Tuesday 30 / June / 2026
Muscat: The Omani international racing driver Hamed Al Wahaibi continues to write a new chapter in his distinguished motorsport career, having ascended to the summit of the overall standings in the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas following a valuable haul of 44 points at Baja Italy, the fourth round of the current World Cup season.
This achievement comes as Al Wahaibi maintains his lead in the Challenger class with 205 points, despite competing in a vehicle from this category—which is less powerful compared to the higher-performance T1+ class cars that typically contend for top positions in the overall classification. Al Wahaibi commenced his Baja Italy campaign on a positive note, finishing the prologue stage in fifth place overall before tackling the first special stage, "Madrisio," which spanned 156.29 kilometres.
During the opening day, Al Wahaibi and his co-driver encountered a technical issue with the navigation system, resulting in the loss of several minutes during the first half of the stage. Nevertheless, the Omani driver succeeded in regaining his rhythm and concluded the day in second place within the Challenger class, securing crucial points that further solidified his lead in the championship standings.
On the second day, his vehicle was involved in an incident when the right-front tyre struck a tree root adjacent to the track, causing damage to the front suspension system and forcing his retirement before reaching the finish line.
Despite this setback, Al Wahaibi emerged with substantial gains, capitalizing on the championship's points system—which awards competitors points for each stage result in addition to the final classification—amassing 44 points that propelled him to the top of the overall World Cup standings, while maintaining his position at the head of the Challenger class.
Al Wahaibi expressed satisfaction with his performance throughout the Italian round, noting that the car delivered an exceptional level of reliability over the course of the race, and that the incident resulted from failing to notice the tree root situated close to the racing line.
