Porsche sprints set for tense battles at Bahrain International Circuit

TDT | Manama                      

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com   

The 2022/2023 Porsche Sprint Challenge Middle East is set for an intense fifth and penultimate round this weekend, being held as part of the stellar support programme to the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2023 at Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) in Sakhir.

The region’s leading one-make series will see intense battles for race wins, podiums, all-important points and bragging rights as the series’ various title fights head down to the wire.

The championship will be holding two races over F1 weekend, one each on Saturday and Sunday over 11 laps each or 25 minutes.

Bahrain’s very own Shaikh Salman bin Rashid Al Khalifa will be looking to continue his remarkable comeback season with a strong performance in this upcoming meeting.

Shaikh Salman is currently in contention for two season’s titles, including the ProAm and the GCC.

The talented racer is currently second in both categories, trailing Bashar Mardini of Canada in the ProAm by just three points with Mardini on 154, and behind GCC leader Bandar Alesayi of Saudi Arabia by only five points, with Alesayi on 156.

Shaikh Salman is also sixth on the overall championship standings on his 151-point total.

Ariel Levi of Israel currently leads with 238 points, followed by Ghislain Cordeel from Belgium on 221 points and Harri Jones from Australia on 179 points.

Meanwhile, Mark J Thomas from Canada tops the Am class with 97 points, and Saud Al Saud of Saudi Arabia is first in the Rookie championship fight with 115 points.

Almost all the leading contenders are a part of the 18-driver provisional entry list for round five. Also set to compete are Cedric Chassang of France; Georgi Donchev and Merabi Mekvabishvili of Bulgaria; Jan Dobber and Robert Sulma of the Netherlands; Soeren Spreng and Vincent Andronaco of Germany; Harry King of Great Britain; Khaled Alahmadi and Ahmed Bin-Khanen of Saudi; and Ahmad Al-Shehab of Kuwait.

The Porsche Sprint Challenge Middle East is joined over the weekend’s support programme by the FIA Formula 2 Championship and FIA Formula 3 Championship, both feeder series to F1 featuring the top flight’s stars of the future.

Following this weekend’s events, the Porsche season comes to a close with round six in Saudi Arabia from 17 to 19 March.

The F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2023 opens the new F1 season this weekend from Friday to Sunday. There is now only limited availability on tickets and hospitality options to the region’s biggest sporting and social extravaganza.

Tickets and hospitality can be bought online at BIC’s official website bahraingp. com or by calling the BIC Hotline on +973-17-450000.