2004 Rally of Lebanon / FIA Middle East Rally Championship - Round 5 of 8
2 - 4 July 2004

MITSUBISHI LANCER EVOLUTION DRIVERS TAKE TOP FOUR PLACES IN LEBANON
 Lancer Evolution drivers claim Mitsubishi’s first Lebanese victory
Lancer Evolution crews take 14 of top 18 positions

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Gr. N
Roger FEGHALI / Nabil NJEIM
Abdo FEGHALI / Marc HADDAD
Jean-Pierre NASRALLAH / Joseph MATAR
(4 July 2004)

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Gr. N
Roger FEGHALI / Nabil NJEIM
(4 July 2004)
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution driver Roger Feghali and co-driver Nabil Njeim won the 28th Rally of Lebanon today (Sunday), heading a clean sweep of Mitsubishi drivers in the top four positions. The Lebanese defending champion, and winner in 2000, claimed victory over brother Abdo by one minute 17.3 seconds in the fifth round of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship, which was run over 19 Tarmac stages to the north and east of Beirut. Feghali’s victory also represents the first for Mitsubishi machinery in the Rally of Lebanon since its inception in 1968.

After Friday night’s super special stage hosted in downtown Beirut, Feghali spent the first full day of competition on Saturday embroiled in a titanic battle with fellow Lancer Evolution driver, and brother, Abdo Feghali, winner of the opening stage. After stage four, Roger had however pulled out an 18.6 second lead, gradually inching further into the lead as the leg progressed. His charged was then aided when Abdo admitted to a wrong tire choice for stages 10 and 11, which led to him going off the road.

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Gr. N
Abdo FEGHALI / Marc HADDAD
(4 July 2004)
Three-time Rally of Lebanon victor Jean-Piero Nasrallah overhauled fellow Lebanese driver Doumit Bou Doumit in the 15th stage to claim third position in another Lancer Evolution, revised suspension aiding his charge.

Nasser Al-Attiyah claimed fifth in his Subaru, while Suheil Al-Maktoum finished seventh in another Lancer Evolution.

In the FIA Middle East Rally Championship, the series leaderboard remains largely unchanged with Al-Attiyah, Suhail Khalifa and series leader Khalid Al-Qassimi the only regular drivers to score points.

No less than 24 of the 45 entrants for the Rally of Lebanon were entered in Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions, although regular contender Hamed Al-Wahaibi failed to start as the former regional Group N champion could not justify the costs associated with changing his Lancer Evolution’s specification from gravel to Tarmac.

Lancer Evolution drivers also claimed ninth to 13th positions, while Andreas Tsouloftas’ retirement from 18th position with engine problems drops him back into third position in the Drivers’ Championship.

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Gr. N
Doumit BOU DOUMIT / Ziad MAALOUF
(4 July 2004)
Nada Zaidan made history back in February when she became the first Qatari Muslim woman to take part in an international rally. She took the start of the Rally of Lebanon with Jordanian co-driver Nadia Shnoudeh and reached the finish in her Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 6 in 28th position overall.

Jordan’s Amjad Farrah - winner of the recent Jordan Rally - retired his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution after an electrical fire damaged a wiring loom and Saudi Arabian series challenger Issa Al-Dossari broke a driveshaft and then collided with a bank. Of the regular Mitsubishi drivers, veteran Michel Saleh - who was second in Lebanon way back in 1986 and 1987 - finished 18th.

The FIA Middle East Rally Championship contenders now take a two-month break before the series resumes on September 1-3 at the Syrian International Rally. The event will be centered on Damascus for the first time, dispensing with the overnight halt at the Roman city of Palmyra in the eastern deserts.

FINAL OVERALL CLASSIFICATION
  Driver / Co-driver Nat. Car Gr./Cl. Total Time Difference
1   Roger FEGHALI / Nabil NJEIM RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII N/4 2.49:22.9    
2   Abdo FEGHALI / Marc HADDAD RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII N/4 2.51:00.2  + 1.37.3 
3   Jean-Pierre NASRALLAH / Joseph MATAR RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII N/4 2.53.20.7  + 3.57.8 
4   Doumit BOU DOUMIT / Ziad MAALOUF RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI N/4 2.54.39.6  + 5.16.7 
5   Nasser AL-ATTIYAH / Chris PATERSON QA/GB  Subaru Impreza N/4 2.56.55.8  + 7.32.9 
6   Henry MASSAAD / Jihad KHALIFE RL  Renault Clio RS N/3 2.59.20.6  + 9.57.7 
7   Suheil AL -MAKTOUM / Ahmad GHAZIRI UAE/RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI N/4 2.59.50.1  + 10.27.2 
8   Khalid AL-QASSIMI / Michael ORR UAE/IRL  Subaru Impreza N/4 3.00.50.5  + 11.27.6 
9   Ziad FEGHALI / Jihad EL HACHEM RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI N/4 3.01.44.4  + 12.21.5 
10   Elie DIB / Sami AWAD RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI N/4 3.04.23.8  + 15.00.9 
11   ELAN / Alain GEORR RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI N/4 3.07.14.1  + 17.51.2 
12   Rodrigue RAHI / Dory SAKR RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII N/4 3.08.45.7  + 19.22.8 
13   Frederic SCHMIT / Cyril HADDAD FR/RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI N/4 3.08.59.4  + 19.36.5 
14   MARCO / Sam SAWAYA RL  VW Golf GTI Kit Car A/7 3.09.06.7  + 19.43.8 
15   Haitham YOUSSFI / Youssef AL ASMAR SYR  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII N/4 3.10.51.6  + 21.28.7 
16   Abdulaziz S. AL-KUWARI / Adel HUSSEIN QA  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII N/4 3.12.02.6  + 22.39.7 
17   Ahmed AL-SABBAN / Duffy KILLIAN SA/IRL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII N/4 3.14.21.2  + 24.58.3 
18   Michel SALEH / Ziad CHEHAB RL  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII N/4 3.17.02.8  + 27.39.9 
19   Bechara BECHIR / Serge AKIKI RL  Peugeot 306 S 16 A/7 3.21.02.7  + 31.39.8 
20   Naji STEPHAN / MARIO RL  Peugeot 206 XS A/6 3.23.23.8  + 34.00.9 
21   Bashar ABOU KOURA / Omar AL ATHIM SYR  Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI N/4 3.25.12.1  + 35.49.2 
Nationalities: F=France / GB=Great Britain / IRL=Ireland / QA=Qatar / RL=Lebanon / SA=Saudi Arabia / SYR=Syria / UAE=United Arab Emirates /



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