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Tribune News Network
DOHA
Pole rider Mashel al Naimi returned to the winner’s circle after clinching the second race in the second round of the Qatar Superstock 600 at the Losail International Circuit on Saturday. He defeated former world 125cc champion Julian Simon by less than four hundredths of a second to end his winless run for seven rounds.
Defending champion Saeed al Sulaiti topped the podium in the first race, beating Spanish rider Simon, while Abdulla al Qubaisi was third and Naimi finished fourth.
In the 2017-18 QSTK season, Naimi had beaten Nasser al Malki to bag the second race in the fourth round. Since, he posted a few second-place finishes but could not secured a win in seven rounds.
In the first race, Sulaiti, starting from outside of the first row, grabbed the lead in the midway and went on to win with a 25:19.007 time. The Spanish wild card Simon finished in second place and Qubaisi completed the podium.
“At the beginning, I was fourth in the first lap and I saw that Abdulla and Mashel were pulling away so I decided to try and overtake Simon. I managed to do it so in the next couple of laps. In the middle of the race I led the race and until the last five laps, Abdulla was overtaking me on the straight line but I overtook him in the corner. In the last two laps, everybody struggled with the tyres. As I was able to create some gap, I won the race,” Sulaiti said.
In the second race of the day, Naimi changed the strategy, choosing to be patient. In the last three laps, he pushed hard, grabbed the lead and kept it till the checkered flag. He won the race, clocking a 25:23.960. “I am very happy with the result of this weekend. In the first race, I still had problem with the front tyre and could finish only in fourth place. In the second race I changed a little bit front fork.
“The strategy worked better when I was following the riders rather than leading. In the last laps, I almost crashed in corner number seven and 13 but I was very lucky as I had opened a good gap. We raced in this round with a very experienced and professional rider, Julian Simon. I have been knowing him very well since the Moto2 days and this was an extra motivation for me in this round. Many thanks to the QMMF, LCSC and Ooredoo,” Naimi added.
As was in the first race, Simon took the second spot ahead of Qubaisi. For him, the weekend was great as he came back racing to the track. “I am very happy to be here and race in the Qatar Superstock 600, specially as my last period of racing career was here with the QMMF Racing Team in Moto2. So it is a special place. Also, because I am training MotoGP rider Maverick Vi?ales, who is the Qatar Motorsports Academy Ambassador. All these proved a big motivation for me to come and race here.
“The level of the competition is very good and it is great to see a lot of riders from different nationalities taking part in this championship,” Simon added.
Sulaiti was leading most of the race but in the last laps, he had a problem with the broken suspension that made him to slow down. Still, he was able to get the fourth spot and collect vital points.
In the QSTK Trophy, French rider Jeremy Parola had a clean-sweep, winning both the races. The second place went for Rayad al Emadi and Kuwait’s Alexander Qabazard completed the podium in third place.
“The first race was held under very difficult conditions with a lot of wind but it was all for everybody. The second race was a bit better due to a good battle with Soud al Thani and Rayad al Emadi and enjoyed the race a lot. I am very happy with my results in this roud,” Parola commented.
In the championship standings, Sulaiti leads with 83 points and is followed by Abdulla al Qubaisi (77 points), Mashel al Naimi (70 points). In the QSTK Trophy, Parola is on the top with 95 points.
Trophies were presented by Abdulrahman al Mannai, QMMF President, Abdulrazak al Kuwari (QMMF General Secretary), Khalid al Remaihi (LCSC Vice-President & General Manager) and Juan Baquero (LCSC CEO).ResultsQSTK600 Race 1 (12 laps)
1.Saeed al Sulaiti (Qatar) 25:19.007
2.Julian Simon (Spain) +1.281
3.Abdulla al Qubaisi (Qatar) +3.196
4.Mashel al Naimi (Qatar) +18.215
5.Soud al Thani (Qatar) +1:06.452
QSTK600 Race 2 (12 laps)
1.Mashel al Naimi (Qatar) 25:23.960
2.Julian Simon (Spain) +0.391
3.Abdulla al Qubaisi (Qatar) +3.478
4.Saeed al Sulaiti (Qatar) +4.806
5.Jassim al Thani (Qatar) +1:01.289
QSTK Trophy Race 1 (12 laps)
1.Jeremy Parola (France) 26:22.664
2.Rayad al Emadi (Qatar) 26:35.263
3.Alexander Qabazard (Kuwait) 27:06.097
QSTK Trophy Race 2 (12 laps)
1.Jeremy Parola (France) 26:25.916
2.Rayad al Emadi (Qatar) 26:33.233
3.Alexander Qabazard (Kuwait) 27:00.276
DOHA
Pole rider Mashel al Naimi returned to the winner’s circle after clinching the second race in the second round of the Qatar Superstock 600 at the Losail International Circuit on Saturday. He defeated former world 125cc champion Julian Simon by less than four hundredths of a second to end his winless run for seven rounds.
