The Nissan crew of Faris Al-Mashna and Saud Al-Taimi extended their unofficial overnight advantage to 3min 40sec after the second desert stage of the Hail Nissan International Rally on Tuesday. The Saudi crew carded a stage time of 4hr 21min 41sec for the grueling section through the An Nafud desert, north of Hail. Fellow Saudi Arabians, Mutair and Hani Matar Al-Shammeri, continue to hold second position in their Nissan Patrol and the Japanese manufacturer currently has a clean sweep of the podium places, courtesy of third-placed Ahmed Abdullah Al-Suhail. "My goal before the rally was to finish behind the main two drivers, Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Rashed Al-Ketbi but, when they both retired yesterday, it gave me a great opportunity to push for the win on my local event," said Al-Mashna. Meshal and Bander Hamed Al-Saeedi began the day holding the advantage in the T2 category for series production cross-country vehicles, but delays cost the pair dearly and that lifted Muneef Al-Salmani to the top of the rankings in his Nissan Patrol. Only 23 of the original field began the second stage. Both Rajah Farhan Al-Shammeri and Abdullah Al-Kutubi joined the list of retirements. A major fire also destroyed the Nissan of Khalid Al-Otaibi, but both members of the crew were totally unharmed by the incident. Sami Talab Al-Shammeri took a wrong track and was expected to receive time penalties which would drop him down the leader board, but former event winner Ibrahim Al-Muhanna enjoyed a strong stage and moved back into contention for the top five. The rally is being held under the patronage of Prince Saud Bin Abdul Mohsen, Governor of Hail, president of the Supreme Commission for Hail Development and the Head of the Supreme Commission of the Hail Rally. Tomorrow (Wednesday), marks the third and final selective section of 285.48km. The timed action starts in Al-Farhaniyah and finishes near the town of Jubbah. The ceremonial finish will take place later that evening at the Maghawat Conference Center on the outskirts of Hail. —SG
