(11-20-09) DOHA, Qatar – Having only the four allotted qualifying sessions for Round 1 of the Arabian Drag Racing League at the Qatar Race Club to get comfortable in his new Pro Extreme ’68 Camaro, HH Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Thani put on a tremendous driving display during the elimination rounds of the season-opening event.
Sheikh Khalid, who qualified 3rd in the field with a 3.859-second blast at 199.75mph, had to face the Qatar Race Club’s own Bader Alhi in the Todd Tutterow-tuned ’06 Ford Mustang in the opening round of action. Despite the game opponent in the other lane, the Sheikh maintained a level of collectiveness and composure that is rarely seen in a rookie driver and took out his veteran counterpart, setting up a final round against the Barwa Racing ’68 Camaro driven by 2008 Arabian Drag Racing League world champion, Von Smith.
Smith, who put the Howard Moon-tuned Pro Extreme Camaro on the pole with a 3.735 at 205.22mph, is undeniably the man to beat when it comes to drag racing in the Arabian Gulf Region, but Sheikh Khalid remained confident that his first outing as a Pro Extreme driver could very well result in his first career victory.
“Frank [Manzo, crew chief] has made me so comfortable over the course of the race, that it was easy to be confident going into our first final round together,” said Sheikh Khalid, checking in from his home in Doha. “He has such an easy going personality, and he is always teaching, so we continued to make big progress every time we took to the track.”
He continued, “With Tim [McAmis] taking care of the car and Frank the motor, it’s just been a dream to drive. These guys have this Al-Anabi Racing Camaro dialed-in, and it’s let me really focus on cutting a light and doing my job as the driver.”
No questioning his concentration, as Sheikh Khalid used a 19-thousands-of-a-second starting line advantage to hold Smith off until about half-track when the hard charging Barwa Camaro slipped by, taking the win with a 3.758/205.69mph combination to His Highness’ 3.860-second, 198.06mph effort.
“I really wanted to leave on Von,” said Sheikh Khalid. “I managed to pull it off, but they got the best of us on the other end. It was a great showing for this entire organization, though, and I couldn’t be happier to see Von and Howard win Round 1 at the QRC. This was a stellar weekend, and for our newest sponsor, Barwa, to see the winner’s circle in their first outing is incredible.”
Frank Manzo, who has earned almost innumerable wins in the NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car category, had nothing but good things to say about his new driver.
“Sheikh is a tuner’s driver,” said Manzo, direct from the pits of the state-of-the-art Qatar Race Club. “He listens and makes the adjustments that need to be made. I couldn’t ask for more. We would have loved to get this first win together, but we’ll give it another shot here in a few weeks during Round 2.”
For more information on the Qatar Race Club and the Arabian Drag Racing League’s season-opener and to see the schedule for the rest of the season, log onto www.qrczone.com
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