Thrills galore as TRD 86 Cup goes down to the wire at Yas Marina Circuit

Denzil Pinto 12:19 26/04/2016
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  • The Toyota 86 cars provided intense competition in Abu Dhabi.

    The second edition came to an end at the iconic Yas Marina Circuit last week and it certainly provided plenty of high voltage drama during the eight months.

    Designed to give amateurs a chance to compete in a professional racing competition in a Toyota 86 car, six of the drivers from the inaugural season, including champion Karim Al Azhari, returned to the grid for the two-race, six-round series.

    They were joined by seven new faces, including American Bill Martin, Saudi youngster Nahar Al Rashed and ex-world rally championship co-driver Gregory Pain.

    Before the drivers had even tested their cars, Al Azhari sent out an early warning that he wasn’t going to give up his title easily.

    The 43-year-old was the man to beat, having taken the chequered flag 10 times in the 12 races across the six rounds in the first season to top the standings with 238 points.

    A look back at an action-packed TRD 86 Cup.

    The German stayed true to his words. Opening the season with a first-race triumph, he went on to become the fastest on nine occasions. He even clocked the season’s fastest time of 20:00.943 in the fourth round.

    Despite his rivals piling on the pressure, Al Azhari remained focused and that was enough to accumulate 220 points, 28 clear of runner-up Mohammed Abdulghaffer Hussein.

    It wasn’t just Al Azhari who stole the show. He was pushed all the way by the UAE’s Hussein, who remarkably did not win one single race.

    The 39-year-old finished runner-up four times, while sealing third six times. He did have something to celebrate though as he reigned supreme in the Silver category – open for novice drivers.

    Last season’s runner-up Ahmed Al Melaihi finished a distant third with 154 points.

    The Emirati was one of three drivers (apart from Al Azhari) to win a race, having triumphed in the second race of round three at the Dubai Autodrome.

    Frenchman Pain had never even raced on a circuit prior to the championship, despite having more than eight years of rallying experience.

    But he had a debut season to remember to not only finish fourth in the overall standings but also end his campaign in style by triumphing in the final race of the season.

    Another man to deny Al Azhari at the top was Shihab Al Faheem. The Emirati had topped the standings as early as round two, having won the second race in the opener back in October. But due to personal reasons, he missed three rounds to finish sixth, four points behind Lebanon’s Edy Saaiby (114).

    At just 19, Al Rashed was the youngest-ever driver to line up in the competition, but the Saudi showed no signs of nerves. His best finish was fourth in the opening round and although he did miss the podium and some rounds, the student claimed 10th place overall.

    The third edition begins in October and Al Azhari is already looking forward to defending his title.

    “I was very happy when Yas Marina Circuit launched this championship and I’m happy to be part of it. It is a great move for local motorsport in the UAE,” he said.

    “I’ve seen the rookies develop a lot throughout the season and they gave me a hard time, so I’m relishing the challenge.

    “This season was hard and very challenging because the drivers keep improving and that shows how strong this competition is.”

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