Al Mutaiwe'e begins training for season

The 2004 FIA World Cup champion Khalifa Al Mutaiwe'e carried out a two-day test session with his new Mini All4 Racing team in the UAE desert at the end of last week, only days after announcing his shock return to international cross-country rallying after an eight-year absence. Al Mutaiwe'e is teaming up with the German X-raid team this season to campaign the Mini All4 Racing alongside co-driver Andreas Schulz. The car is running under the Fazza Rally Team banner, thanks to the support of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai. Al Mutaiwe'e was joined at the test by X-raid team director Sven Quandt and Spanish team driver Joan ‘Nani' Roma — the runner-up in this year's Dakar Rally. The first two days of the test were carried out in Marmum, notorious for its sandy terrain and dunes. The Dubai driver will compete with the X-raid team for the first time in Baja, Italy, later this month. After that, he is hoping to drive the car set aside for himself for the first time in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge — round two of the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies — at the end of March. This is the second time that I have tested the Mini," said Al Mutaiwe'e. "The first time was in Spain. On this second test I was a bit more familiar with it, although the terrain was much more difficult."