Doha: After winning both races of the opening round of the Losail MX Championship at Losail International Circuit here last weekend, Kuwaiti rider Mohammed Jaffar continued his unstoppable form yesterday and won the third round of the Qatar International Enduro at Sealine on the outskirts of Doha.
Organised by the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF), Enduro off-road races are designed to test the endurance and off-road riding skills of the rider.
Altogether 31 riders participated in the third round of competition and the Red Bull KTM rider put up good performances in every session — winning both races while fighting off fierce competition from South African Le Roy Botha in his Honda bike in the Abu Issa Racing.
Apart from the E1, E2 and quads categories, a new category was implemented in this round for veterans.
In the first race of the day, Jaffar had an easy win and lead the race from the second lap, when he overtook Le Roy, till the end. The Kuwaiti came in 42.457 seconds ahead of Le Roy.
It was an all-Kuwaiti affair at the podium after the E1 category race, Jaffar in the first place, Al Shatti second and Barak Al Jasmi third. In the E2 category, the winner was Le Roy Botha followed by Meshari Abou Shaiba from Kuwait and Mathew Gilpin from South Africa.
Qatari rider Mohammed Abu Issa was the winner in the quad category.
“It was a great race for us; it was my fist Enduro over a year maybe. I am very happy to be first and my team-mate came second, so it is a great result for us,” Abu Issa said after the podium ceremony.
Anthony Benon from France and Fahad Al Musallam from Kuwait finished in second and third position respectively in the quad category.
In the new veterans category, the first position went to Glenn Allan from Australia.
In the second race of the E1 category, Jaffar didn’t have a good start as he got stuck at the start. Later he also suffered two crashes, so he had to ride to his limit to get the lead and victory. He achieved this in dramatic fashion in the last-lap. Abdullah Al Shatti and Hassan Nooraldin came in at second and third place respectively.
Le Roy also won the second race of the E2 podium with Meshari Abou Shaiba in second place and Moaath Al Ansari in third place.
The victory in the second race of the quads category again went to Qatar’s Abu Issa. In the veterans category, the second race was won by French rider Patrick Roux.
Mohammed Jaffar, the E1 double winner was extremely happy after his ride and thanked the QMMF for organising the event and their effort to make each round different. He dedicated his victories to his coach and thanked his sponsors KTM, Adidas and SunGard.
“Today’s victories are very good to secure my first place in the championship. It is always difficult to win and ride here, especially on the soil of this area and the sand of Qatar, so this kind of wins makes me really happy.’ Jaffar said.
E2 winner Le Roy said: “The track was a bit slippery in the morning but during the races, the track was perfect. In the first race Jaffar was on the gas, so I just kept on this land and keep my pace. The second race was absolutely brilliant and all came together, the track was smooth, corners were perfect. I want to thank Abu Issa Racing and Salam International for supporting me”.
In the standings, Mohammed Jaffar is leading the E1 category with 147 points and Abdullah Al Shatti is second with 117 points.
Moath Al Ansari from Kuwait is leading the E2 category with 116 points. In the Quads category, Fahad Al Musallam, with 92 points, is in first place.
The trophies were presented by QMMF Board Member Sultan Zaher Al Morraikhi, FIM Asia Vice-president Essa Al Awadi and Iain Black, Clerk of Course.
THE PENINSULA
