FIA World and Middle East Baja Cups set for thrilling conclusion at this weekend’s Dubai International Baja
Based at Dubai Festival City and organised by the Emirates Motorsports Organisation (EMSO), the season’s finale has attracted a 35-car field with seven crews registered in the Ultimate category, nine in Challenger, 14 in SSV and five in the Stock class.
Eleven teams will be competing for FIA World Baja Cup points and 15 have registered for the FIA Middle East Baja Cup. The Dubai International Baja celebrates its 10th anniversary after taking over from the Dubai International Rally that dated back to a non-championship event in 1981.
The Baja is being held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai.
Finishing second overall and picking up 80 points in Qatar last weekend towards their FIA World Baja Cup challenge has put Portugal’s Francisco Barreto and Paulo Fiúza in the driving seat to secure both the overall and Ultimate titles in Dubai.
With Dania Akeel out of the equation sitting on the sidelines and Lionel Baud also completing his six-event allocation in Qatar, only Saood Variawa can stop Barreto from winning the Ultimate class title. The overall Drivers’ Championship is a little more complex with Challenger champion-elect Mitchel van den Brink and Variawa still very much in contention.
Barreto said: “We need to be smart, finish the race and get the best position we can. It’s the most important race for us. We need to win the World Cup at the end of the season.”
Sébastien Delaunay and Lucie Baud will sit on the sidelines as Paulo Fiúza and Bart van Heun decide who becomes the champion navigator for the 2026 FIA World Baja Cup season. Khalid Al-Jafla and Andrei Rudnitskiy are also registered for points in their Toyota Hilux Evo.
South Racing’s van den Brink suffered punctures and electrical issues in Qatar but only needs the odd point in the UAE to secure the Challenger title. Oman’s Hamed Al-Wahaibi was his closest rival but damage sustained by an accident cost the Master Driver contender dearly and he looks on course to settle for the runner-up spot. The duo will go head-to-head in the Al-Qudra dunes with Van den Brink’s co-pilot Bart van Heun already assured of the Challenger Navigators’ title.
Success for the South Racing Can-Am duo of Fernando Alvarez and Xavier Panseri in Qatar has thrown the outcome of the SSV championship wide open. The Argentine and his French navigator have a useful advantage but the door is firmly open for both young Norwegian Hedda Hosås and Emirati Mansour Al-Helai to make a late bid for glory, both having sat out the Qatar round.
Alvarez said: “Dubai is easier for me than Qatar. We usually do well in the dunes, small dunes as well. We have to go there and fight because there are two others who have a chance to win. I was third and now I’m first. This is my 10th year doing cross-country racing. I’ve won two World Cups so, for me, it would be amazing to win the third one and then go on to Dakar.”
Junior Driver champion Hosås leads Al-Helai by just three points and unofficially trails Alvarez by 18 heading into the Al-Qudra showdown. Likewise, Panseri leads the way from Pol Tibau and Khalid Al-Kendi in the SSV Navigators’ Championship.
R-X Sport’s Rashid Al-Ketbi and Oriol Mena have also registered for points and could throw a spanner in the works. The Dubai-based operation will battle it with South Racing for the FIA World Baja Cup Teams’ title.
Majed Al-Thunayyan and Omar Al-Lahim secured the Stock title in the FIA World Baja Cup last weekend in Qatar, pipping Al-Mashna Al-Shammeri and Abdullah Al-Shammeri, who had already tackled six events in their Nissan Patrol.
Neither crew will be eligible for points this weekend and this leaves the door open for Qatar’s Abdulla Al-Rabban and his Emirati navigator Ali Al-Ajami to push on for the win in their Nissan Patrol.
New champion Al-Attiyah aims for clean sweep of FIA Middle Baja Cup wins
In the absence of Yasir Seaidan and Miroslav Zapletal, Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah confirmed his first FIA Middle East Baja Cup title with Max Delfino in his Optimus MD Rallye last Saturday. Nevertheless, the six-time Dakar champion is aiming for a clean sweep of four sets of maximum points in the FIA Middle East Baja Cup.
