Alkass Digital
Qatar’s Bader Al Sulaiti overcame an impressive 20-strong field to win the opening round of the inaugural Qatar Karting Championship, organised by the Qatar Motor & Motocycle Federation (QMMF).
At the new Karting track of the Lusail Circuit Sports Club on Tuesday night, the 14-year-old Al Sulaiti completed the 15-lap race with a time of 16:19.192 secs.
His closest rival, Khalid Al Muftah finished 2.317 secs adrift of the winner, while clocking the fastest lap-time of 1:03.846 secs at the 1.072-kilometre track.
Al Sulaiti, who recently took part in the Rotax Max Challenge UAE Rounds, clocked his fastest lap at 1:04.369.
Faesal Al Yafei completed the podium after finishing 6.265 secs behind Al Sulaiti. Tameem Hassiba stopped the clock at +6.308 secs while Omar Aswat completed 15 laps at +6.627 secs to finish in the fourth and fifth positions respectively in the final.
Al Sulaiti, who joined the Qatar Motorsports Academy only six months ago, was delighted with his victory. “I have learned a lot since joining the Qatar Motorsports Academy. It has helped me a lot to develop my level and build on my capabilities. This is a good start to my journey. My ambition is to race Formula 1 one day,” the talented racer said.
Earlier, in the Final (Group 1), Filipa Dores came on top after completing 15 laps in 16:35.428. Dores also clocked the second fastest lap-time in his group, 1:05.544. Jean-Paul Gillesse finished second – finishing 10.008 secs behind Dores, while Abdulrahman Al Sulaiteen came third at +10.280 secs.
More than 40 competitors – mainly from the Qatar Motorsports Academy –took part in the inaugural round of the Qatar Karting Championship over two days. Four more rounds will be held this season.
Meanwhile, Amro Al Hamad, Executive Director of the QMMF expressed his happiness over the success of the event, pointing out that the great turnout, especially from Qatari competitors, exceeded expectations.
“The competition was very strong and competitive among all the contestants, which was evident from the recorded times set. The difference between the times in the first ten places did not exceed the barrier of ten seconds,” Al Hamad said.
“We have seen some young Qatari talent in the championship. They took the top three positions. Holding this kind of championship will help them develop their levels, and in turn get better results in races abroad,” he added.
The second round of the Qatar Karting Championship will be held on April 4 and 5, while the third round will take place on April 11 and 12. The fourth round is scheduled for April 25 and 26, with the fifth and final round to be held on May 2 and 3.