The Peninsula
Qatari driver Nawaf Al Sowaidi won Auto Class 2 in the penultimate round of the 2022 Qatar Off Road Championship yesterday at Sealine region. Al Sowaidi completed 10 laps at the 5.7 kilometre- course in one hour eight minutes and 56.904 seconds to win the event.
Meanwhile, in Class 3, popular Qatari driver Abdulla Al Khelaifi emerged on top of the podium after completing 13 laps in 01:05:22.756.
Qatar’s Ahmed Al Muhannadi was second in 01:11:53.395, while Emirati driver Saif Al Mheiri recorded a time of 53 minutes 12.343 secs after completing 10 laps to complete the podium.
The class 4 event was won by Saudi Arabia’s Motab Saud Al Shammari who completed eight laps in 01:08:55.830.
Earlier, UAE’s Mohamed Al Balooshi extended his lead in the Class 1 Motorcycles category at the 2022 Qatar Off Road Championship (QORC) with an impressive win in the fifth round.
It was the Emirati Rider’s fourth win in a row in the QORC.
Al Balooshi, one of the most renowned names in cross-country and long-desert motorbike rallies in the region, yesterday covered 15 laps around the 5.7km course in one hour, eight minutes, and 13.480 seconds to win full points.
He raised his tally to 118 and registered a massive 57 point-lead over his closest rival Michael Anderson of South Africa. Anderson came second yesterday with a time of 01:08:38.914 as he took his points tally to 61. Kuwaiti rider Abdullah AlShatti was third yesterday after completing 15 laps in 1:09:38.914.
Meanwhile, in Class 2, South African rider and Championship leader Jaco Anderson completed 12 laps in 01:09:01.251 at the same circuit. The win saw the defending champion’s points tally rise to 87 while title-contender Badr AlBadr of Saudi Arabia also pushed hard, taking the second spot in 1:12:18.011. AlBadr is 15 points behind Jaco in the Championship standings.
Qatar’s Abdulrahman Al Sheeb was third in Round 5 after completing nine laps in 01:09:15.185.
Emirati riders Abdullah Al Falasi and Abdulaziz Ahli finished first and second respectively in Class 3 yesterday. Al Falasi spent a time of 01:10:15.113 to complete 14 laps. Belgian Emiel Stuckens, the current leader in the Class 3 standings, came third yesterday.