SURGING AHEAD

THE battle for supremacy in the Qatar Superstock 600cc Championship (QSTK) took another turn, with Saeed Al Sulaiti snatching the lead from Mishal Al Naimi for the first time since the series began in January.

Saeed won Race 1 while Mishal finished second and Nasser Al Malki third.

Race 2 had high drama with both Saeed and Mishal crashing in the last lap, giving Nasser his first win of the season.

Young rider Abdullah Al Qubaisi came second for the first podium of his career and Ali Al Shammari was third.

Saeed, who is sponsored by Ooredoo, managed to rejoin the race, finished sixth and gained 10 points while Mishal’s bike was so damaged that he could not continue. 

That helped Saeed take a five-point lead over Mishal in the standings.

Saeed has 165 points, followed by Mishal on 160. Nasser is a distant third with 137. With two rounds to go, the QSTK is heading for an exciting finish. 

The penultimate round will be held on May 6 while series winds up on May 20.

“In hindsight, it was good to finish in Race 2 despite the crash and get those valuable points. I’m happy with the overall improvement I’ve made,” said Saeed.

Meanwhile, Abdullah Al Khelaifi continued his impressive form and won both races in the third round of Qatar Touring Car Championship held simultaneously.

He has won all six races held so far.

The Toyota driver, who started on pole in Race 1, finished 1.902sec ahead of Mahmoud Al Khalaf. Omran Karama was third on the podium.

He continued his dominance in Race 2 in which Mansour Al Hajri ended up second and Mahmoud third. 

The next round will be held on April 22.