Emirati drivers Khaled Al Qubaisi, left, and Saeed Al Mehairi will feel right at home this weekend. Courtesy photo
Emirati drivers Khaled Al Qubaisi, left, and Saeed Al Mehairi will feel right at home this weekend. Courtesy photo

Other Sport

Audi R8 LMS Cup at Yas Marina Circuit this weekend will decide Audi series winner

Emirati drivers Khaled Al Qubaisi and Saeed Al Mehairi will compete in the Audi R8 LMS Cup this weekend when the championship race series makes its debut at the Yas Marina Circuit, reports Amith Passela.

Amith Passela
Amith Passela

December 10, 2014

Abu Dhabi // Emirati drivers Khaled Al Qubaisi and Saeed Al Mehairi will compete in the Audi R8 LMS Cup this weekend when the championship race series makes its debut at the Yas Marina Circuit.

The Abu Dhabi races are the final leg of the Audi series following action in South Korea, Malaysia, China and Japan.

Free practice takes place on Thursday at 4.45pm, with qualifying at 11.45am on Friday and Race 1 to follow at 6.30pm. Race 2 is Saturday at 4.45pm.

It is a one-off entry for both Al Qubaisi – who is also competing in the Gulf 12 Hours this weekend – and Al Mehairi, but the championship title is still wide open as any of the top four drivers have a chance to claim the crown.

Alex Yoong, the former Formula 1 driver from Malaysia, tops the standings going into the final leg with 156 points, followed by Macau’s Andre Couto (149), Rahel Frey of Switzerland (121) and China’s Chang Cong Fu (112).

There are 51 points up for grabs, 25 for each of the two races and one for pole position.

Each race is 15 laps and each team comprises of two drivers.

Al Qubaisi and Al Mehairi both said they will use their knowledge of the track to their advantage.

“If we have any disadvantages, it may be only that we have not driven the car,” said Al Qubaisi, the first Emirati to drive at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and winner of the Gulf 12 Hours and the 24 Hours of Dubai last year.

“Perhaps, all we may need to adapt quickly is a good half-hour behind the wheels. Home advantage is a huge plus and I feel that evens out. Yes, our competitors have been racing the whole season, but I still feel knowing the track will help.

“Once you are the race driver, all you need is half-hour to get used to the car. For my side, I feel it will be OK.”

Al Mehairi, who scored his first win in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East last weekend, said: “Khaled and I are racing together, so I know how good a driver he is and I’m sure that we can form a successful team for the Abu Dhabi race.

“Like all racing drivers, we both want to win races, but the priority is to support each other, put the team first and try to deliver a great race for all our fans out there.”

The duo share an Abu Dhabi Racing Audi R8 LMS adorned with the number 43, in honour of National Day.

apassela@thenational.ae

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COMPANY PROFILE

● Company: Bidzi

● Started: 2024

● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid

● Based: Dubai, UAE

● Industry: M&A

● Funding size: Bootstrapped

● No of employees: Nine

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Skewed figures

In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458. 

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
 
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia

UAE gold medallists:

Omar Al Suweidi (46kg), Khaled Al Shehhi (50kg), Khalifa Humaid Al Kaabi (60kg), Omar Al Fadhli (62kg), Mohammed Ali Al Suweidi (66kg), Omar Ahmed Al Hosani (73), all in the U18’s, and Khalid Eskandar Al Blooshi (56kg) in the U21s.

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