(4-26-10) VALDOSTA, Georgia – In what could easily be described as the most highly anticipated driver debut in the history of the American Drag Racing League, Sheikh Khalid Al Thani dispelled any and all notions of his rookie status in a most impressive first appearance in the fast doorslammer racing series.
Having already scored three event victories and even the series championship in his home nation of Qatar, Al Thani was no stranger to the driver's seat by the time he arrived stateside for the ADRL Georgia Drags VI and displayed the poise of a veteran in both great success and unfortunate defeat.
After a very strong 3.784 at 204.05mph in the opening round of qualifying, followed by a 3.754/203.34mph combination in the second session, the stage was set for a historical evening as the cool air rolled in and day turned into night at South Georgia Motorsports Park. Just moments after fellow Pro Extreme pilot Frankie Taylor, a legendary figure in the sport, posted a world-record and career-best 3.650-second elapsed time, KH rolled to the starting line for his first shot at the track under optimal conditions.
Anticipation was at an all-time high as Frank "Ace" Manzo, Al-Anabi Racing crew chief, pulled Sheikh Khalid into the beams with veteran Top Fuel tuners Tim and Kim Richards lining the car up in the groove. When the amber lights flashed and KH side-stepped the clutch the entire crowd held their collective breath waiting for the scoreboard to light up – and light up it did. The shot-heard-round-the-world 3.637-second, 212.49mph blast catapulted KH to the top of the qualifying sheets and into the history books as the driver of the quickest and fastest door car on the planet Earth.
Following the performance, Manzo said candidly, "That's one for the stools – the bar stools. No way around it, we got lucky out there. We took a shot and it worked out, but these conditions aren't what we'll be working with tomorrow in eliminations when it counts."
Manzo continued, "I have to say that this is the result of a collective effort by Tim and Kim Richards, Sheikh Khalid, and this great team – not something that I, alone, should get credit for. We're really working well together and I've got a lot of hope for what we can accomplish as a team. It's an absolute honor to be a part of this team."
Due to persistent rain through Saturday morning, the fourth and final qualifying session was cut and the fields set in each of the ADRL's five professional categories. Sheikh Khalid and the Al-Anabi Racing team would face the Stanley & Weiss Racing '68 Camaro driven by John Stanley in the opening stanza.
While KH and the Al-Anabi Racing Pro Extreme '68 Camaro were an odds-on favorite for running the table in Valdosta, a -.002-second red-light in the first round brought a premature end to an incredible debut weekend.
"I'm really not too disappointed," said Sheikh Khalid after Saturday's elimination rounds. "We always come out and race to win, but I can't help but be happy about what we accomplished in our first outing in the American Drag Racing League. I have to apologize to my team for letting them down by red-lighting in the first round as everyone did an amazing job in giving me a car capable of winning the race.
"It was an incredible experience to get to race against the drivers that I have looked up to for years and put on a show for all the fans here in South Georgia. I would like to personally thank all my fellow racers for being so welcoming, as well as all the fans that stopped by the Al-Anabi Racing pits. We're fortunate to be a part of the ADRL and I'm looking forward to the next race in Virginia."
Al Thani concluded, "I also have to say congratulations to my teammate Jason Scruggs on his Pro Extreme victory along with our own Mike Castellana on his win in Pro Nitrous."
The Al-Anabi Racing Pro Extreme team will take to action in the third of ten scheduled American Drag Racing League series events at Virginia Motorsports Park in Dinwiddie, Virginia on May 20-21, 2010.
ABOUT AL-ANABI RACING/QATAR:
At the forefront of Al-Anabi Racing is His Highness Sheikh Khalid Bin Hamad Al Thani, a member of the ruling family of Qatar, who set a goal of promoting the domestic and international awareness of motorsports in the nation of Qatar. As a result of his efforts, Al-Anabi Racing has emerged as one of the leading drag racing teams in the region. In 2009, Sheikh Khalid launched the inaugural racing season at the Qatar Race Club, a state of the art drag strip outside the nation's capital city of Doha. Along with his racing efforts in the Arabian Gulf Region, Sheikh Khalid is also the owner of several top-tier professional racing teams that field entries in classes such as NHRA Top Fuel and Nitro Funny Car to Pro Stock Motorcycle and Pro Modified.
Qatar is widely known for working with the United States military forces to build one of the premier U.S. air bases in the Arabian Gulf Region at Al-Udeid. The Qatari philosophy was to obtain the best defense by providing the best facilities for U.S. and coalition forces, thus the construction of Al-Udeid Air Base, which cost more than a billion dollars and can house nearly one hundred aircraft.
The state of Qatar sits on a peninsula halfway along the western shoreline of the Arabian Gulf and is almost completely surrounded by sea. It borders Saudi Arabia to the south and is separated by the sea from the United Arab Emirates in the southeast and Bahrain in the northwest.
Established in 1850, the state population is rapidly approaching 1 million while the capital city, Doha, is home to over 286,000 people. Through innovative projects such as Education City, a district within the capital city offering its citizens world-class educational opportunities, as well as Motor City and Entertainment City, which are still in the planning stages, Qatar has become a sought-after tourist destination.
Along with year-round sunshine and an all-round ideal climate, Qatar also offers a host of five-star hotels, spas, restaurants and resorts.
For more information on the Al-Anabi Racing Pro Extreme team, Qatar Race Club and Sheikh Khalid Al Thani, log onto www.qrczone.com
