Bahrain Rotax MAX Challenge wraps up season at Bahrain International Karting Circuit

TDT | Manama         

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain International Circuit (BIC), “The Home of Motorsport in the Middle East”, crowned over the weekend the 2023/2024 champions of the Bahrain Rotax MAX Challenge (BRMC)—the Kingdom’s premier annual karting championship.

Tariq Soofi, Nasser Nass, Khaled Najjar, Mohammed Alhasan, and Abdulla Junaid all claimed this season’s titles in their respective categories. In doing so, they each earned their tickets to this year’s Rotax MAX Challenge Grand Finals in Italy, where they will be competing against other Rotax champions from around the world.

The talented quintet secured their respective championships following the BRMC’s final two rounds of the 2023/2024 campaign, held Friday and Saturday at BIC’s world-class grassroots motorsport facility, Bahrain International Karting Circuit (BIKC).

Tariq Soofi was crowned champion of the BRMC’s Micro MAX class. He finished with 245 points for the season, while Austin Gray was the runner-up on 205 points and Rayyan Najjar third a further point behind. Tariq wrapped up his title-winning run in style, taking the victory in the seventh and penultimate round ahead of Rayyan and Austin.

He then stepped onto the podium for second place in the championship finale, with Saif Al Obaidli claiming the win and Rayyan finishing third. Nasser Nass clinched his title in the BRMC’s Mini MAX category.

His victory in the eighth and last round helped him capture the crown on 217 points, with Leopold Juch pushing him all the way to the end and finishing on 211 points in second. Leopold had taken the victory in round seven, setting the stage for the thrilling finish. Shaikh Ahmed bin Saqer Al Khalifa finished third on the season’s standings with 185 points.

Leopold’s triumph in the penultimate meeting saw him finish ahead of Nasser and Shaikh Ahmed. Nasser then took the win ahead of Leopold in round eight, with Demir Albali joining them on their last podium of this campaign. Khaled Najjar was the champion of the BRMC’s Junior MAX class, finishing with 270 points for the season to end with a comfortable gap ahead of runner-up Rashid Hilal on 201 points.

Shaheen Shaheen came third on 166 points. Khaled had a superb showing over the weekend as he claimed a fantastic double, helping him build his sizeable winning margin on the final championship table. Khaled won in round seven ahead of Shaheen and Khalifah Alkhaled, while he took round eight with Khalifah and Rashid in second and third, respectively.

Emerging as the BRMC’s Senior MAX champion this season was Mohammed Alhasan following an ultra-competitive campaign in the category. Alhasan ended the season with 177 points—just seven in front of Tye Mejia, with Rashid Almuammari not far behind in third on 155 points. Only 60 points separated each of the Senior MAX’s top six. Gracie Rose Grantham came fourth on 122 points, Lewis Smith fifth on 118, and Vedant Menon sixth with 117 points.

Gracie Rose wrapped up the season on a high after emerging victorious in both the weekend’s rounds. She triumphed in the seventh meeting ahead of Fahad Alkhaled and Najashi Rashdan, before taking the last chequered flag of this campaign in round eight, followed by Jaber Alsabah and Abdulla Alkhater.

Finally, Abdulla Junaid completed the BRMC’s newest cast of champions by winning the DD2 MAX title. He had a dominant run this season and finished with 133 points. Raoul Sadi was a distant second on 71 points, while Musaad Albassam came third on 45 points. Albassam was all smiles over the weekend, taking the victories in both rounds. He won in the penultimate event ahead of Sadi, and then in the finale narrowly beat Junaid to the end, with Sadi in third.

With the completion of the thrilling BRMC action, the curtain has come down on the national karting season at BIKC. The series was organised by BIC and BIKC, in cooperation with the Bahrain Motor Federation and the Bahrain Karting Commission. The championship featured competitors of various ages and nationalities, racing in their very own Rotax-powered karts along BIKC’s 1.414-kilometre CIK-FIA track.