Saudi stage shortened after request from drivers – DirtFish

Friday’s Wadi Almatwi stage of Rally Saudi Arabia has been shortened, after a request from the World Rally Championship drivers.

The check – scheduled to run as SS11/14 of the rally – was because of be 28.59km in size, however the flying end has now been introduced ahead to 24.9km, avoiding a bit drivers felt was too harmful.

The resolution was confirmed through an official bulletin from the organizer.

Sébastien Ogier advised DirtFish: “We all agreed together that this section is too dangerous. It makes no sense. Everything is blind. There are big drops, rocks everywhere. You cannot even stop if you have a problem.”

Fellow world champion Kalle Rovanperä added: “The beginning, of course, is still quite rocky and tricky, but it’s doable. For sure, the last three kilometers of the stage is really dangerous on the mountain. Super narrow road, a lot of loose stones and it’s all the time some small crests or something. You don’t see the stone.

“If it’s something on the road, you will never see it and then there is a hundred meter drop on the side of the road. So yeah, if you do the same than we did in Rally Finland with a loose stone, you don’t want to know where you end up.”

Hyundai driver Adrien Fourmaux revealed he was the one one to not vote to alter the stage.