ZAIN REEM INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, SAUDI ARABIA
SAUDI RACING FESTIVAL 2, February 11 – 2010
FAHER AL-SHARIF AND SAEED AL-MOURI STAR IN SECOND SAUDI RACING
FESTIVAL AT THE ZAIN REEM INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT
Young Mesaed Al-Khouyter takes maximum Saudi Oger Cup points
Saudi drivers Faher Al-Sharif and Saeed Al-Mouri star in race qualifying
RIYADH (Saudi Arabia), Thursday, February 11: Saudi Arabia’s Faher Al-Sharif and Saeed Al-Mouri were the stars of the second Saudi Racing Festival at the Zain Reem international race circuit on Thursday afternoon.
Al-Sharif won the Zain Lotus Cup Middle East race for the Big Wheels team and Saeed Al-Mouri emerged victorious in the Saudi Radical Championship race. There was also success for young Mesaed Al-Khouyter, who held off a fierce challenge from Prince Mohamed Bin Faisal bin Abdullah bin Mohamed of the Bison Reem Team to take maximum points in the Saudi Oger Cup for young drivers. Guest of honour at the race meeting was His Excellency Saud bin Saeed Al-Mothami, member of the cabinet and government minister.
Faher Al-Sharif of the Big Wheels Team was the winner of the first round at Reem last month and set the fastest time in qualifying for the Zain Lotus Cup Middle East race with a hot lap of 1m 28.184s. The Saudi was almost a full second in front of Lebanon’s Doumit Bou Doumit with 16-year-old Prince Mohamed Bin Faisal bin Abdullah bin Mohamed qualifying in third position with a best tour of 1m 29.381s.
The 12-lap race developed into a thrilling duel between Al-Sharif and Doumit. The Lebanese held the advantage until lap three, before his Saudi rival slipped into a slender lead and held it to the finish to confirm his second successive victory at the Zain Reem circuit. Abdullwahed Bin Yehia of the Big Wheels Team secured third position and there was a big battle for fourth position between Mesaed Al-Khouyter of the Saudi Oger team and Prince Mohamed Bin Faisal, with Al-Khouter snatching fourth position from his young Saudi Oger Cup rival.
The Hala Team’s Hussam Al-Saleh finished sixth, Abdullah Al-Quain of the RST Team was seventh and a late spin failed to prevent Theab Al-Qatani from pipping Ahmed Al-Koyater to eighth place. The race also proved the competitiveness of the latest crop of young Saudi racing drivers to come through the ranks, with Al-Khouyter showing his potential to take maximum points from Prince Mohamed Bin Faisal and Theab Al-Qatani in the Saudi Oger Cup for young drivers.
Saeed Al-Mouri continued his impressive early season form in qualifying for the second Saudi Radical Cup race. The 1.5-litre championship front-runner posted the quickest lap of 1m 15.087s in qualifying to take Pole Position for the 12-lap race. Medhat Sakhelared of the Bison Reem Team was second and Raed Abuznada and Faisal Bin Laden made it a 2-3-4 for the Bison Reem Team. Fastest of the 1.3-litre runners in qualifying was Faisal Shaker of the RST Team with a lap of 1m 17.183s.
Al-Mouri led from start to finish to take his second successive victory in the 12-lap race, which was restarted after a collision between Raed Abuznada and Prince Saud Bin Turki at the rolling start. Prince Saud was unable to continue and the incident was later investigated by the race director and stewards.
Al-Mouri stayed out of trouble from the restart to claim an emphatic victory, but Medhat Sakhelared of the Bison Reem Team was unable to maintain his early second position and slipped to an eventual fourth overall behind Faisal Bin Laden and a resurgent Abuznada, as the Bison Reem Team claimed second, third and fourth places.
Fifth overall fell to the 1.3-litre category winner, Bander Ali Reza, and Talal Bin Laden claimed sixth overall and second in the smaller-engined section. Nedal Al-Sadi, the RST Team’s Faisal Shaker, Khalil Minawi and Osama Shaker of the RST Team completed the top 10.
“The growing interest in racing at the Zain Reem circuit highlights the fact that motor racing is a growing sport in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” enthused HRH Prince Sultan bin Bandar Al-Faisal, CEO of the Zain Reem international circuit.
“Several young drivers are coming through the ranks and more and more people are taking an interest in racing. The Saudi Oger Cup has been devised to encourage and support young drivers and the great duel between Mesaed Al-Khouyter and Prince Mohamed Bin Faisal in the first race today bodes well for the future of motor racing in the Kingdom.”
The second Saudi Speed Festival received valuable sponsorship from Zain, Toyota, Castrol, Bison energy drink, the Saudi Bin Laden Group of Companies, Al-Ghassan Motors and Saudi Radical.
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For further media information:
Zain Reem International Circuit, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Bilal Kurjieh, E-mail: bilal@race.com.sa and Abdullah Al-Azem, E-mail: abdullah.alazem@race.com.sa
Saudi Arabian Motor Federation, PO Box 87881, Riyadh 11652, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Tel: + 9661 477 1035, Fax: + 9661 477 1050, www.samf.gov.sa
Arabic: Firas Nimri, Mobile: + 9662 777 282000, E-mail: nimrifiras@yahoo.com.
English: Neil Perkins, NDP Publicity Services, Mobiles: + 44 7831 123153 or + 971 50 3616881, E-mail: ndppublicity@googlemail.com.