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Al-Attiyah begins World Cup title defence with win in Russia

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Al-Attiyah begins World Cup title defence with win in Russia

Think FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies, and you’d probably imagine deserts, sand dunes, the odd camel and baking hot conditions. Well, think again – because Nasser Al-Attiyah has just began the defence of his FIA World Cup title in convincing style with a start-to-finish maiden victory on the Baja Russia Northern Forest Rally – run on the snow-covered forest trails of the Republic of Karelia in north-western Russia.

Co-driven by Frenchman Matthieu Baumel, the two-time Dakar winning Qatari driver won four of the five stages in his Overdrive Racing Toyota Hilux, to reach the finish well ahead of former WRC Czech pilot Martin Prokop.

It was far from an easy event, as last year’s Baja Russia winners, Poland’s Aron Domzala/Maciej Marton, rolled their Toyota and didn’t make it to the finish.

“It was a good rally for me,” said Al-Attiyah, who wears a Stilo WRC Zero helmet. “We were here for the first time and managed to win. I have a lot of fans in Russia. It was a nice start to the season and, of course, thanks to Toyota. It’s the best team.”