Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah laid down the gauntlet with a run of 3min 11.1sec but Abdullah Al-Rawahi dropped 49.7 seconds to the Qatari. The Omani later admitted that his strategy was to start first on the road on Friday.
Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari was 9.6 seconds slower than the defending champion who won the stage. Mohammed Al-Marri and Nasser Khalifa Al-Atya were third and fourth and Hamza Bakhashab and Lorcan Moore were penalised in their Jameel Motorsport Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 and will open the road on Friday.
Al-Rawahi and Al-Kuwari incurred five-second penalties for clipping a stage gate but Bakhashab earned a 45-second penalty for three offences.
Cars will start SS1 in reverse order to their QS finishing position.
Al-Attiyah said: “It was a good run and we are quite happy with the performance of the car. Everything was working very well. For Qatar Rally, it is better to start behind.”
Al-Rawahi said: “First of all, we don’t actually have any parts to push, so we just needed to be clean. We just need to avoid punctures and breaking anything. I think we did the right thing. We had good times in practice. The new stages are similar to the ones we have done before. It’s going to be a tough rally.”
Al-Kuwari said: “Good recce and good stages. I am looking forward to them. The qualifying stage was good. We lost one or two seconds in one corner with a small overshoot but it was a good feeling. I am happy although I think this may be my only rally this year. It’s a bad feeling for me because I only do the Baja Cup. I have to accept this and I will do my best. Abdullah’s (Al-Rawahi) strategy could be right or it could be wrong. That’s his strategy. I think he wanted to open the road. Normally, on this type of stage there is not too much cleaning. It’s fast. With every car passing, there are more rocks on the road. It could be good but there could be some loose places and no traction. He knows his plan and he is fighting for the championship.”
2026 Qatar International Rally – Qualifying Stage result (Rally2 only):
1. Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (QAT)/Candido Carrera (ESP) Škoda Fabia RS Rally 2 3min 11.1sec
2. Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari (QAT)/Nasser Al-Kuwari (QAT) Škoda Fabia RS Rally 2 3min 20.7sec
3. Mohammed Al-Marri (QAT)/Pierre Delorme (FRA) Citroën C3 Rally 2 3min 21.4sec
4. Nasser Khalifa Al-Atya (QAT)/Ziad Chehab (LBN) Ford Fiesta Mk II Rally 2 3min 29.3sec
5. Abdullah Al-Rawahi (OMA)/Ata Al-Hmoud (JOR) Škoda Fabia RS Rally 2 3min 51.0sec
6. Hamza Bakhashab (KSA)/Lorcan Moore (IRL) Toyota GR Yaris Rally 2 4min 00.8sec
