24-hour karting challenge starts tomorrow

Dubai: The final round of the 2008 Nivea for Men Endurance Challenge 24 Hours of Dubai will begin at 2pm on Friday at the Kartdrome.

The UAE national flag will drop to signal the start of the race for a record field of 40 teams, who will battle it out for the next 24 hours for top honours in what has become the region's premier karting event.

Skill, endurance and teamwork will be tested to the maximum as more than 250 drivers push their limits.

Top-ranked Nivea for Men (NFM) Professionals will start off as favourites. Other local teams vying for honours and most likely to challenge the NFM Professionals will be Kartdrome Speedsters and Team MRDC, who are tied for second place.

The local aces will find themselves up against the strongest international opposition they have yet encountered with French team HSM1, winners of the Paris 24 Hours karting race, going all out for victory.

The French team will also be sending out a squad of disabled drivers, HSM2, who have a formidable reputation, having finished fourth in the recent 24 Hours of Le Mans Karting.

Fellow French team MF Chrono will line up with two teams of top drivers capable of strong showing.

The Russian team Forza Sport have competed in Dubai in previous years and have an intimate knowledge of what is required to triumph at the Kartdrome - in fact they came close to winning last year, only to lose the race on the final lap