MOTORRACING – Bahrain1 Racing star Khalid Al Balooshi maintained his perfect start to the 2024-25 Bahrain Drag Racing Championship, winning the Pro Mod category in a hotly contested second round held last week at Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) in Sakhir.
Nearly 200 competitors from all over the world lit up the quarter-mile strip at ‘The Home of Motorsport in the Middle East’ in the meeting’s various classes, which featured 136 cars and 60 motorbikes. The racers hailed from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Lebanon, Palestine, the US, and Bahrain.
Al Balooshi made it two wins out of two in the Pro Mod category, continuing from where he left off in the season-opener for Bahrain1, the recently crowned champions of the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) in the US.
Joining Al Balooshi as winners amongst the cars classes were Ali Baslar, Safwan Adel, Ali Alkhamiri, Sayed Hussain Salman, Obaid Al Balooshi, Zakariya Alkawari, Ali Adel, and Yousif Alali, while taking first place amongst the motorbikes categories in the second round were Khalifa Alsurooqi, Mishari Alturki, and Mohammed Alawwad.
Al Balooshi took his Pro Mod victory in an all-Bahrain1 final, where he faced off with teammate Khalil Alansari. Al Balooshi won their head-to-head with an elapsed time of 3.717s at 322.47kph with a 0.041s reaction time, while Alansari had a red light. Rashid Al Balooshi finished in third place.
Ali Baslar was the winner in the 10.0 Index category. He defeated Ahmed Jamal in the final, posting an elapsed time of 9.990s at 213.33kph with a reaction of 0.026s, whereas Jamal had a breakout. Ahmed Matar took third place.
Safwan Adel was the winner in the 9.0 Index category. He had a time of 9.030s at 238.99kph with a 0.033s reaction time to beat Faisal Alahmed, who had a breakout. Dhari Alhajji joined them on the podium.
In the 8.5 Index class, Ali Alkhamiri was the victor. He had a winning mark of 8.536s at 247.84kph with a 0.037s reaction, while Fawaz Alawadhi was the runner-up with an 8.542s run at 256.96kph with a 0.190s reaction. Sayed Mohammed Salman took third place.
Sayed Hussain Salman took first place in the 7.5 Index category after beating Nawaf Alkalidi in the final. Salman posted an elapsed time of 7.552s at 283.20kph with a 0.029s reaction, beating Alkalidi’s 7.868s at 244.42kph with a 0.047s reaction. Meshari Alkanderi claimed third place.
Winning amongst the Competition 4.5 runners was Obaid Al Balooshi with a 4.540s final run at 247.56kph and a 0.029s reaction time. He defeated Fahad Alsanad, who posted a 4.517s pass at 242.66kph with a 0.063s reaction. Rashid Aljehani was the other podium placer.
Zakariya Alkawari won the Outlaw 4-Cylinder category ahead of Salman Al Mahmood. Alkawari finished his run with a 7.750s elapsed time at 252.46kph and a 0.353s reaction time, while Al Mahmood went for a 7.285s run at 309.80kph with a 1.802s reaction. Abdulfattah Atwan joined them on the podium.
Ali Adel triumphed amongst the Outlaw 6-Cylinder competitors with a 4.749s elapsed time at 249.14kph and 0.015s reaction in the final. He beat Abdullah Ebrahim, who posted marks of 5.165s and 0.158s at 221.07kph. Mohammed Hussain took third place.
Yousif Alali was the victor in the Pro 29.5 V8 class. He beat Abdulwahab Saleem in their final with a 3.916s run at 319.31kph and a 0.140s reaction time. Saleem had a mark of 4.516s at 218.11kph with a 0.042s reaction. Abdullah Alshamsi finished in third place.
Amongst the motorbikes classes, Khalifa Alsurooqi won the Street Fight Bikes 9.5 battles with a 9.376s elapsed time at 222.71kph and a 0.108s reaction. He beat Fadi Abujamous, who had a breakout. Mohammed Abdulkarim was the third-placer.
Mishari Alturki was triumphant in the Pro Street Bikes category, taking the final in 4.352s at 273.29kph with a 0.181s reaction. Khalid Aldossary lost the race with a 4.852s time at 240.48kph and a 0.085s reaction. Fahed Alharbi finished third.
Mohammed Alawwad triumphed amongst the Outlaw Bikes runners after beating Alturki in their final. Alawwad had a 4.041s elapsed time at 279.71kph and a 0.028s reaction, while Alturki had a red light. Khalid Aldossary was again on the podium but this time was third.
The 2024/2025 Bahrain Drag Racing Championship features five rounds. It is being organised by BIC in cooperation with the Bahrain Motor Federation, the Bahrain Drag Racing Commission, and the Bahrain Motorcycle Commission.
The campaign resumes in the new year with round three, scheduled from 21 to 24 January. The season’s fourth and penultimate meeting is then set for 11 to 14 February, and that will lead up to the grand finale the very next weekend from 18 to 21 February.
For more information on the Bahrain Drag Racing Championship or other events and experiences at BIC, visit bahraingp.com, call the BIC Hotline on +973-17450000, or follow the circuit’s social media channels.
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