(MENAFN- Arab Times) KUWAIT CITY April 20: Season 6 of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East came to a thrilling conclusion in Race 2 of Round 6 at the Bahrain International Circuit with Clemens Schmid of Al Nabooda Racing securing his second drivers' championship by a margin of ten points over Kuwait's Zaid Ashkanani while Skydive Dubai Falcons lifted the team trophy for the first time.
Following on from the thrills of Race 1 Race 2 was a more controlled but equally exciting affair with the top two drivers Schmid and Ashkanani starting from sixth and seventh following a five place grid penalty for Ashkanani handed down for an incident in Race 1 and a very poor qualifying performance from Schmid the day before. Suffering from neither of those woes were Skydive Dubai Falcons who performed exceptionally across the weekend with Sheikh Hasher Al Maktoum securing his second podium place finish in as many days while his team mate Saeed Al Mehairi took second to ensure the team trophy returned to Dubai but in the hands of a new team after being held by Al Nabooda Racing for the past two years. From the get-go Schmid knew he had to finish within a few places of his title rival Ashkanani to secure the driver's championship title and drove a solid race to ensure the Kuwaiti could not escape his sights. The young Kuwaiti looked determined to do everything he could to secure the vital points he needed to challenge for his second title in as many years but despite making his way through the pack Ashkanani couldn't create a big enough gap in position between himself and the UAE-resident nor could he get close enough to the front of the pack to earn the maximum points. An honourable fourth place finish means Ashkanani fnished second in the Drivers' Standings and loses his championship crown to the man he took it from in Season 5. Having finished second in Season 6 of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East Zaid Ashkanani said: 'Of course I am disappointed. I wanted to win and keep hold of the championship title. It means a lot to me but it wasn't my weekend. It was a tough battle all season and I guess the result just shows how competitive the series is you have to be at your best the whole time. I have a lot more racing coming up where I'll be using everything I've learned in this season and that has been a huge amount. It's been great competing with the guys and seeing the improvements in my driving but I can always get better and I'll be working hard to make sure that I learn from this experience in order to get better.' With the F1 crowds filling the stands Season 6 the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East came to a climatic conclusion on the biggest stage of all adding an extra level of excitement and prestige to the region's most professional and most competitive racing series. As the lights went out at Bahrain International Circuit the drivers burst into life with Clemens Schmid looking to build on his seventh place start on the grid while Zaid Ashkanani also had work to do from sixth. Schmid has the better start of the two but as the came to the first corner it was only Ahmad Al Harthy of Al Nabooda Racing who managed to gain a position up from ninth to seventh. Lap one saw the cars tightly packed with second placed Sheikh Hasher Al Maktoum pushing for the lead and taking it from Charlie Frijns who started on pole. Also managing to squeeze past Frijns on lap one were Fahad Algosaibi and significantly Al Maktoum's team mate Saeed Al Mehairi as the Skydive Dubai duo went for maximum points to secure the team title. All eyes were on the scrap between Ashkanani and Schmid and the pair were quick to pass Bandar Alesayi with Ashkanani fully aware he would need to finish around five places ahead of his rival if he was to take the driver's championship. Despite searching for the opportunity to get those much needed points the young Kuwaiti couldn't close in on Frijns and had to settle for fourth. Meanwhile in the hunt for the team title the Skydive Dubai pair were placed first and second after just two laps with the victors trophy within their reach. As the race wore on Al Maktoum was facing increased pressure from second placed Fahad Algosaibi with the result that Saeed Al Mehairi was able to track down the front runners and mount a challenge of his own. The closing laps saw a threeway battle with the drivers racing three abreast down the straights on more than one occasion. As his tyres wore out Al Maktoum was unable to hold on despite leading for the majority of the race and surrendered the lead finishing third behind Algosaibi and Al Mehairi with Ashkanani fourth Schmid fifth and Bandar Alesayi sixth. The Bahrain race weekend saw the six round twelve race season of Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East racing come to a dramatic end with the team and drivers' championships both decided on the final day of the six month long competition. Congratulations to Season 6 drivers' champion Clemens Schmid and team champions Skydive Dubai Falcons.
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