Dubai: Sultan Al Za'abi flew across the finish line in the blink of an eye to win the opening round of the UAE National Drag Championship organised under the auspices of the Maktoum Challenge in Fujairah last week.
The Maktoum Challenge, held under the patronage of Shaikh Maktoum Bin Hamad Al Sharqi, made its debut in 2008 and is held during Ramadan with various indoor and outdoor sporting activities ranging from football, cricket, martial arts to badminton and motor sports providing a competitive platform for sportspersons and a source of entertainment for thousands of fans after iftar.
While the non-motorsport competitions are held inside the Fujairah Tennis Stadium, thousands witnessed the drag race held within a designated enclosure on a specially laid out track some 200 metres behind the stadium just off the Dubai-Fujairah highway.
High-profile audience
Apart from Shaikh Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Fujairah Shaikh Mohammad Bin Hamad Bin Mohammad Al Sharqi, Crown Prince of Umm Al Quwain Shaikh Rashid Bin Saud Al Mualla and President of Fujairah Culture and Media Authority Shaikh Rashid Bin Hamad Bin Mohammad Al Sharqi were the other dignitaries who witnessed some fast and furious racing on the specially laid drag-racing track.
The first round of the drag championship signals the return of the Emirates Motor Sports Federation (EMSF) after having maintained a low profile for nearly two years due to the global financial meltdown and the resultant drying up of funds from traditional sponsors. The remaining rounds will be held from October with the final round scheduled for April, 2011.
While the UAE National Sand Drag Championship was originally scheduled to be launched in late October, the invitation to be part of the Maktoum Challenge provided the perfect platform to introduce "this exciting, adrenaline-filled sport to UAE motor sport fans," according to EMSF general manager Ahmad Al Sharif.
"The Maktoum Challenge is a very popular multi-disciplinary sporting extravaganza that attracts thousands of people daily, and we felt that this festival would be the perfect platform to introduce a new championship to the people of the UAE," said Al Sharif.
Drag racing is a competition in which vehicles compete to be the first to cross a set finish line, usually from a standing start, and in a straight line. Most drag races begin with a stationary start and are just 400 metres long.
Results
Results: 8-Cylinder Promod: 1. Sultan Al Za'abi - UAE (3.540 secs); 2. Ali Mussabeh Al Ka'abi - UAE (3.721 secs); 3. Abdullah Al Khalidi - Saudi Arabia (3.752 secs).
Pro6: 1. Khalid Rashid Al Beloushi - UAE (4.036 secs); 2. Yousuf Sulaiman Al Khadr - Saudi Arabia (4.414 secs); 3. Ali Al Ka'abi - UAE (4.723 secs).
Standard: 1. Yousuf Mohammad Al Ali - UAE (5.526 secs); 2. Abdul Rahman Al Beloushi - UAE (5.572 secs); 3. Abdullah Mohammad Al Shamsi - UAE (5.814 secs).
