QRC Director H E Sheikh Jabor bin Khalid Al Thani and Director of the Basel Salem Al Sabah Motor Sports Club Saif Awad Al Mutairi crowned the podium winners.
Doha: The third round of Qatar Racing Club’s (QRC) Qatar Drift Championship featuring Gulf champions concluded after two days of exciting events.
The competition is being sponsored by QRC President H E Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Thani. QRC’s Director H E Sheikh Jabor bin Khalid Al Thani attended the proceedings, and adding to the occasion, Kuwait’s Basel Salem Al Sabah Motor Sports Club marked its official presence, elevating the championship’s stature.
The third round of Qatar Drift Championship witnessed thrilling action.
The qualifying sessions saw a record-breaking participation of 27 drivers, each given two attempts on the track, with the best result for each driver being considered.
The session ended with last round’s champion, Salem Al Sarraf, topping the leaderboard with a slight lead over competitor Misyer Abu Sheba.
Last round’s runner-up, Ihab Falah, finished in third, while last year’s champion in the local category, Ali Jabsha, placed fourth and first in the local category ahead of his brother Yazan, Yasser Mustafa, and Abdullah Al Muhtaseb.
According to the results of the qualifying sessions, the drivers were placed into the bracket for the tandem battles.
The first round of these battles saw 7 matchups instead of 8, due to the absence of competitor Saud Al Attiyah, allowing Al Sarraf to advance directly to the second round.
Additionally, Mohamed Khourshid made it past the first round at the expense of competitor Abdullah Al Muhtaseb, and Yazan Jabsha overcame Mohammed Al Jaber.
On the other side of the bracket, Misyer Abu Sheba won his battle against Hamza Al Na’amneh, moving on to the second round, alongside Yasser Mustafa, who triumphed over Mazen Nasser in the same round.
Ihab Falah and Louay Abu Ayash also secured their spots in the second round after defeating Ahmed Abu Arshid and Khaled Al Shafi.
While the local category participants’ journey ended in the second round, Yazan Jabsha was crowned the local category champion for the third consecutive round.
Yasser Mustafa repeated his performance from the previous round, finishing in second place, while last season’s champion, Ali Jabsha, took third place.
The second round witnessed a major matchup, described as an early final, between the winner of the previous round, Salem Al Sarraf and the third-place finisher in that round, Mohamed Khourshid.
Al Sarraf won the battle and continued on his path to the semi-finals. Following in his footsteps, Fahd Al Jad’i triumphed over local category leader Yazan Jabsha.
Also, Misyer Abu Sheba and Ihab Falah made it to the first semi-final after defeating Yasser Mustafa, and the second semi-final after a battle against Louay Abu Ayash.
In semi-finals, Al Sarraf defeated Fahd Al Jad’i, who could not complete the battle due to a car issue.
The match between Ihab Falah and Misyer Abu Sheba ended with Falah winning after a collision between the two which affected Abu Sheba’s car and prevented him from continuing the third-place battle.
This allowed Fahd Al Jad’i to claim third place for this round.
The final match Salem Al Sarraf beating Ihab Falah marking his second win of the season.
Falah secured his second podium finish in the championship.
H E Sheikh Jabor and Director of the Basel Salem Al Sabah Motor Sports Club Saif Awad Al Mutairi crowned the podium winners.
This fourth round is scheduled for December 19-20.
