Himmo laps it up

Excitement filled the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) over the weekend as racers competed in the sixth and penultimate round of the 2021/2022 BIC 2,000cc Challenge.

Drivers battled it out in their respective two-litre cars in the series’ Pro and Novice classes under lights along BIC’s 2.55-kilometre Inner Circuit … with racer Raed Himmo claiming a delightful double.

As one of this campaign’s chief title contenders, Himmo won both the meeting’s races to gain all-important points on the championship standings heading into the season’s final round.

Ali Al Mansoori, who was competing in the Novice category, kicked off the round by topping the practice timesheet with a best lap time of one minute 16.528 seconds in his Honda CIVIC.

He maintained his fine form in qualifying and won pole position with a fastest lap of 1:16.158. Al Mansoori eveno narrowly piped Himmo for the leading grid spot by just 0.085 seconds.

However, in the first race, Al Mansoori retired early on and Himmo was able to gain the lead on the third of 12 laps. He went on to take the chequered flag in a total winning time of 18:15.196.

Himmo, in a Honda CIVIC, finished narrowly ahead of runner-up Raed Raffii who raced in a Honda S2000 and was 1.082s behind. Meanwhile, former 2,000cc champion Shaikh Salman bin Isa bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa was classified third a lap behind and he too was driving a Honda CIVIC.

All three were competing in the Pro class.

The four cars that were not classified at the end of the race included Shaikh Hamad bin Isa bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa (Honda CIVIC), Nasser Al Alawi (Honda S2000), Al Mansoori and Andrew Ray (Honda Integra DC 2).

Al Mansoori had clocked the fastest lap in the race of 1:16.682 before bowing out.

In race two, only three drivers were able to take to the grid. Himmo won in 15:39.319 with an 11.847s gap ahead of Shaikh Hamad and 52.219s in front of Raffii.

Himmo posted the fastest lap in the sprint of 1:16.861.

Following all the action, the winners were presented their respective trophies in a podium ceremony by BIC and Bahrain Motor Federation officials.

The meeting was held as part of BIC’s National Race Day.

The BIC 2,000cc Challenge season-finale is scheduled for this Friday as a night event.

Fans are welcome to attend and can watch the action from BIC’s Batelco Grandstand. Tickets are BD2. Children aged 12 and under enter for BD1.

Visit bahraingp.com for details.