Saudi Arabia makes history in the World Rally Championship by hosting the final round
The excitement continues for the final round of the 2025 World Rally Championship (WRC), as Saudi Arabia hosts this prestigious global event for the first time in its history under the name “Saudi Rally 2025, supported by Jameel Motorsport.” This historic event, which runs until November 29, is a strategic step within the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, which aims to establish Saudi Arabia as a leading global destination for major sporting events, building on its success in organizing other world-class events such as the Dakar Rally and Formula 1.
The inclusion of Saudi Arabia in the World Rally Championship calendar, especially as a crucial final round, not only represents a qualitative addition to the championship thanks to its unique and challenging desert and gravel terrain, but also reflects international confidence in the Kingdom’s ability to organize and manage sporting events according to the highest global standards, under the supervision of the Ministry of Sports and the organization of the Saudi Arabian Federation for Automobiles and Motorcycles.
Day 2 details: Formau snatches the lead in the final meters
Thursday, November 27, 2025, witnessed fierce competition on the challenging rally tracks. The morning session began with the complete dominance of Latvian driver Martin Sisek of the Ford team, who demonstrated exceptional speed and won the first three special stages: “Al Faisaliyah 1”, “Al Qamar 1”, and “Khulais 1”.
But the evening session turned the tables. While Cesc maintained his momentum by winning the fifth stage, “Al Faisaliah 2,” other drivers emerged to enter the competition. Finnish driver Sami Bajari of the Toyota team managed to set the fastest time in the sixth stage, “Al Qamar 2.” However, the final word belonged to Frenchman Adrien Formeau of the Hyundai team, who delivered a stunning performance by winning the seventh stage, “Khulais 2,” and then confirmed his dominance in the eighth and final stage of the day, the “Special Stage – Jameel Motorsport,” to snatch the overall lead at the end of the day.
Overall ranking after day two
After the second day of competition, Frenchman Adrien Formeau leads the overall standings with a total time of 1:18:45.3. Finland's Sami Pajari trails him by a mere six seconds (1:18:51.3), promising fierce competition in the remaining days. Latvia's Martin Sisek, who dominated the morning session, has slipped to third place with a time of 1:18:52.2.
Results from other categories and promising Saudi participation
In the WRC2 category, British driver Gus Greensmith (Škoda) proved his strength by topping the class, ahead of Poland's Kajtan Kajtanowicz and Finland's Robbie Korhonen. This category also saw a notable Saudi participation from driver Hamza Bakhashab, a graduate of the "Next Generation Saudi" program, who finished the day in ninth place, delivering a strong performance in his first international competition on home soil.
In the WRC3 category, Italian Matteo Fontana took the lead, while veteran Saudi driver Saeed Al-Mouri came in second, confirming the strong Saudi presence at this global event.
What does the third day hold?
All eyes are now on Friday's competition, which will be crucial in determining the championship's outcome. The competitors will tackle six new and challenging special stages, starting with "Al-Ghoula 1," followed by "Umm Al-Jurm 1" and "Wadi Al-Matwi 1," before being repeated in the afternoon. With times so close at the front, the third day is expected to be full of excitement and challenges that will test the drivers' skills and their cars' endurance to the limit.
