FIA Middle East Rally Championship: Nasser Al Attiyah heads top field for Jordan round

Stage is set for duel in the desert as Qatari ace Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah tops the entry field of the region’s leading drivers for the Jordan Rally starting on Friday (May 14).

The Jordan Rally constitutes third round of the 2026 FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC).

Al Attiyah teams up with Spanish navigator Candido Carrera in a Skoda Fabia RS run by Autotek Motorsport as he continues his challenge for a record-breaking 21st regional rally title and an 18th success in the Hashemite Kingdom since 2003.

The six-time Dakar Rally champion drives one of six Rally2 machines in the 17-car entry that includes competitors from 10 nations.

Oman’s Abdullah Al Rawahi is the Qatari’s fierce rival and will be hoping that a return to full fitness helps to rekindle his title challenge with Jordanian co-driver Ata Al-Hmoud in a second Skoda Fabia RS. Al Rawahi and Al Hmoud won the Jordan Rally for the first time in 2023.

Veteran Nasser Khalifa Al-Attiyah is the early leader of the championship after rounds in Oman and Qatar and the Qatari teams up with Lebanon’s Ziad Chehab in the solitary Ford Fiesta on the entry list.

Saudi Arabia’s Hamza Bakhashab will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of his father Abdullah (champion in 1995) and challenge for the overall regional title. The Jeddah driver is currently second in the points’ standings and teams up with Irishman Lorcan Moore in a Toyota GR Yaris.

Local driver Sheikh Bader Al Fayez suffered engine issues during the opening round and was forced to miss round two as a result. He returns with Lebanese co-driver Joseph Matar to crew a third Skoda. Bassel Abu Hamdan and Firas Elias round off the Rally2 field in a Volkswagen Polo.

Jordan’s Shaker Jweihan has been the dominant force so far this season in the FIA MERC2 category and will be aiming for a hat-trick of class victories with Mustafa Juma in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X. Competition comes from Oman’s Zakariya Al Aamri (Subaru) and Sami Fleifel (Mitsubishi).

Engine-related issues ruined the start of the season for the Qatari duo of Rashid Al Muhannadi and Mohammed Al Marri in a pair of Peugeot 208 Rally 4s entered by the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation. They return to action over a dozen special stages in the Dead Sea and Jordan Valley areas looking to pick up their first points of the season. 

In the 2026 FIA MERC season, Al Attiyah won the opening round in Oman, while compatriot Abdulaziz Al Kuwari won the second leg in Qatar.

The remaining legs will be held in Lebanon (September 11 to 13), Cyprus (October 9 to 11) and Saudi Arabia (November 12 to 15).

Al Attiyah is the record-breaker in the MERC history with 92 rally wins and 20 regional titles. Current FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem is the second with 60 event wins and 14 titles.

(With MERC Media inputs)