Citroen Racing (Photo Credit: Citroen Racing Media)
Nasser Al-Attiyah will become Citroën Racing’s third driver after signing a deal to drive a factory-spec DS3 WRC from Rally Sweden onwards.
The Qatari driver will miss Monte Carlo due to commitments in South America, where he hopes to retain his Dakar Rally title from this year, but will return to the snowy roads of Sweden to drive a car with identical spec to that of fellow works drivers Sebastien Loeb and Mikko Hirvonen.
“We're pleased to announce the arrival of Nasser Al-Attiyah at Citroën Racing,” said team principal Olivier Quesnel. “He's a complete all-round driver who already has considerable experience as proved by his impressive results. We're delighted that he's chosen our team to make his debut in a World Rally Car, and we're determined to put all our support behind him to help him move up to the top level.”
As well as becoming a regular on the Dakar Al-Attiyah was PWRC champion back in 2006 and has contested multiple events in a variety of lower spec cars, however this will be his first season at the premier WRC level.
Al-Attiyah celebrates his Dakar Rally in January. Commitments to defend his title mean he will miss the Monte Carlo Rally
“I can't wait to get to know the team better and to test the DS3 WRC,” he said. “It's still a bit early to fix myself objectives as I'm counting on acquiring experience not only with the engineering squad, but also with drivers as talented as Sébastien Loeb and Mikko Hirvonen.”
