6 HOUR RACE REPORT

After having completed over 600 kilometres of testing, Al Ain Raceway’s karts were lined up under clear skies for the inaugural 6 hour endurance challenge.  The 17-strong grid was made up of some extremely talented drivers from all over the Emirates.  The cosmopolitan event had representatives from not only the UAE, but also neighbouring Oman and several European nations. Team ATR qualified on pole position and at the start lead a train of karts including UAE Arrow Racing 1, Alpha-Q Racing, WMS A, Sahab and DXP Racing. It was a thrilling opening chapter as the lead changed several times.  UAE Arrow Racing 1 found their way through to the front after 20 minutes and became the first solid leader as the remaining front runners battled it out for second.  Rotax Masters were following in close proximity, and being experienced endurance racers opted to hang back, conserving their tyres for later.  Oman had a good showing, fielding 4 teams.  Safety First were strong contenders throughout the race as Zak Al Aufi rallied his charges ahead of sister team WMS 2. 

By the halfway point of the race there had been several changes for the lead but the true picture began to emerge in the final hour.  DXP Racing’s Sam Zian had got his 2-man team into the lead and was running strongly, keeping their closest rivals – Team ATR and Alpha-Q Racing at bay.  When DXP came in to change drivers and allow Anas Al Halabi to race to the flag he emerged more or less alongside Daniel Price of Team ATR.  The pair ran nose to tail, with DXP in pursuit.  It was ferociously intense as they shadowed each other until 6 laps from home when DXP ran fractionally wide on the exit of the hairpin.  This allowed ATR to pull out a small gap, but for DXP it meant Alpha Q was brought into play.  The battle for 2^nd and 3^rd raged as Alpha Q tried everything in the book to make a pass stick but DXP held on and the pair crossed the line 3 tenths of a second apart…after 6 hours of non-stop racing that is remarkably close.  UAE Arrow Racing 1 was lurking in the shadows in 4^th place and could have been race leaders had they not had to serve a 20 second penalty for Pit Lane speeding at the 4 hour mark.  Sahab also showed strongly as they crossed the line in 5^th, just fractionally ahead of the Rotax Masters pair of MadFuller and Jonathan Mowatt.  Safety First came 7^th but recorded the fastest lap of the race, a whopping 1:13.598 which was a full second faster than anyone else…something to do with a slipstream…  But for all the drama it was Team ATR that triumphed and claimed victory in the first ever 6 hour race at Al Ain Raceway.  Congratulations to Daniel Price, Carlos Do Vale and Ivan Kalinin, fully deserved.  It proved to be a popular event and there will certainly be more to come…

Marty Fullard

Results at a glance:

1^st         Team ATR                  

2^nd       DXP Racing                                  

3^rd        Alpha-Q Racing                                        

4^th        UAE Arrow Racing 1              

5^th        Sahab                                       

6^th        Rotax Masters                          

7^th        Safety First                               

8^th        WMS 2                                    

9^th        France                                      

10^th      WMS A                                   

11^th      TBC                                         

12^th UAE Arrow Racing 2               

13^th      Strata                                       

14^th      WMS 3                                    

15^th      Desert Foxes                            

16^th      Skidmarks                                

17^th      SRT8