Head-to-head battles set to light up BIC strip

TDT | Manama                                                    

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

The region’s leading drag racing series returns to Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) this week with the world-renowned Bahrain Drag Racing Championship (BDRC) staging the first round of its 2023/2024 campaign in Sakhir.

The BDRC is a National Hot Rod Association (NHRA)-sanctioned competition, with drag racers flocking into the Kingdom from all over the Gulf and beyond to compete at the world-class quarter-mile drag strip at “The Home of Motorsport in the Middle East”.

BIC’s drag racing facility is a member of the prestigious NHRA Worldwide Network, and participants in the BDRC go head-to-head for the right to claim a coveted “Wally” trophy at the end of this campaign’s five-meeting calendar.

The “Wally” is an exclusive accolade awarded only to NHRA champions around the world. The BDRC season is being organised and run by BIC in cooperation with the Bahrain Motor Federation, the Bahrain Drag Racing Commission and the Bahrain Motorcycle Commission.

This week’s opening events kick off today and tomorrow with back-to-back nights of Test and Tune, scheduled from 6pm to 12 midnight. Qualifying will then be held on Thursday, setting up the ladders for the eliminations on Race Day Friday. Action on both evenings will take place from 4pm onwards.

All are welcome to attend and enjoy the multiple nights of top-class drag racing. Racing this season will be held in 14 categories for both cars and motorbikes. The cars classes include the Index 7.5, Pro 29.5 V8, Outlaw 4 Cylinder, Outlaw 6 Cylinder, Index 10.00, Index 9.00, Index 8.50, Competition 4.5 and Pro Mod; while the motorbike classes are Pro Street Bike, Street Fight 9.5, Index 8.5 Bike, Outlaw Bike and Street Fight.

Many of the region’s leading drag racers and teams are slated to compete in the BDRC this season. Among them are the Kingdom’s multi-titled NHRA outfit Bahrain1Racing, owned by His Majesty the King’s Personal Representative His Highness Shaikh Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa.

This season’s five-round BDRC calendar continues until March of next year. Following this week’s season-opener, round two is scheduled for 9 to 12 January. Round three will then be held from 30 January to 2 February, and then round four will be the following week from 6 to 9 February. The championship finale will then take place 19 to 22 March at BIC.