRC-Results.com. EWRC-Results. 23 May 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  4. "46. Cyprus Rally 2017". EWRC-Results.com. EWRC-Results. 24 June 2016. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  5. "40. Rally of Lebanon 2017". EWRC-Results.com. EWRC-Results. 28 August 2016. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  6. "3. Shiraz International Rally 2017". EWRC-Results.com. EWRC-Results. 23 September 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  7. "Classifications: FIA Middle East Rally Championship". Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 11 January 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2018.