Aliyyah Koloc takes podium in Ultimate class at Dubai International Baja as Buggyra ZM Racing closes five-week campaign
Nov 9, 2026
Buggyra ZM Racing ended its five-week rally marathon with a podium at its home event. Aliyyah Koloc finished third in the Ultimate T1+ category of the Dubai International Baja, after leading the final stage ahead of Nasser Al-Attiyah until brake problems slowed her.
Monaco, November 9, 2026 /MarketersMEDIA/ -- Team principal Martin Koloc was forced to withdraw after a prologue accident that damaged the roll cage of his car beyond repair.
Prologue: strong start, early blow
Dubai is a home race for Buggyra. Aliyyah was born in the city, and the team has a technology and testing facility there. Both Aliyyah and Martin Koloc entered the Ultimate T1+ category. Aliyyah raced in the turbocharged Red-Lined Revo GTR with Polish navigator Marcin Pasek, and Martin in the non-turbo Red-Lined Revo T1+ with Portuguese co-driver Hugo Magalhães.
The short 4.80-kilometer prologue brought mixed fortunes. Aliyyah finished second in her category and in the overall ranking. Martin, however, hit a tree close to the finish on Magalhães’ side of the car, damaging the roll cage. For safety reasons, the car could not continue. Magalhães was unhurt.
“I completely messed up the setup. I changed the concept, and it didn’t match the character of the prologue,” Martin said. “Close to the finish, I was a bit too long on the brakes and hit the tree. It was completely my mistake.”
Stage 1: tough going in the dunes
Stage 1 on November 7 covered 177.24 kilometers in the Al-Qudra desert, known for its rolling sand dunes. It proved a serious test, slow and complicated, with no competitor reaching the average speed of 70 km/h.
Only four Ultimate crews completed it, including Aliyyah, who finished fourth in the Ultimate category after losing some time when she got stuck on top of a dune. “She did really well apart from that little mistake,” Martin said after stage 1. “She has good pace, and if we do another good job tomorrow, we can be on the podium.”
Stage 2: leading Al-Attiyah, then a podium finish
Stage 2 on November 8 comprised 179.56 competitive kilometers. Aliyyah started strongly and led the stage in its first part. “It was the first time ever for me to lead a stage in front of Nasser (Al-Attiyah), which was incredible,” she said at the finish line.
Around 60 kilometers into the stage, the brakes failed. Aliyyah and Marcin covered about 110 kilometers using only the handbrake on big dunes and jumps. They still took third in the stage in their category, which secured third place overall in the Ultimate class.
“It was a proper roller coaster, both in the desert and in the results,” Marcin said. “If you miss one braking point there, you can destroy the car.”
Martin praised his daughter’s performance. “She delivered the best performance of her career so far. In the first half of the stage, she was faster than Nasser (Al-Attiyah) and led the stage.”
Of the 701.10-kilometer route, 361.60 kilometers were timed. “The last two days were really tough, and overall, it could have been better, but we finished on the podium and the car’s in one piece. And now, I am looking forward to a small break to hopefully complete this year’s racing on a high,” Aliyyah added.
Next: Three off-road rallies in December
After three rallies in China and two off-road rallies in Qatar and Dubai since the start of October, Buggyra ZM Racing now has a short break before another three-rally campaign in the Gulf region in December. On December 5, the team will participate in round 5 of the UAE Rally Championship, followed by the Abu Dhabi Baja Challenge from December 12 to 13. The Oman International Baja, a round of the FIA World and Middle East Baja Cups, will close the three-event campaign from December 17 to 19, 2026.
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