UAE’s Mohammed Balooshi gained rhythm and made an impressive recovery on the second day of OiLibya Rally to finish Tuesday’s special stage in 12th position.

That result, after clocking 2:36:44, has pushed him up to 19th in the overall standings after a tough opening day which saw the riders struggle on the track after heavy rain in Morocco.

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But Tuesday, he managed to maintain his fast pace throughout the stage overcoming poor visibility to stay close to the riders in front.

“We had a very difficult stage once again but a lot more enjoyable than yesterday (Monday),” he said.

“Today’s visibility was poor but Tuesday was nearly zero for almost 60 kilometres because I had tons of dust coming inside my goggles so I couldn’t literally see a thing.

“Even though there was still a lot dust in the air, my riding conditions improved a lot and allowed me to gain rhythm and climb a few very valuable positions.”

With 850km completed with another 2,300km to go, Balooshi, who sits in sixth position in the world standings, admits he will face many more challenges throughout this rally.

“Some days you’re down and some days you are up. In this race we have the highest number of factory bikes of the entire championship and I am very lucky and proud of having the chance to fight positions with some of them.”