DUBAI // The Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East took centre stage at the Dubai Motorsport Festival this weekend, but there was plenty of action elsewhere, including a welcome win for Abdulaziz Binladin in the UAE Sportbikes on Saturday after he failed to finish his first race on Friday.
The Liberty Kawasaki rider found victory in the 600 Class. He powered through the field after starting from the back of the grid on his way to the top of the podium.
Binladin thanked his team, saying: “The guys worked really hard all night and into the morning to fix my bike after our DNF yesterday. It feels good to bounce back with a win and limit the damage in the championship.”
Mahmoud Tannir finished second on his Triumph, ahead of visiting Swedish veteran Magnus Mossberg on a Yamaha. Michael Collins was fast enough to take top honours in the Rookie Cup.
Guillaume Simonnet, driving a SEAT, made it two out of two by winning the NGK Racing Series contest, making the most of Costas Papantonis’s absence and taking maximum points in Class 1 for the weekend. Marcel Kusin was second in a BMW.
Jonathan Mullan scored a win in Class 2 after a duel with fellow Honda driver Rupesh Channake.
“We came from the back as we got a slow start,” Mullen said. “But once we got motoring it was particularly nice.”
Nasser Al Shaiba won the non-championship 1,000 Class on his BMW, with Ducati-mounted Damien van Blerk in second.
Elsewhere, Emirati youngster Saeed Bintouq won the Formula Gulf 1,000 race, with Dubai schoolboy Tom Bale second and Abdullah Kabbani in third.
Kuwaiti brothers Mohamed and Salem Al Nusif triumphed in the Radical Middle East Cup, with Amro Al Hamad and Salman Khatter second and Saud Al Saud taking third place.
The next UAE National Race Day is March 7 at Dubai Autodrome.
sports@thenational.ae