Ahmed El-Shamy and Leonard Cremer are also registered for the regional series in a Century CR6. The Egyptian has already overhauled Miroslav Zapletal to claim the runner-up spot in the Ultimate Drivers’ Championship behind Al-Attiyah.
Seaidan missed round three in Qatar but has entered the UAE round with Xavier Flick in a Taurus T3 Max. Their closest Challenger rivals are the UAE-based British duo of David Mabbs and Dave McBride. Mabbs sustained gearbox problems on the opening stage in Qatar and that cost him a realistic chance of catching the Saudi, although Yasir needs to finish to settle the contest. He is also embroiled in a duel with young Qatari Mohammed Al-Marri for the runner-up spot in the Drivers’ Championship.
Saudi driver Abdullah Al-Fahad and Qatar’s Nouef Al-Sowaidi remain in contention for Challenger honours after the Qatar International Baja.
Al-Marri claimed back-to-back SSV wins in Saudi Arabia and Jordan with Szymon Gospodarczyk but the runaway category winner has entered the season’s finale with Pierre Delorme after rivals Hamad Al-Harbi, Maha Al-Hamali and Mohammed Al-Atteya closed the gap in the SSV rankings last weekend.
The Junior Driver winner will need to stay ahead of the trio to secure the title in the UAE. Qatar’s Ahmed Al-Kuwari is also chasing points as well as duelling with the QMMF Team in the regional Teams’ championship through his Al-Kuwari Racing by Apex operation.
Camelia Liparoti (Yamaha), Nora Al-Jassasi (Can-Am) and Dhari Al-Dhafeeri (Can-Am) all took advantage of a cost-effective shipping agreement between the QMMF and the EMSO to transport their equipment rapidly between Qatar and the UAE and are also registered for regional Baja points.
Saudi driver Abdullah Al-Shegawi and his Emirati navigator Ali Mirza are the only registered Stock crew in the regional series this weekend in their Toyota Prado.
The event benefits from close co-operation with the Dubai Government and its key entities, including Dubai Police, the Roads and Transport Authority, the Dubai Municipality and official automotive partner, Al-Futtaim Toyota.
H.E. Khalid Ben Sulayem, President of the Emirates Motorsports Organisation, said: “As we celebrate 10 years of the Baja format, it is a good time to reflect on the new impetus that was created in 2016. The Dubai International Baja has developed a character and identity of its own over the past decade, building on a motorsport heritage that stretches back to 1970.”
The itinerary for the Dubai International Baja gets underway with a short Prologue of 4.80km within 13.50km of the start location at Dubai Festival City. The first car is due on stage at 08.45hrs. This precedes the evening’s ceremonial start at Dubai Festival City from 20.00hrs.
The Al-Qudra desert and its notorious rolling sand dunes take centre stage on Saturday (November 7th) for a selective section of 177.24km, starting at 10.40hrs.
In a reverse of last year’s timetable, a second selective section at Al-Faqa’a runs for 179.56km and brings the action to a conclusion on Saturday, November 8th before the return to Dubai Festival City for the ceremonial finish.
In a route of 701.10km, 361.60km will be timed against the clock (subject to final route checks).
