BIC gears up for National Race Day

Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) closes out its packed racing calendar for 2019 with the third round of National Race Day today, featuring two of the kingdom’s most popular championships. Hitting the tarmac at “The Home of Motorsport in the Middle East” are the BIC 2,000cc Challenge and the Bahrain Motorcycle Racing (BMR) 600. Both series are set to field highly competitive grids, with the 2,000cc Challenge welcoming 17 drivers this weekend and the BMR 600 seeing 16 riders.

All the racing action will be held along BIC’s 2.55-kilometre Inner Track. The first session will begin at 9.15am and the heated competition is scheduled to wrap up at around 3pm. The podium ceremony will follow at approximately 3.15pm. All are welcome to attend. Tickets are available at the gate at BD2 for adults and half the price for children. National Race Day is being organised by BIC in cooperation with the Bahrain Motor Federation, Circuit Racing Club and Bahrain Motorcycle Club.

The BIC 2,000cc Challenge was established in 2007 and today it is the longest-running circuit racing series in the region. Following simple regulations yet being extremely fun to watch, it is the ideal venue for gentlemen racers to showcase their skills in a hotly contested and professionally run championship. The drivers are divided into two classes, including the Pro and the Novice.

Set to compete in the Pro category are Shaikh Salman bin Isa bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, Shaikh Hamad bin Isa bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, Raed Himmo, Abdulla Al Qaoud, Tareq Al Tajer, Mohamed Faqihi, Ahmed bin Khanen, Raed Raffii, Majed Himmo, Govanni Saleerno, Nasser Al Alawi and lady driver Martyna Al Qassa.

The Novice class features Shaikh Abdulla Al Khalifa, Bassim Al Alawi, Husain Al Ghanem, Ali Al Bahrani and Farah Jaber. Action in the 2,000cc Challenge gets underway at 9.50am with Practice. Qualifying will then be held at 10.55am, setting the grid for Race One at 1.08pm. Race Two will then be held at 2.42pm as the final session on track for the day. Both races will be held over 12 laps apiece.

The BMR 600 is a riders’ championship. They compete in Yamaha, Kawasaki, Triumph, MV and Honda bikes. Among those competing are Ahmed Almuyini, Mohammed Alzahrani, Sa’ad Al Hazza, Ali Adiby, Mohammed Alsadiq, Mohammed Redha, Adel Najjar, Ibrahem Alsharida, Shaikh Mohammed Al Khalifa, Hasan Al Awadhi, Mohammad Al Zaidan, Ali Boshehri, Marwen Al Tassan, Nawaf Al Shuaibi, Mustafa Adel Husain and Dania Akeel.

The riders will be the first out on track today with Practice at 9.15am. Qualifying will then be held at 10.30am, with Race One set for 12.22pm. Race Two will then take place at 2.07pm. Both sprints are over 11 laps.