Haythem Khalid Soomar Al Zadjali follows father's trail towards rally success 01.04.2013: Student makes the most of learning experience in Oman Youth Rally Cup as he chases dream of professional driving career

Student makes the most of learning experience in Oman Youth Rally Cup as he chases dream of professional driving career


photo caption: Haythem Khalid Soomar Al Zadjali makes most of learning experience in Oman Youth Rally Cup as he chases dream of professional driving career.



The next leg of the Oman Youth Rally Cup cannot come quickly enough for Haythem Khalid Soomar Al Zadjali, who wants to follow his father’s trail to national championship success en route to a career as a professional rally driver.


The 24-year-old student, chosen to alternate behind the wheel for one of the four OYRC teams, makes his debut in Round 2 on 11-12 April after sitting out the opening event earlier this month.


“I’m very excited and eagerly waiting for my chance,” said Al Zadjali, who is partnered by co-driver Ammar Hussain Al Bulushi. “This is the only thing on my mind now. I enjoyed watching the first round, it was a learning experience for me, but now I’m raring to go.”


Al Zadjali has inherited his passion for rallying from his father, Khalid, who was Oman champion in 2008, 2009, and 2011 and is the uncle of another of the OYRC driver, Ehab Ahmed Al Zadjali.


The connections don’t end there. Khalid’s co driver during his three triumphant Oman championship campaigns was Zakariya Ahmed Al Aufi, who leads the early OYRC standings after making a successful switch from navigator to the driver’s seat in Round 1.


Haythem was quick to respond when the OYRC programme was announced two months ago, and thrilled to come through the intense selection process, seeing a clear chance to continue his development as a competitive driver.


He underlined his driving skills on the local karting scene in Muscat in 2004-05, finishing third overall in the season long open class at Oman Automobile Club and also claiming runner’s up spot in the Muscat Festival event.


“I want to be a professional rally driver and compete in the Middle East Championship,” he says. “The Oman Youth Rally Cup will help because it’s teaching me a lot about how to control the car, and giving me good experience.”


“The opportunity to drive an actual rally car attracted me to the programme. This is my dream, and I’m very happy to be a part of this project.


“It was very tough to get through the selection process as they were many people trying and all of them were very good. All the tests were tough. Now I have my chance in Round 2 and I want to start with a win.”


Over the last two weeks, the OYRC teams have come through intensive programmes including drift training and baseline fitness assessment comprising sprints, static jumps and 2km endurance run as they continue preparations for the upcoming Round 2 next month.


Haythem will take over from Yaqdhan Mubarak Al Rashdi, lying third after Round 1, in one of the four locally built Toyota Yaris rally cars specially designed for the OYRC.


He already knows the importance of quickly striking up a good understanding with co-driver Ammar Hussain Al Bulushi, a 22 year old accounting student at Sultan Qaboos University.


“You can run into trouble if you and your co-driver don’t communicate properly,” he said. “It’s vitally important to listen to him to avoid problems.”


The Oman Youth Rally Cup is officially supported by Oman Air Cargo, Oman Sail, DR Karts and Sparco and runs within the Oman Rally Championship which consists of five rounds and reaches a climax in December.


The winners of the inaugural Oman Youth Rally Cup will be decided by a scoring system combining rally results, fitness assessment, training completion, and performance in a year-long series of road safety linked community events.


- Tony Lewis, Total Communications Dubai - also photo