Tribune News Network
Doha
The Qatar Motor & Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) on Tuesday announced the launch of ambitious Qatar Motorsports Academy Stars Program aimed at identifying and nurturing young talent in motorsport.
The program has already attracted over 400 registrations, and buoyed by the impressive turnout, QMMF is committed to leveraging this platform to uncover promising Qatari talent and support them towards thriving careers in competitive racing.
The fully-backed program in terms of funding will run through the year while preparing passionate youngsters for grueling motorsport action and excellence, it particularly aims at spotting champions of the future.
Speaking during the launch at the Lusail International Circuit, Amro Al Hamad, Executive Director of QMMF, said: “The program is a testament to our belief in the untapped potential of Qatar’s youth. We aim to provide a platform that identifies and nurtures the next generation of Qatari motorsport talent. This initiative is not just about racing; it’s about building future ambassadors for Qatari motorsport.”
He added: “When Qatar’s current stars like Nasser Al Attiyah and Abdulaziz Al Kuwari came around, it was more due to someone spotting their talent at the start. Now things are more organized and the Qatar Motorsports Academy Stars Program is designed to provide the best of opportunities to those who desire to excel.
“As you can see, we are seeing many kind of different activities to help the driver, to show the skills, to give us the opportunity to bring them to the first of all national rally or Baja. This is a chance for all the young boys and girls from 15 years to 25 years old. This program is amazing because it’s open for everybody. We are really happy to see that there is already 400 have registered in a really short period.”
Nicolas Bernardi, a former French Rally champion and WRC driver, who is the Off Road and Rally Racing Activities Consultant for the program, said, “We have designed a path to, try to get to the junior category in the Middle East with one of our winners. We will also have a driver, running for classification in the Middle East. And we will try also to get back also the trophy to Middle East, which is our target. So first, this is what we designed for 2025. Of course, in the future we would like to see a professional driver at the top level.”
He added, “As we see today, the WRC is a competition, which is a little bit unstable.And I’m sure that from 2027, the regulation will change and we will be able to start to bring maybe junior WRC trophy to Qatar in 2027, 2028. Of course, also in Dakar Rally there are many categories and we can have our youngsters there.This is what we want to do. We want to bring back a lot of trophies. I cannot tell you exactly what will the future be, but I’m sure that in the next five years. We will have some people knocking at the door of professional team.”
The selection process for the program will feature a short slalom course using plastic obstacles such as cones and techpro barriers. Participants will drive easy-to-use vehicles, competing to achieve the best times. Top qualifiers from the initial round will advance to compete on longer slalom courses. Ultimately, the 35 fastest drivers will proceed to the finals, which will be held on January 18, 2025 and January 19, 2025.
In the final stages of the selection process 25 drivers, aged 15-25 years old, will be selected (including at least 15 with no prior racing experience). Moreover, 5 additional slots will be kept for young participants aged 15-18 years old. Finalists will be tested over two days on different vehicles and surfaces, and evaluated by a jury of motorsport experts. The jury will also assess participants’ psychological and physical, to ensure a holistic evaluation of their potential.
