The Peninsula
Qatari driver Abdulla Al Khelaifi and Emirati rider Mohamed Al Balooshi clinched the 2022 Qatar Off-road Championship (QORC) titles at the end of the sixth and final round of the popular series at the Sealine region, yesterday.
Al Khelaifi, with a total of 116 points, won the title in his Yamaha YXZ 1000R following a victory in Class 3 Auto category yesterday. He completed nine laps in 53:55.560 to grab full points in his class ahead of the podium winners in the sixth round, Alexander Whyatt and Ahmed Al Kuwari, who were placed second and third respectively.
Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation President Abdul Rahman bin Abdul Latif Al Mannai with champion driver Abdulla Al Khelaifi and officials during the presentation ceremony.
Qatar’s Ahmed Al Muhannadi (91) and Nawaf Al Sowaidi (64) completed the top three in the Championship standings.
Mubarak Al Khelaifi (46), Manuel Lucchese (43), and Abdulaziz Aljabri (39) were the top three co-drivers in the overall standings.
Meanwhile, Al Balooshi clinched his fifth win in a row to finish on top of the overall standings in the Motorcycles category.
Al Balooshi had already clinched the title at the end of the penultimate round, and yesterday’s win extended his points tally to 143.
Qatar's Abdulla Al Khelaifi drives his Yamaha YXZ 1000R.
The UAE rider completed 16 laps at the 6.1-kilometer course in 01:23:27.689 to seal the victory in the sixth round.
South Africa’s Michael Anderson came second yesterday while Marwan Al Rahmani finished third. Anderson was second (79 points) in the Championship standings while Al Balooshi’s compatriot Mohamed Abdulla Meerza (55) signed off in the third position.
South Africa’s Jaco Anderson clinched the Class 2 Moto title with 105 points despite losing to Hungary’s Gergely Kis in the final round. Kis won yesterday’s round after completing 14 laps in 01:28:02.418.
Saudi rider Badr Albader was third in the overall standings.
UAE’s Abdulaziz Ahli won the Class 3 race, but Belgian Emiel Stuckens (69) sealed the overall title despite not being able to finish yesterday. His compatriot Dom Arnoud and UAE’s Abdullah Al Falasi were second and third in the Championship standings respectively.
The popular off-road series, which attracted a number of international drivers and riders in addition to Qatar’s top names, was organised by the Qatar Motor & Motorcycle Federation.