DOHA: Qatar’s top riders Mashel Al Naimi and Saeed Al Sulaiti yesterday shared victories in another round of thrilling races in the third round of Qatar Superstock 600.
In the first race of the day, Al Sulati took the lead of the race and managed to keep the first position until the last lap.
Unfortunately for him in the last lap, there were a number of slow riders in front of him and he ended up making a mistake as he went wide and arch-rival Al Naimi grabbed the opportunity to overtake him and win the race.
At the end Al Sulaiti finished second. Teenager Balint Kovacs from Hungary - who is just 17 - took his first podium of the season and finished in third position.
In the second race, Al Naimi pushed very hard during the first two laps, doing the best lap time of this race but he couldn’t keep the rhythm and Al Sulaiti passed him in the third lap taking an admirable victory.
Al Naimi finished second while Nasser Al Malki finished third in the second race.
In the QSTK Trophy challenge, Essa Al Mutawa yesterday posted victories and Soud Al Thani and Jassim Al Thani finished second and third respectively.
Al Naimi was pleased with his performance at the Losail International Circuit.
“I am happy with the overall result of this weekend. Race one was very good. In the last lap when Saeed made a mistake in the first corner, I passed him,” Al Naimi said.
“When I passed him, there were a lot of slow riders in front of us as we rode very slowly in the last lap. I am lucky as when I passed him there were slow riders and I took advantage and I could create a small gap,” he added.
“In the second race, I pushed too much from the first two laps and I felt pain in my arm and then I realized I made a mistake to push so hard from the beginning.
“Then I thought to stay in second place to secure the podium. I want to thank my sponsors Ooredoo for the support and QMMF and Losail International Circuit,” Al Naimi concluded.
After the two races, Al Sulaiti is leading the championship with a gap of four points ahead of Al Naimi (pictured above at left).
“The first race was crazy with Abdullah and Nasser around. It was tough to overtake them as it was a bit risky,” Al Sulaiti said. “I managed to overtake them in the second lap and from there I lead the whole race until the last lap, maintaining the gap between me and the rider behind me.
“In the middle of the race, I noticed that it was Mashel who was behind me and I tried to run away but it was tough. In the last two laps, unfortunately overlapping the slow riders made it really difficult and in the last lap I made a mistake in corner one where Mishal overtook me.
“I went a bit wide and tried to get the position but again I had to overtake more slow riders. In the last corner it was my last chance, I overtook more riders but I at the end I came in second place,” Al Sulaiti said.
“In the second race, I had a very good start but Mishal lead the two laps and he was very fast. I knew that at some point he would lose rhythm as he is really good to make good timings in the beginning. “I just kept my rhythm and managed to overtake him in the fourth lap and then I decided to go and after mid race. I had a 4-seconds lead so I finished the race safely. I am happy to be at the top of the championship,” Al Sulaiti (pictured above right) added.
