Rotax MAX karting kicks off new national racing season

Manama, Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) kicked off its 2024/2025 season the Kingdom's leading karting championship lighting up the track this past weekend at BIC's world-class grassroots motorsport facility in Sakhir. The first of eight rounds in the 2024/2025 Bahrain Rotax MAX Challenge (BRMC) produced plenty of wheel-to-wheel excitement at Bahrain International Karting Circuit (BIKC), setting the tone for what's to come in yet another fantastic campaign at 'The Home of Motorsport in the Middle East'. Two returning BRMC champions were amongst the winners in the opening event, including Tariq Soofi and Nasser Nass. Tariq triumphed in the Micro MAX class over the weekend, while Nasser, last season's title winner in the Mini MAX category, marked his debut in the Junior MAX division with a sensational grand slam - taking pole position, winning the final while leading every lap, and posting the fastest lap. Others to take the chequered flag in their respective classes were Rayyan Najjar in the Mini MAX, Tye Mejia in the Senior MAX, Abdulla Sajjad in the MAX DD2, and Mohamed Almahroos in the DD2 Masters. The BRMC is one of the region's premier karting championships. It brings together participants of various ages and nationalities, who battle it out in their very own Rotax-powered machinery. The series is being organised and run by BIC and BIKC, in cooperation with the Bahrain Motor Federation, Bahrain Karting Commission, and Motorsport Marshals Club. Tariq was the winner in the Micro MAX category after taking the chequered flag in their nine-lap final in a time of nine minutes 30.622 seconds. Tariq started the race behind Abdulaziz Alsarraf, but was able to take the lead on lap five. He went on to triumph 5.595 seconds ahead of Abdulaziz, while Rashid Almahroos claimed third place 12.559s adrift. Earlier in the round, Tariq was also the winner in class in the seven-lap pre-final, while Abdulaziz clinched pole in qualifying and Rashid set the pace during the free practice. In the Mini MAX class, Rayyan e nded the final third on the track but later inherited first place. Rayyan had a winning time of 9:07.241 after nine laps - just 0.794 seconds ahead of runner-up Jude Andrews. William Lette claimed the other podium spot 21.199s back. Shaikh Ahmed bin Saqer Al Khalifa had earlier taken an outright victory in the seven-lap pre-final from pole position, while Rayyan topped the Mini MAX timesheet in practice. Amongst the Junior MAX runners, Nasser started the new championship from where he left off last season - atop the podium. Celebrating his graduation to the higher tier, Nasser won the 15-lap final from pole to flag in 14:07.585, narrowly beating out the defending champion in class, Khaled Najjar, by 0.863s. Demir Abali came third 3.865s from the victor. Nasser secured his grand slam with the race's best lap of 55.923s. He earlier also won the pre-final after securing the top spot in qualifying, while Leopold Juch was quickest in practice. The Senior MAX featured the meeting's largest grid with 15 competi tors, and it was Mejia who stood tall at the end. He won the 15-lap final after a tough battle. He started the race from second place and gained the lead midway through, but lost it heading into the final stages only to recapture the advantage on the penultimate lap, en route to winning in 13:53.192. Mejia pipped Musaad Albassam at the chequered flag by 0.220s, while Zain Elhommossany joined them on the podium just 1.003s behind. Mejia also won the pre-final and set the pace in Senior MAX qualifying and practice. In the MAX DD2 category, Sajjad triumphed after 15 laps in the final with a time of 13:39.674. He was 7.284s ahead of Raoul Sadi, while Oliver Kruglov came third 7.609s adrift. Sajjad also won the pre-final and claimed pole in qualifying, while Sadi was quickest in practice. In the DD2 Masters, Almahroos ran the final unopposed and finished his 15-lap outing in 13:57.119. Following all the action in round one, the winners were presented their respective trophies by officials in the podium cerem onies. The championship resumes with round two on 12 October, to be followed by rounds three and four on 15 and 29 November, respectively. The BRMC will then begin 2025 with round five on 11 January, before holding round six on 24 January. The seventh and penultimate meeting will take place on 8 February, setting the stage for the BRMC finale two weeks later on February 21 . Source: Bahrain News Agency