Al-Attiyah returns to the WRC ten years later at the Rally Saudi Arabia

Nasser Al-Attiyah will return to the World Rally Championship after a decade. The five-time Dakar winner agreed with Malcolm Wilson to drive an Ford Puma Rally1 for M-Sport at the Rally Saudi Arabia, scheduled for November 26-29 in Jeddah.

The decision came two weeks ago. "I called Malcolm. I asked him if he had a car available, he gave me the price and we closed the deal. Now I will be part of M-Sport for the final round of the season," Al-Attiyah explained to DirtFish from Morocco, where he is currently defending his World Rally Raid Championship title with Dacia.

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His last appearance in the WRC was in 2015, when he won the WRC-2 title. A year earlier he had achieved the same crown, adding two consecutive championships in the category. His rally achievements include Dakar victories with Volkswagen (2011), Mini (2015) and Toyota (2019, 2022, 2023).

First Time with Rally1 Specification

Testing will begin in England before the Saudi event. "I'm going to test to see how it goes. If it's allowed, we will try to do proper sessions before the race," he commented.

His previous experience with M-Sport dates back to 2013, when he raced the full season with the Qatar M-Sport WRT team. A year earlier, in 2012, he competed with Citroën achieving a fourth place in Portugal as his best result. His WRC numbers include 12 stage wins and 28 points in the top category, while in WRC-2 he accumulated 6 rally wins and 50 points.

Cándido Carrera will occupy the co-driver's seat. The duo worked together throughout the 2024 Middle East Championship season, where Al-Attiyah claimed his twentieth regional title.

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Saudi Arabia Debuts on the World Calendar

The WRC will visit Saudi Arabia for the first time. The event will take place in the Mecca Province with its base in Jeddah, combining 17 special stages totaling 319.44 competitive kilometers within a total route of 1,218.57 kilometers. The stages will alternate between gravel, sand, and asphalt.

Al-Attiyah knows these roads. In May he raced on exactly the same stages during the Saudi Arabia Rally of the MERC. "The weather will be different in November, less hot than in May," he noted.

The service park will operate on the Jeddah Corniche, a coastal area that will allow direct access for local fans. The date will close the 2025 WRC season, becoming the decisive round for the drivers' and manufacturers' championships.

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Olympic Medalist and Multiple Champion

Al-Attiyah's career spans multiple disciplines. He participated in six consecutive Olympic Games from Sydney 2000 to Tokyo 2020 in skeet shooting, winning bronze in London 2012. In motorsport, he holds three World Rally Raid Championship titles (2022, 2023, 2024 ongoing) and multiple crowns in the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies.

"Saudi Arabia is pushing motorsport a lot. If you see the Dakar, Formula 1, Extreme E, and now the WRC in Jeddah," Al-Attiyah thanked the Saudi government during the interview.