Defending champion Saeed al Sulaiti topped the podium in the first race, beating Spanish rider Simon, while Abdulla al Qubaisi was third and Naimi finished fourth.
In the 2017-18 QSTK season, Naimi had beaten Nasser al Malki to bag the second race in the fourth round. Since, he posted a few second-place finishes but could not secured a win in seven rounds.
In the first race, Sulaiti, starting from outside of the first row, grabbed the lead in the midway and went on to win with a 25:19.007 time. The Spanish wild card Simon finished in second place and Qubaisi completed the podium.
“At the beginning, I was fourth in the first lap and I saw that Abdulla and Mashel were pulling away so I decided to try and overtake Simon. I managed to do it so in the next couple of laps. In the middle of the race I led the race and until the last five laps, Abdulla was overtaking me on the straight line but I overtook him in the corner. In the last two laps, everybody struggled with the tyres. As I was able to create some gap, I won the race,” Sulaiti said.
In the second race of the day, Naimi changed the strategy, choosing to be patient. In the last three laps, he pushed hard, grabbed the lead and kept it till the checkered flag. He won the race, clocking a 25:23.960. “I am very happy with the result of this weekend. In the first race, I still had problem with the front tyre and could finish only in fourth place. In the second race I changed a little bit front fork.
“The strategy worked better when I was following the riders rather than leading. In the last laps, I almost crashed in corner number seven and 13 but I was very lucky as I had opened a good gap. We raced in this round with a very experienced and professional rider, Julian Simon. I have been knowing him very well since the Moto2 days and this was an extra motivation for me in this round. Many thanks to the QMMF, LCSC and Ooredoo,” Naimi added.
As was in the first race, Simon took the second spot ahead of Qubaisi. For him, the weekend was great as he came back racing to the track. “I am very happy to be here and race in the Qatar Superstock 600, specially as my last period of racing career was here with the QMMF Racing Team in Moto2. So it is a special place. Also, because I am training MotoGP rider Maverick Vi?ales, who is the Qatar Motorsports Academy Ambassador. All these proved a big motivation for me to come and race here.
“The level of the competition is very good and it is great to see a lot of riders from different nationalities taking part in this championship,” Simon added.
Sulaiti was leading most of the race but in the last laps, he had a problem with the broken suspension that made him to slow down. Still, he was able to get the fourth spot and collect vital points.
In the QSTK Trophy, French rider Jeremy Parola had a clean-sweep, winning both the races. The second place went for Rayad al Emadi and Kuwait’s Alexander Qabazard completed the podium in third place.
“The first race was held under very difficult conditions with a lot of wind but it was all for everybody. The second race was a bit better due to a good battle with Soud al Thani and Rayad al Emadi and enjoyed the race a lot. I am very happy with my results in this roud,” Parola commented.
In the championship standings, Sulaiti leads with 83 points and is followed by Abdulla al Qubaisi (77 points), Mashel al Naimi (70 points). In the QSTK Trophy, Parola is on the top with 95 points.
Trophies were presented by Abdulrahman al Mannai, QMMF President, Abdulrazak al Kuwari (QMMF General Secretary), Khalid al Remaihi (LCSC Vice-President & General Manager) and Juan Baquero (LCSC CEO).ResultsQSTK600 Race 1 (12 laps)
1.Saeed al Sulaiti (Qatar) 25:19.007
2.Julian Simon (Spain) +1.281
3.Abdulla al Qubaisi (Qatar) +3.196
4.Mashel al Naimi (Qatar) +18.215
5.Soud al Thani (Qatar) +1:06.452
QSTK600 Race 2 (12 laps)
1.Mashel al Naimi (Qatar) 25:23.960
2.Julian Simon (Spain) +0.391
3.Abdulla al Qubaisi (Qatar) +3.478
4.Saeed al Sulaiti (Qatar) +4.806
5.Jassim al Thani (Qatar) +1:01.289
QSTK Trophy Race 1 (12 laps)
1.Jeremy Parola (France) 26:22.664
2.Rayad al Emadi (Qatar) 26:35.263
3.Alexander Qabazard (Kuwait) 27:06.097
QSTK Trophy Race 2 (12 laps)
1.Jeremy Parola (France) 26:25.916
2.Rayad al Emadi (Qatar) 26:33.233
3.Alexander Qabazard (Kuwait) 27:00.276
