ALKHOBAR, 25 January 2008 — Said Al-Mouri won the Chevrolet Speed Star competition 2nd round held at Al Iskan Park in Alkhobar earlier this week.
When the dust settled it was Said Al-Mouri in his V6 BMW Z3 car who led the podium winners clocking the best time of 00: 51:670 on the second day. The event organized by Abdullah Bakhashab Est. for motor sport development drew a large number of racing enthusiasts kingdomwide who pitted skills in a non-stop endurance battle as each tired to score the maximum under the new system of awarding system.
The race, organized by Abdullah Bakhashab Est., was very interesting, especially among those who used the modified cars. The race began after grouping the participants according to their vehicles into four classes based on the capacity of the engine, its power and its production year. They were standard six cylinders, modified six cylinders, modified eight cylinders and standard eight cylinders. After the technical test on the first day every participant had to make a free tour through the track. Then the drivers had two trials to collect the best time.
Al-Mouri, a phenomenon in the exciting motorsport, charged through the grueling qualification process and winning the tandem battle of the first day and stayed on the top to finalize the round staying on the top. Not only Al-Mouri kept his place, Nael Bedair also stayed 2nd on the podium clocking 0:56:846 driving his red standard 6 cylinders Nissan Z.
Abdulaziz Al Yaeesh, Universal Motorsport Agency driver, on his standard 6 cylinders Lumina S, managed to stand on the podium 3rd clocking 01:51:046.
Drifting is a high skill, high powered motorsport that calls for drivers to control a car while it slides at high speeds through a marked course. It is similar to rally racing, but is done on a closed paved course. It is judged on execution and style rather than just who finishes the course the fastest, similar to skateboarding and freestyle motocross. The sport caters well to spectators and is exciting to watch.
2007 was the first year of the Chevrolet Speed Star series, the first national championship series in the Kingdom.
The third round will be in Hail from Dec. 5-6. In each round participants will display their drifting-style technique in a twisting track of 1.5 km specifically designed for the championship. The races will be judged on time, and drivers will accumulate points from each round with the title awarded to the driver with the most points. The official car is Lumina SS for its great power and high flexibility on the track. As with other Chevrolet Motorsport events in the region, accessibility to the competition is a major focus; to enter the Speed Star Championship a rear wheel or all-wheel drive car and the desire to compete are the only requirements.
