Amman – The stewards of the 48th International Rally Lebanon decided to disqualify the car of driver Shaker Juwaihan and his co-driver Mustafa Jumaa, an Evo 10 model, from the 48th Rally Lebanon, with the final standings amended accordingly, after it was established that the car did not comply with the approved technical specifications.
اضافة اعلان
Following the disqualification decision, driver Sami Fleifel and his Lebanese co-driver Elie Mehanna, driving an "Evo 10" car, moved up to first place in the "NR4" class in the rally.
Fleifel finished fifth in the "RC2" class, and 13th in the rally's overall standings, earning 30 points in the Middle East Rally Championship as a result.
Juwaihan had previously held first place in the "NR4" class, while placing fifth in the "RC2" class and 10th in the overall standings, before the decision was issued to disqualify him and his co-driver Mustafa Jumaa from the rally, driving an Evo 10 car. The stewards' panel held a meeting, comprising: Omar Zarour, chairman of the FIA stewards panel; Jordi Barreras, an FIA international steward; and Essam Al-Hatti, a steward from the National Motor Sports Federation.
The rally stewards received a report from the National Motor Sports Federation's technical delegate, document No. 6.6, regarding the rally car's compliance, and driver Shaker Juwaihan and co-driver Mustafa Jumaa were summoned and heard, under summons No. 4.8.
Measurement of the piston stroke in car No. 3 showed that it was outside the permitted tolerance range, and therefore the car did not comply with the applicable technical regulations.
The stewards determined that the violation constituted a breach of Article 32.2.1 of the FIA's Regional Rally Sporting Regulations for 2026.
According to the reasons given in the decision, Article 32.2.1 stipulates that the competitor bears responsibility for ensuring their car complies with technical standards throughout the duration of the rally, and must be able to produce any relevant official documentation.
The stewards' decision explained that the car's official homologation document stipulates that the piston stroke must be 86.0 mm, with a tolerance of +0/-0.1 mm, meaning the permitted range is only between 85.9 and 86.0 mm.
However, the measurement taken during the technical inspection came to 92.96 mm, exceeding the maximum permitted limit of 86.0 mm.
The stewards found that this result constituted a clear case of non-compliance with the homologation document and approved technical specifications, affirming that the responsibility for ensuring the car's engine complies with standards throughout the rally rests with the competitor, in accordance with the cited article.
The stewards concluded that, given the clear provisions of the relevant regulations, the responsibility for ensuring the engine stroke complies with standards during Rally Lebanon 2026 rests with the competitor, and that in such a case there is no penalty other than disqualifying car No. 3 from the rally.
The decision was based on Articles 12.9.1, 12.19, and 12.4.1.m of the FIA's International Sporting Code for 2026.
The stewards also reminded the competitors of their right to appeal the stewards' decisions, in accordance with Article 15 of the FIA's International Sporting Code and Chapter Five of the FIA's Judicial and Disciplinary Rules, within the specified deadlines.
Resource: Al-Ghad. Reporting: Ayman Wajih Al-Khatib
