The Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) is a motor rally championship run under the auspicies of the FIA. First held in 1984 the championship encompasses a series of rallies held across Western Asia. The championship has featured long-running events like Rally of Lebanon, Rally Oman and the Troodos Rally in Cyprus as well as World Rally Championship event Jordan Rally. Many of the rallies in the region pre-date national independence, mostly from the United Kingdom.
Nasser Salih Nasser Abdullah Al-Attiyah is a Qatari rally driver and sport shooter. He was the 2006 Production World Rally Champion, 2014 and 2015 WRC-2 champion, an 18 time Middle East Rally Champion, five times winner of the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies, and a five times Dakar Rally winner. His five victories in the Dakar Rally make him the only Middle Easterner and West Asian to win the competition more than once.
Elfyn Rhys Evans is a Welsh rally driver. He is currently teamed with Scott Martin and is competing for Toyota Gazoo Racing in the World Rally Championship.
Esapekka Lappi is a Finnish rally driver. He is the 2012 Finnish Rally Champion, 2014 European Rally Champion and the 2016 WRC-2 Champion. He now drives for Hyundai Motorsport. In 2024, he won his second ever event in Rally Sweden, which broke the record for the longest gap between wins in terms of time and number of rallies, with his debut win coming from his home event in 2017 Rally Finland.
The 2013 Middle East Rally Championship season is an international rally championship sanctioned by the FIA. The championship is contested over seven events held in seven countries across the Middle East region, running from January to December.
The Malaysian Rally, known previously as Rally Malaysia and Rally of Malaysia, is a rallying event held in the state of Johor, at the southern tip of Peninsular Malaysia. The rally is based out of the state capital Johor Bahru.
The Dubai International Baja is an international baja rally event based in Dubai held around the facilities of the Dubai Innovation Centre.
The 2014 Middle East Rally Championship season was an international rally championship sanctioned by the FIA. The championship was contested over six events held in six countries across the Middle East region, running from February to November.
The 2015 Middle East Rally Championship was an international rally championship sanctioned by the FIA. The championship was contested over eight events held in eight countries across the Middle East region, running from February to November. The championship was significantly expanded for the 2015 season. The Oman International Rally returned to the calendar after a seven-year absence, while Iran joined the championship for the first time with the Shiraz Rally debuting in May, the last rally before the mid-year winter break.
The Shiraz Rally is an international rallying event held at Persepolis, near Shiraz, the capital of the Fars Province in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The rally is a gravel and sand event run by the Motorcycle and Automobile Federation of the Islamic Republic of Iran (MAFIRI). The event was first held as a candidate event in 2014 before becoming a round of the Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) in 2015. The rally is the first international motorsport event to be held in Iran since the 1979 revolution.
The Oman International Rally (known originally as the Rally Oman, is an international rallying event held to the south and south-east of the Omani capital of Muscat. The rally is run by the Oman Automobile Association.
The 2016 FIA WRC2 Championship was the fourth season of WRC2, a rallying championship organised and governed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, ran in support of the World Rally Championship. The Championship was open to cars complying with R4, R5, and Super 2000 regulations. The Championship was composed of thirteen rallies, and drivers and teams had to nominate a maximum of seven events. The best six results counted towards the championship.
Martin Järveoja is an Estonian rally co-driver. He is currently teamed with Ott Tänak and is set to compete for Hyundai Motorsport in the World Rally Championship.
The 2016 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 October. The championship was reduced to seven rallies for 2016 season, but the end of season rallies, Oman International Rally and Dubai International Rally were cancelled.
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.
Takamoto Katsuta is a Japanese rally driver who currently competes in the World Rally Championship for Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT. Katsuta rose to prominence after taking a surprise victory in the WRC-2 class at the 2018 Rally Sweden. He achieved his first World Rally Championship podium in the 2021 Safari Rally, finishing in second place.
The 2018 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 April to November. One event, the Cyprus Rally, is shared with the 2018 European Rally Championship.
The 2019 Asia-Pacific Rally Championship was an international rally championship sanctioned by the FIA. It was the 32nd championship and underwent a major format change. For the first time the two Cups, the Asian Cup and the Pacific Cup, acted as qualifying events for a "Grand Final" at the China Rally Longyou where the highest qualified winner becomes the Asia-Pacific champion.
The 2019 Middle East Rally Championship was an international rally championship sanctioned by the FIA. The championship was to be contested over five events held in five Middle East countries from March to November. One event, the Cyprus Rally, is shared with the 2019 European Rally Championship. The season-ending Kuwait International Rally was cancelled.
The World Rally-Raid Championship is a rally raid series co-sanctioned by the FIA and FIM and promoted by the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO). The championship's seasons culminate with world championship titles in both automobile and motorcycle categories.
Lebanese