Al-Rajhi edges ahead of Morales after prologue stage of Rally Qassim Toyota 2023

BURAYDAH, Saudi Arabia: Yazeed Al-Rajhi, Mohammed Al-Balooshi and Haitham Al-Tuwaijri claimed early bragging rights with the fastest times in the car, motorcycle and quad categories on the opening 3.51 km Prologue stage of Rally Qassim Toyota 2023 on Thursday afternoon.

Thirty-one cars, one truck, 12 motorcycles and six quads had earlier been flagged away from the ceremonial start at the Al-Qassim National Park-Osseilan in Buraydah by SAMF President Prince Khalid bin Sultan Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal and Prince Dr. Faisal bin Misha’al bin Saud bin Abdulaziz, governor of Al-Qassim province.

The third round of the Saudi Toyota Championship is organized by the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation in conjunction with the Ministry of Sport, and in alliance with Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota as the official partner and strategic sponsor Saudi Investment Bank.

Partnered by Timo Gottschalk and driving a Toyota Hilux prepared by Overdrive Racing, Al-Rajhi began the defense of his Saudi Toyota Championship title with victory on the prologue stage in a time of 1 min 53 sec. That put the Riyadh driver seven seconds ahead of Toyota Gazoo Racing’s new official driver Lucas Moraes and the Argentine’s Spanish co-driver Armand Monleon and Yazeed Racing’s Saleh Alabdulali and his co-driver Mohammed Al-Naim in a third Toyota.

Moraes said: “This is the last rally for me before Dakar. I’m looking forward to it. Full attack from the start.”

Dark Horse Team Can-Am Maverick X3 driver Saleh Al-Saif was the quickest of the T3 entrants in the class for lightweight prototype machines and held fourth overall. He beat Yasir Seaidan by one second, while 11th-placed Ahmed Al-Shegawi was quickest of the five runners in the T4 category in his