Losail set for Asia Road Racing

THE Losail International Circuit in Qatar is ready to host the fifth round of Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) on Friday and Saturday.

Ever since its inception in 1996, the ARRC has seen top talents in Asia fighting for supremacy.

ARRC races on a wide spectrum of bikes ranging from the Supersport 600cc, to newly-introduced 250cc open-make class, to the open-make Underbone 130cc bikes, which is unique to South East Asian motorcycle racing.

Added to the roster of open-make categories are two single-make developmental projects — Honda’s Asia Dream Cup which will be running into its fourth season and the introduction to ARRC format, the Suzuki Asia Challenge.

Unlike in the previous years, when the Losail leg used to be the season-ending race, this time it is the penultimate round.

The previous rounds were held at Sepang (Malaysia), Sentul (Indonesia), Suzuka (Japan) and Buriam (Thailand). Buriam will also host the season-ending race.

This is going to be the sixth year in a row that the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) is going to host an ARRC round at Losail, the only leg held under floodlights.

“The ARRC’s penultimate round in Losail will be worth watching. The championship’s objective has remained constant in its 20-year history — to provide a stepping stone for national champions to move up to the next level,” said QMMF President Nasser bin Khalifa Al Attiyah.

“Almost every rider in the ARRC comes with an impressive CV and they measure their worth against that of their peers,” added Al Attiyah.

Japan’s Yuki Takahashi leads the Supersport 600cc standings with 127 points.