Saturday 20 / April / 2024
Muscat: Rising Omani talent Shihab Al Habsi emerged the champion in the Mini Max category while young Sanad Al Rawahi took the top honours in the DD2 Class at the 2016 Dubai O-Plate championship at the Dubai Kartdrome during the last weekend.
Shihab Al Habsi, who is being groomed by Omani motorsport legend Hamed Al Wahaibi, raced like a champion to win a thrilling race and triumph in the Mini Max division which saw 12 drivers vying for the top honours.
In the four heats, it looked like Al Wahaibi Motorsport (WMS) racer was learning the ropes as he found it difficult to stay ahead of his competitors.
However, in the pre-final and the final it was a different story as the young Omani showed his true mettle to emerge the winner.
The final was a thrilling affair in which Shihab managed to pip Hamda Al Qubaisi by a quarter of a second for a richly deserved title. While Hamda had to settle for second place, Liam Crystal took third place.
High hopes
Speaking about Shihab’s success, his father Ahmed said: “It’s definitely a great performance by Shihab, especially when you consider how he started in the heats.”
“It’s a new championship for him and it’s a different category too. The rules are new to him. So he didn’t excel in the heats. But in the pre-final and final he did great. In both races, he started in the third place and finally finished on top,” a delighted Ahmed added.
Describing the competition as a really tough one, Ahmed said: “There were competitors from the UK, the USA as well as South Africa. I am glad he came through and won the top honours.”
While thanking WMS and Hamed Al Wahaibi for all the support, Ahmed said: “Hamed (Al Wahaibi) has high hopes on Shihab. He thinks very highly about him and his talent. He has big plans for him.”
“The boy is very talented and he is very passionate too. But to achieve the goals, we need more backing and more sponsors,” he added.
Abdul Wahab third
In the Bambino Class, Abdul Wahab Al Habsi clinched the third place. Rashid Al Dhaheri won the top honours with Harry Hannam taking the second.
In Micro Max Class, Mohammed Al Habsi gave his best but had to settle for sixth place. The event was won Nadim Khneisser ahead of Marcus Amand and Maxwell Dodds. Diaraf Keinde and Finn Farrell-Morton finished in fourth and fifth respectively.
Sanad’s super show
Meanwhile, Sanad Al Rawahi came up with a superb show in the DD2 Class to clinch the top honours. Kevin Day finished in second place and Anthony Hogg settled for the third place.
Sanad’s brother Abdullah Al Rawahi, taking part in the premier Max Class, gave his best while battling for top places with Fraser Rose and Pasqual Pook. However, after a thrilling contest, the Omani racer had to settle for the fourth place with Rose taking the top place and the Dubai O-Plate title. Pook finished second while Jakob Robinson won the third place.
In the Junior Max category, Khalid Al Wahaibi, Oman’s another upcoming talent, had to settle for fourth place after a similar thrilling contest.
Tehmur Chohan won the top honours ahead of Taymour Kermanshahchi and Lucas Petersson.
