FIA vice president Nasser Khalifa Al Attiyah has said the return of Abu Dhabi to the Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) fold will contribute greatly towards pushing the sport forward in the Gulf and North Africa region.

Al Attiyah, who has already arrived in the UAE, oversees mot-orsport activities in the Middle East and North Africa region, and speaking ahead of the Abu Dhabi Rally trial event this weekend he revealed that Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi was instrumental in bringing the event back to the UAE capital.

He said: “The role of Sheikh Khalid bin Faisal Al Qassimi to return Abu Dhabi [to the MERC] was prominent. 

“His special efforts were and still are the main reason for promoting the level and standard of the sport. We all support this approach for the sport to reach real new heights.”

Similarly, Al Attiyah thanked the government of Abu Dhabi for its efforts to bring back the rally to the Emirate after a spell of eight years.

“The Abu Dhabi Rally is considered one of the most important rallies in the region, the absence of which over the years has had a negative impact on the championship.

“The decisions taken and projects established by the government of Abu Dhabi have now helped to bring back Abu Dhabi Rally.”

Al Attiyah added that Abu Dhabi’s involvement with the MERC is bound to impact positively in developing motorsport in both the UAE and the Middle East and North Africa region.

The FIA vice president also sees a new and promising future for the region as a direct result of the close communication and 
cooperation between the various national sporting authorities and expressed his confidence that mot-orsport would be taken to new heights in the coming years.

Al Attiyah was elected as FIA vice president in December 2013 and was then subsequently handed charge of the Middle East and North Africa region.