Hatim Natto of Mountain Dew Saudi Gear Racing finished among the top three despite mechanical problems in the final round of the Drift UAE Championship at the Yas Marina International Circuit, sharing the podium with two other Saudi teams.
The young captain of the Mountain Dew Saudi Gear Racing team was happy with his dramatic third-place finish despite a series of mechanical glitches.
"We were one of the strongest competitors for the Championship title and could have gotten full points,” said Natto. Despite all the mechanical problems, we still remain among the three strongest teams.”
Natto was a strong contender with his car re-tuned to produce 575 hp and 498 nm.
From the start however, electrical problems in the car almost ended Hatim’s championship bid but a determined showing by his pit-stop team managed to put him back in contention for one last qualifier, which he duly won.
In first round of the tournament, the car once again let Natto down when its frame could not bear its engine power. The Mountain Dew captain however raced on with the bonnet open and maintained top speed until he was forced to a halt before causing any problems to the other contestants.
In the second round, Natto staged a strong comeback but still trailed in points. The third round saw tense moments as UAE champion Ahmed Al-Amri closed in and threatened to take the championship and draw even with Natto. However, a simple error by Al-Amri saw the first place going to Saudi champion Abdulhadi Qahtani of Ford Racing Team, the leading team in the championship. Saudi driver Alissan finished second and Natto third in the overall standings.
Natto’s outstanding performance despite the mechanical problems had the spectators screaming for more and Natto graciously obliged by blazing the tracks in an amazing demonstration that astonished his fans and won him a standing ovation.
Mohamed Ibrahim Alsofiani, Mountain Dew Team's manager, vowed to conduct a full review in order to to avoid such technical problems in the future.
"We are the champions of this type of racing and the first Saudi team to participate,” Alsofiani said. “We usually lead in every race and third place was not our goal at all. Nonetheless, we did our very best, and but for the grace of God and the skills of Captain Natto we would not be among the big three today."
Alsofiani praised the entire team led by Hatim Natto and mentioned in particular the performance of Salah Docum who was in charge of technical logistics.
Contacts
Mohammed Ibrahim Alsofiani
Saudi Gear Team manager
+966505641820
SaudiGear@gmail.com
Permalink: http://www.me-newswire.net/news/7491/en
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