Dubai: How the desert inspired this Emirati to become a world champion
Thoroughly engaging readers, Mr. Mohammed AL Balooshi claims that 30 years ago, his house located in Al Rashidiya, Dubai looks out upon beautiful dunes.
As he responded to the latter question which, as such, can only be asked to a race car driver who has official documents recognizing his participation in car rallies organized in the desert — Al Balooshi vehemently replied, “It was, I believe, early in the 80’s. My dad brought me and my siblings here because it was the tranquil and unspoiled nature that drew us in.” Quite understandably, given his passion for desert, Young Al Balooshi kept himself busy exploring the endless sandy landscapes.
Due to his motorsport lineage his uncle Hassan Bin Ali Al-Shadoor has previously been the co-pilot for UAE rally legend Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who is the current president of the FIA. In addition, his desert fascination drove him to different parts of the world to achieve world championship titles. Today, he has again set his sights on the trophy as he enters Dubai International Baja this weekend.
‘The most prestigious world title in Baja for me has been achieved already. Today, I am on my third title and reaching that point is all down to my beginning.” Al Balooshi has improved the probability of attaining a third title, saying that though the Dubai Baja is one of the most revered and iconic Baja titles.
“If you ask me why I have a successful career as a rally rider in a desert, well because I know the desert very quite well,” he answered with a radiant grin.
“As kids, we would do everything on the dunes. So, to me when I got the bike, I didn’t find it hard to ride on sand.
“Now we have a lot of Europeans and Americans who come here, they have so many questions concerning the desert, why it is that we always seem to know which direction to take because they find it hard to make the right choices. “But it is not easy for them to understand this because we have been raised in these deserts, so we know what is to be done. It is easy for us to be in the desert and feel at home.”
Dubai may be known as the fastest growing region due to the rapid development in the past few decades but still for Al Balooshi, it is the untouched sand that is refreshing to look at. The sand which he has always been and will always be fond of.
“For me I remember myself as a desert guy, I have never known anything other than the desert,” he said.
“Seeing all the marvelous constructions and the roads that the government has been nice enough to provide us with, and all the luxuries that come with it is indeed a delight. However, they have also preserved the wilderness for us to enjoy, gallop around and embrace our history whilst remembering the future.”
Legendary mentor
What Al Balooshi will also never forget is the importance of a Belgian rally legend in his life.
“I was lucky in 2003, he was already so old but Georges Jobe took me under his wings. He was a five-time FIM motocross world champion,” he said.
“He had been my mentor from 2003 until his death in 2012. In those years, I was living in Belgium, racing in France, Germany and Luxembourg. He did a lot for me, I learned a lot from him, he shaped me as a sportsman, and he created who I am today.”
Al Balooshi revealed that he owes everything to Jobe who passed away in 2012 and without his guidance he wouldn’t be what he is – the first Emirati to ever qualify for the most famous rally in the world – Dakar Rally in 2012.
“He had all these plans and he was the one who pulled all the strings for me to be in the factory to do the Dakar in 2012. So, I cannot thank him enough” he said.
The Pinnacle
Even now, the memories from his first of the six Dakar Rally races stir emotions within his body.
“The Dakar rally is like the world series of our game. It was a great blessing to qualify in 2012 and go out with so many responsibilities being the first GCC rider to ever race in the Dakar,” he explained.
“I felt great pressure as all the Arab world was looking up to me. It truly deserves its name in South America. I remember we commenced the race in Argentina and there were s-o-o-o many people coming to the launch consortium. It was unbelievable, there was not a single spot on the highway that wasn’t occupied by fans of ours.
“Nothing like that I'd ever seen in my life never seen. It is so hard to convey that sort of experience in words; it’s something akin to a whole line of people, who are there to scream at you to go and for all I care to believe in me.
“I know it was from Argentina to Chile then to Peru. I just remember it vividly as it brings back a number of very happy moments when I smile.
The home ground
Equally close to Al Balooshi’s heart is the Dubai International Baja, the 45 years old most sought after rally event in the Middle East region.
“This event is amazing because if you look around the world, it’s not easy to sustain an event for this long. For example, I have raced the Pharaohs Rally in Egypt. I even came second there, but it’s not there anymore. It was one of the top three rallying events,” said the veteran rider.
“Many like this exist, but this Dubai Rally has been in its fortieth year, this shows it has the right people behind it, the right strategy.
“And for us it’s important to take advantage of this since it is quite literally our ground, it’s quite reassuring. However, we no longer have to focus on other regions as I represent the UAE now thanks to the world championship being held in our country which I thank the organisers for.”
“I have twice triumphed in the Dubai Baja and I hope that this year I can win the third one and become the Baja world champion for the third time. It would be very emotional for me”.
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