Racing events getting into gear

BAHRAIN International Circuit (BIC) is hosting the second round of the National Racing Festival this weekend in Sakhir.

The three-day event, starting tomorrow and concluding on Saturday, will feature the much-anticipated opening round of the Western Gulf Advisory (WGA) Supercars Championship Middle East, along with the BIC 2000cc Challenge and the Bahrain National Drag Racing Championship.

The event is being organised by the Circuit Racing Club and the Bahrain Drag Racing Club, under the umbrella of the Bahrain Motor Federation, in collaboration with the BIC.

The WGA Supercars will be making its season debut and organisers say it promises to be a grand occasion.

The 2011/2012 campaign in the WGA Supercars will feature a total of six rounds, with two races per meeting. The calendar will run until April next year, when the championship finale will be held as part of the official support programme of the Formula One Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.

Many of the previous season’s top competitors and teams including Batelco Racing Team, Alba Racing Team and Speeding Saddles will be back in action.

Meanwhile, the BIC 2,000cc Challenge will be holding the second round of its season. The championship got underway late last month with defending champion Shaikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa sharing honours with Stephen Kellogg, another leading competitor.

Races in both the WGA Supercars and 2000cc Challenge will be held throughout the day on Friday and Saturday.

Also on the agenda is the second round of this year’s Bahrain National Drag Racing Championship.

Participants will first take to the tarmac for a ‘Test and Tune’ tonight, to be followed tomorrow evening by qualifying. All the action, featuring over a hundred suped-up cars and motorbikes, will begin from the early evening on Friday and continue possibly into the early hours of Saturday morning.

Ebrahim Kanoo was the star of the first round when he set a new Bahrain record in the Outlaw Rear-Wheel-Drive class.
 
Tickets for the festival are BD5 for the Oasis Grandstand and BD7 for seats overlooking the drag strip’s start line. The start line tickets are for all days.

For more information on the National Racing Festival or other events at BIC, call 17450000 or visit www.bahraingp.com