2026 Dubai International Baja – entry list:
Ultimate
200. Francisco Barreto (POR)/Paulo Fiúza (POR) Toyota Hilux IMT Evo*
201. Saood Variawa (RSA)/Charan Moore (RSA) Toyota Hilux IMT Evo*
202. Khalid Al-Jafla (UAE)/Andrei Rudnitskiy (LTU) Toyota Hilux Evo*
203. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Max Delfino (FRA) Optimus MD Rallye+
204. Ahmed El-Shami (EGY)/Leonard Cremer (RSA) Century CR6+
205. Aliiyah Koloc (UAE)/Marcin Pasek (POL) Red-Lined Revo GTR
206. Martin Koloc (CZE)/Hugo Magalhães (POR) Red-Lined Revo V8
Challenger
300. Mitchel van den Brink (NED)/Bart van Heun (NED) Can-Am Maverick R*
301. Hamed Al-Wahaibi (OMA)/François Cazalet (FRA) Can-Am Maverick R*
302. Abdullah Al-Fahad (KSA)/Mohammed Al-Muakhil (KSA) Taurus T3 Max+
303. Sergei Remennik (RUS)/Aleksei Ignatov (RUS) Taurus T3 Max
304. David Mabbs (GBR)/David McBride (GBR) Can-Am Maverick X3+
305. Damien Byrne (IRL)/Mark Grams (GER) Can-Am Maverick X3
306. Evgenii Kudriavtcev (RUS)/Oleg Zaikin (RUS) Can-Am Maverick X3
307. Jonathan Hart (GBR)/Dmytro Tsyro (UKR) Can-Am Maverick X3 XRS
308. Yasir Seaidan (KSA)/Xavier Flick (FRA) Taurus T3 Max+
SSV
400. Hedda Hosås (NOR)/Pol Tibau (ESP) Can-Am Maverick R*
401. Mansour Al-Helai (UAE)/Khalid Al-Kendi (UAE) Can-Am Maverick R*
402. Fernando Alvarez (ARG)/Xavier Panseri (FRA) Can-Am Maverick R*
403. Rashid Al-Ketbi (UAE)/Oriol Mena (ESP) Can-Am Maverick R*
404. Ahmed Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Augusto Sanz (ARG) Can-Am Maverick R+
405. Mohammed Al-Marri (QAT)/Pierre Demorme (FRA) Can-Am Maverick R+
406. Hamad Al-Harbi (KSA)/Faisal Al-Suwayh (KSA) Can-Am Maverick R+
407. Maha Al-Hamali (KSA)/Adrien Metge (FRA) Can-Am Maverick R+
408. Mohammed Al-Atteya (QAT)/Aleksei Kuzmich (RUS) Can-Am Maverick R+
409. Camelia Liparoti (SMR)/Erika Mingozzi (ITA) Yamaha YXZ 1000R Sport Shift+
410. Nora Al-Jassasi (UAE)/Jeannette Kvick (DEN) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR+
411. Dhari Al-Dhafeeri (KUW)/Ali Obaid (UAE) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR+
412. Bassam Knonfli (CAN)/Willem Avenant (RSA) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR
413. Farah Zakaria (JOR)/Dolyne Schlink (LBN) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo RR
Stock
500. Al-Mashna Al-Shammeri (KSA)/Abdullah Al-Shammeri (KSA) Nissan Patrol
501. Majed Al-Thunayyan (KSA)/Omar Al-Lahim (KSA) Nissan Patrol*
502. Abdullah Al-Shegawi (KSA)/Ali Mirza (UAE) Toyota Prado+
503. Abdulla Al-Rabban (QAT)/Ali Al-Ajami (UAE) Nissan Patrol*
504. Ahmad Al-Muhannadi (QAT)/Ali Hassan Obaid (UAE) Nissan Patrol
*denotes registered for the FIA World Baja Cup
+ denotes registered for the FIA Middle East Baja Cup
Timetable of events
Administration checks, Service Park, Festival City Mall 08.30-12.30hrs
Scrutineering checks, Toyota, Al-Badia Service Centre 09.30-14.30hrs
Pre-event press conference, Dubai Festival Mall 19.00hrs
Friday, November 6
Prologue (4.80km) 08.45hrs (first car)
Ceremonial start, Dubai Festival Mall 20.00hrs
Saturday, November 7
SS1 Al-Qudra-Al Qudra (177.24km) 10.40hrs (first car)
Sunday, November 8
SS2 Al-Faqa’a-Al-Faqa’a (179.56km) 09.45hrs (first car)
Post-event interviews, Podium, Dubai Festival Mall 18.30hrs
Podium ceremony and prize giving, Dubai Festival Mall 20.00hrs
Comments
