Al Qassimi to return on Saturday

The BP-Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team has confirmed that Khalid Al Qassimi will start day two of the Rally d’Italia Sardegna as a Superally entrant.

Al Qassimi and co-driver Michael Orr were 14th in one of the BP-Ford team’s three Focus RS cars until they hit a rock on the afternoon's opening stage (SS4) and retired from the leg.

"I tried to lift the pace - my confidence was high, I had good grip and things were going well," said Al Qassimi. "I entered a blind corner around 10km from the start that was hidden by a bush and saw this huge bedded rock - with an edge sticking out into the road - too late and hit it at speed. I damaged the front left of the car, including mechanical components like the driveshaft and steering arm. It was a bad corner and there was no way we could continue. I’m disappointed because I was gaining pace and time but this is part of the sport,"