LIWA, United Arab Emirates, 14 January 2005 — Three-time champion Khalfan Darwish Al Mansouri of Abu Dhabi was again crowned king of the hill on opening night of the Red Bull Reach the Top challenge despite a fierce test from rival rider Mansour Al Qubaisi.
The start of the two-night competition — staged under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan with the backing of the FIA, the FIM and the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE — saw 63 bike and quad riders take on the awesome assault of the towering 300m Moreb Hill on the fringe of the Empty Quarter.
But on a night when the cold desert winter had the competitors shivering in the pits, the action was red hot in the head-to-head shoot-out in the Open Quad category, which capped a night of high adrenaline extreme motorsport.
Mansour Al Qubaisi – representing the team of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan — threw down the gauntlet to defending champion Al Mansouri by storming to the peak of the 60-degree slope in a stunning 9.853 seconds. But Al Mansouri was in no mood to give up his crown and responded with the type of performance that has seen him win the title on three previous occasions.
Riding the American-built 780 Rotex, Al Mansouri flew out of the blocks to complete the sprint in a stunning time of 9.391 seconds and leave his rivals wondering what they have to do to wrestle the title away from the quad king. “I’m just so happy,” said a grinning 27-year-old Al Mansouri, following his latest success in the Red Bull challenge. “We did it last April so to repeat it tonight is amazing.”
Co-sponsored by Braun Cruizer3, the opening bike and quad battles saw some closely fought encounters on a night of explosive motorsport action on the face of one of the world’s biggest natural sand dunes.
In the 34-bike Quad Class Two division, Rashid Hamed Al Huraiz needed just one of his allotted two runs to take the crown with a winning time of 10.247 seconds, less than three tenths of a second quicker than runner-up Amer Al Junaibi with Khaleed Butti in third place. Defending champion Ahmed Al Shamsi could only finish in seventh place in the defence of his title.
In the Quad Class One category, Ahmed Omer Al Mashquni was delighted to take the title in a time of 9.916 seconds with none of the other 11 competitors able to break the ten second barrier. Second fastest was Mohammed Al Falahi in a time of 10.029 second with Saudi prince Saud bin Turky bin Saud bin Abdulaziz third on his titanium quad in 10.189 seconds.
In the motorcycle division, victory in the 12-man field went to Abu Dhabi’s Mohammed Juma Al Mansouri – runner-up last year — in 13.701 seconds with Mohammed Omair Al Mashguni second and defending champion Ali Eassa Al Ayasi in third. Frenchman Herve Delacourt, the only European in the field, was ninth. With the bikers having completed their challenges on two and four wheels, the spotlight now turns on some of the most powerful and modified 4WD vehicles in the region. And with no limitation on engine size, power or performance, it promises to be an enthralling night of high octane action.
