Karting sprints set for third round

Bahrain International Karting Circuit (BIKC) takes centre stage once again this Saturday with the hosting of the third round of the 2019/2020 Bahrain Karting Sprint Championship (BKSC). The meeting follows on the first two action-packed rounds of the season held in October and earlier this month. Many of the Kingdom of Bahrain’s top motor racing talents are set to resume their battles in the two highly competitive series under the BKSC umbrella.

These are the Bahrain Rotax Mojo Max Challenge (BRMMC) for Rotax kart owners and the Bahrain Sprint Sodi World Series (BSSWS), which is the premier arrive-and-drive karting championship in the region. Each series offers its own test of speed and driver ability, as competitors go head to head for podium places, points and all-important bragging rights. Action will be held along BIKC’s 1.414-kilometre Commission International de Karting track from 9.40am until around 4pm. All are welcome to attend.

Entrance to BIKC is free of charge. The BRMMC will see drivers going wheel to wheel in five classes, including the Micro Max, Mini Max, Junior Max, Senior Max and Max Master. Heading into Round Three, Gracie Rose Grantham leads the Micro Max category, Shanthosh Kumar is ahead if the Mini Max class, Lewis Smith tops the Junior Max class, Mohammed Mattar and Fahad Al Khaled share first place in the Senior Max standings, and Osama Azzouka leads the Max Master category.

Qualifying Practice for the Micro Max and Mini Max gets the racing underway at 9.40am. They will then hold their Pre-Final over seven laps at 10.30am, setting the stage for their nine-lap Final at 12.20pm. For the Junior Max class, Qualifying Practice begins at 9.52am and then the Pre-Final will be at 10.47am over 11 laps. Their 15-lap Final will be held at 12.55pm. The Senior Max and Max Master classes will kick off their battles at 10.04am with Qualifying Practice.

The 11-lap Pre-Final will then take place at 11.12am ahead of their 15-lap Final race at 1.30pm. The BRMMC podium ceremonies will follow all the action at around 2.30pm. For the SSWS, another full grid of participants is expected to join, with Ali Baslar looking to claim a third successive victory after taking the first two rounds. Following the kart draw at 12.30pm, BSSWS Qualifying begins at 2.30pm.

The 11-lap Pre-Final will then be held at 2.55pm, leading up to the 15-lap Final at 3.30pm. The BSSWS podium will be held around 4.30pm. The 2019/2020 BKSC features seven rounds in all. Saturday’s third round is the last of the calendar year. Round Four will kick off 2020 on January 11, and then Round Five is set for February 8. The sixth and penultimate meeting of the season will then be held on March 7, leading up to the championship-finale on April 4.