Abu Dhabi, December 04, 2017 – Rashid Al Dhaheri, the UAE’s most exciting young karting star, powered to an exciting victory in Round Three of the X30 Challenge UAE at Emirates Track during the National Day weekend. After a determined display against a strong line-up of drivers in the Cadet Class, Rashid celebrated the UAE’s National day by raising the UAE flag on the podium.
The nine year old Emirati qualified in P2 with only a small gap between himself and P1, in a competitive class that features some of the MENA region’s top young drivers in the 8 to 12 age group. In Heat 1, Rashid was the fastest driver on the track, quickly taking the lead and thereafter widening the gap between first to finish over a second faster than P2.
As a result, Rashid started the Pre-Final in pole position; however just after the start, Rashid’s kart suffered a mechanical failure that caused his carburetor to be flooded with fuel leaving him unable to finish the race. Significantly this also meant that he lost his position on the grid and had to start the all-important final in last place.
Undeterred by this setback, Rashid kept his focus and used the skills and experience gained from racing in Italy to deliver an impressive display in the Final. In an extraordinary series of moves, Rashid managed to overtake the pack early on in the putting him in P2. Rashid then settled himself and two laps later he took the lead in a decisive manner and crossed the line in P1.
Young Rashid said afterwards: “The gap was big but I knew I could catch P1. I am very happy and proud to win in my home country on National Day.”
Fausto Ippoliti, Team Manager of Ippoliti Kart and ex Formula 3000 Italian Champion commented: “Rashid put in a really impressive performance. He made us proud with his fighting spirit, excellent pace and technique. This victory shows that all his hard work in Italy is starting to pay off. He is very happy to celebrate UAE National Day with a win.
Nine year old Emirati is combining his UAE campaign with an intensive racing programme in Italy (delete: with the renowned ‘BabyRace’ team) and has seen success a range of competitions such as the WSK Championship, and the Campionato Italiano ACI.