Tribune News Network
Doha
The third round of the Qatar Sand Drag Competition was held at Sealine under the generous sponsorship of His Excellency Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Thani, President of Qatar Racing Club, and featured extensive participation from sand racing champions in Qatar and the Gulf region.
Like the previous rounds, this one too witnessed intense challenges and fierce battles, with Gulf champions achieving remarkable records across multiple categories.
The competitions for bikes and Polaris vehicles, traditionally held on the first day, concluded with another victory for racer Walid Al Sharshani in the Motocross category (two- wheeled bikes), outperforming Abdullah Al Nasr, while Abdulrahman Al Nasr finished third for a second time in a row.
In the ATV (quad bikes, four-wheeled) category, which was divided into three classes, Majed Al Dihani triumphed in the Modified Class, while last round’s champion Khalid Ali Karam settled for second place, followed by competitor Dari Ismail Al Ansari in third. In the Professional Modified Class, Mohammed Al Mazmi secured his second consecutive win, with Abdullah Abdulaziz and Ali Al Duraie finishing second and third respectively.
Similarly to the previous round, Al Mazmi clinched his second title in this round with the best time in the Open Class. Abdullah Al Mazmi took second place, while Abdullah Al Hazzaa was third.
As for the UTV vehicles, Abdullah Al Sulaiti achieved his second successive win with Hassan Ali Karim settling for second and Hamza Safar finishing third.
In the Professional Modified Class, Mohana Al Nuaimi climbed to the top step of the podium for a third consecutive round, leaving the second and third spots to racers Mohammed Safar and Hassan Ali Karim, respectively.
The most competitive category for UTV vehicles, the Open Class (Unlimited), saw Ahmed Al Balushi clinch his first title after finishing as runner-up in the previous two rounds. Yaqoub Al Alawi, the champion of the last two rounds, settled for second while Ibrahim Al Darmaki was third.
In the Polaris Kids category, Khalid Al Mohammadi claimed first place, followed by Yousef Agha in second and Saad Al Kuwari in third.
As usual, the competition heated up on the second day with the presence of the most powerful engines. The action began with the Buggy categories, where the title in the Spring Suspension category went to Abdullah Al Sulaiti for a second consecutive round. Ali Hassan secured second place, while Mohammed Al Sulaiti was third.
In the Airbag Suspension category, Abdullah Al Sulaiti returned to the podium, this time taking first place. Mohana Al Nuaimi finished second but had to withdraw from the second run due to discomfort that required him to be taken to the medical center for a precautionary check-up.
In the six-cylinder engine car races, the Nitrous category title was claimed by Faisal Al Balushi, surpassing the champion of the previous two rounds, Muzahim Al Kaabi. Mohammed Al Sharshani settled for third place.
The Turbo category was divided into two sections: cars with original bodywork and those with modified chassis. Racer Khalid Al Habsi dominated both, winning the first by beating Fahad Jassim (second) and Abdulrahman Al Safi (third). In the second, he outperformed Jaber Al Zaabi and Mohana Al Nuaimi, who took second and third places, respectively.
In the eight-cylinder engine cars, the competition was also split into Nitrous and Turbo categories.
Khalid Al Habsi secured his third title of the round by winning the Nitrous category, ahead of Issa Musharbik (second) and Omar Al Humaidi (third). Meanwhile, the Turbo title went to Ibrahim Al Shunaifi, who triumphed over Hamad Al Mohannadi and Waleed Al Dughishm, finishing second and third, respectively.
The final and most thrilling category was the Open Class, which featured intense competition. Abdulaziz Al Yahya emerged victorious, with Ibrahim Al Shunaifi and Musaad Al Hatzani finishing in second and third places.
At the end of each day’s competitions, HE Sheikh Jabor bin Khalid Al Thani, Director of Qatar Racing Club, awarded the top three winners in each category in front of a large and enthusiastic audience.
With the conclusion of the third round of the Sealine Sand Drag Racing Challenge, the championship will now pause for approximately four months before returning with two final rounds at the end of Holy month of Ramadan 2025.