RIYADH — Under the supervision of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation (SAMF), the first round of the Saudi ‘ROTAX’ Cup Challenge was launched Saturday at the "FunXtreme" circuit in Dirab Square for car and motorcycle racing, with the participation of elite karting racers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arab Gulf states.

The tournament, which is the first of its kind in the Kingdom, and consists of three rounds, will continue until July 19.

Since its inception, the tour has witnessed intense competition and this was clearly evident since the qualifying phase to determine the poles.

The excitement continued on the circuit until Khaled Al-Zayed was able to clinch the tour title in his favor in the Senior category, while Khaled Shalash came in second and Omar Al-Duraian ranked third.

In the Senior category Master, Elie El-Helou came first, Bandar Al-Shammari came second, and in the Junior category, Talal Nagli ranked first, Ahmed El-Sisi ranked second, and Abdelallah El-Tayeb ranked third.

After the awarding ceremony, the race director Eng. Muteb Al-Saqhan expressed his happiness at the level of organization and the great club for the tour, indicating that the Saudi ROTAX Cup challenge came as a translation to support Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al-Faisal, minister of sports, and Prince Khalid Bin Sultan Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, chairman of SAMF and their efforts and constant follow-up in order to develop motorsport and motivate youth to practice it.

Al-Saqhan pointed out that the championship seeks to achieve a number of goals, most notably educating the community about motorsport, and motivating it to practice it in places designated for the safety of the individual and society.

It is also working to attract professional drivers from within Saudi Arabia, discovering national talents and developing them to reach international competitions within the 2021 championship season.

The tournament director said: “It was a truly exceptional tour, and the contestants gave a great performance and the title was not decided until the last meters of the race, expecting more participants in the coming rounds, God willing.” — SG