Al Masaood wants to close the gap on ALMS championship leaders

Humaid Al Masaood has been raising the bar for Middle East motorsport with his performances in the ALMS.

After two third-place finishes in his first two American Le Mans Series (ALMS) starts, the Emirati driver Humaid Al Masaood is naturally in a buoyant mood.

Now he, and Oryx Racing teammate Steve Kane heads to Ohio for round six of the series on a track that Masaood believes will suit the team if last year's result — won by the team's sister Dyson Racing car — is anything to go by.

"This track will suit us more than Mosport did," Al Masaood said of the Lexington based permanent road track. "We will be looking to take advantage of the 3.5km, 15 turn circuit and post a strong finishing position."

The track is often recognised as one of the most competitive courses in the US, but with the Abu Dhabi racer carrying a huge amount of momentum with him, he now targets getting among the Championship leaders.

"To finish third in both races so far is a great achievement," he said "but now the focus turns to Ohio where we aim to improve again and target the championship leaders."

Al Masaood's contribution to the ALMS continues in impressive fashion as he continues to set the benchmark for Middle East motorsport. Racing against some of the world's top sports car drivers, he is the first Emirati to take part in top-flight international sports car racing and has drawn global attention with successive podium triumphs.

Al Masaood and Kane are contesting the final seven rounds of this year's ten race ALMS and have recorded successive third place finishes in their first two races at Lime Rock and Mosport.

Their Mazda Lola Coupé LMP1 category car is fitted with a turbocharged Mazda MZR-R engine, which delivers over 500bhp and over 400lb-ft of torque, powering it from 0-100 kph in 3.2 seconds and on to a top speed of 320 kph.