KUWAIT CITY, Dec 30: One of the benefits of the automotive rally for Kuwait is that it created a space for safe automotive racing for Kuwaitis who hitherto were doing the racing on the streets and causing accidents, said Sheikh Athbi Al-Naif Al-Sabah, Director of Committee of Kuwait Quarter Mile Automotive Club as he spoke at a press conference held Friday in Shuwaikh industrial area to announce the start of round two of the Kuwait Automotive Rally Championship 2012 on Dec 31, 2011 at Bneider.
The event which had its ceremonial start at the Movenpick Hotel in the Free Trade Zone at 4.30 pm on Friday kicks off Saturday, Dec 31 at 9 am in the Bneider Area in the south of Kuwait with eleven drivers as well as eleven co-drivers participating on a race course which is a stretch of space between the main highway and the inner road for the beach houses which is an empty space. There are service and VIP Centers set up within the space provided to take care of mechanical and other issues arising. Approval for the event was obtained from Sheikh Dr Ibrahim Al- Daid, the Governor of Al-Ahmadi.

Sheikh Azbi Al-Naif Al-Sabah, Director of Committee for Kuwait Quarter Mile Automotive Club elaborating on the event and the subsequent build up to the Kuwait final championship, said the rally to be held Dec 31, is the second round of 2012 Kuwait Rally with a big number of competitors, the first round having been held mid November 2011, adding that the third round will be held Jan 14-15th, and then in February comes the fourth round with the final to be held as part of the Kuwait International Automotive Rally Championship scheduled for sometime within the year.
Commenting on the benefits of the rally to Kuwaitis, Sheikh Sabah noted that one of the main benefits of the event is the creation of a space where people can participate in auto racing safely instead them doing it on the roads and causing accidents, adding that the rally venues and clubs can also be used for individual benefits at various levels as seen fit by the management of Youth and Sports authorities.
He noted that when Sheikh Basel Al-Sabah (May Allah Bless his soul), founded the Quarter Mile Automotive Club, it was practicing on a tiny stretch of land and as the number of sponsorships grew, the sport also grew bigger and more popular.

Comparing the Quarter Mile and the Kuwait Automotive Rally Club, Sheikh Sabah said the Quarter Mile Club was just recently founded for quarter mile racing for the reasons that the Kuwait racing championships get the benefit of competing in Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia as well as the United Arab Emirates, but there have been a lot of issues when it comes to the budget. A lot of people from the Youth and Sports Ministry turn a blind eye on, and for that reason the first round “we managed to get as much sponsors for it and also for the second round for which I will like to thank the sponsors for making the championship, which brought together a wide range of Kuwaiti and other drivers from sister Arab countries, a success”, said Sheikh Al-Sabah.

There were eleven registered participants in the first round but nine of them actually took part in the rally due to a variety of reasons. In this race there are eleven registered participants and all eleven are confirmed to participate with a sizable number of known and experienced drivers expressing regret for their exclusion due to the short notice given for registration.
There was also support for the event from the Ministry of the Interior and the Fire Department to make the championship safe and sound in accordance with international standards.
There are two small courses; one is around 10 kilometers and the other 14 kilometers. There are three different stages; participants go through the first one then go back for the quick stop service which took about 45 minutes for the fixing of mechanical issues as well as refueling. This is repeated three times on the same course with participants covering altogether a total of eighty four kilometers and ended around 4.30 pm at the same location.

The drivers include Meshal Al Nejadi, Michael Saleh, Masoud Al Saleh, Salah Bin Eidan, Mufeed Mubarak, Essam Al Nejadi, Salman Saleh, Ali Al Mulla, Jassem Maqahawi, Nasser Al Ajmi and Safah Al Thefeeri. The co-drivers on the other hand are Ahmad Al Khers, Khaled Jobran, Ousman Hamdar, Nasser Al Kuwari, Saad Al Mulaifi, Anwar Al Sharaah, Hassan Hamdar, Nasser Al Mutairi, Bader Al Baksami and Abdal Hadi Al Ajmi.
The vehicles registered to take part in the event are Mitsubishi EVO 9 (2), Subaru Imprezas (3), Mitsubishi, Mitsubishi EVO 8, Nissan Sunny Pulsar, Mitsubishi Galant VR4, Land Rover Defender and Jeep Cherokee.