The FIA World Touring Car Championship visits the Qatar track for a floodlit spectacular from 24-25 November for second time, being the Race of Qatar the last round of an exciting season.
While José María López has wrapped up his third WTCC title, the battle for the coveted runner-up spot and, indeed, third place will be intense.
Yvan Muller, López’s factory Citroën team-mate and preparing for his final WTCC races before he retires, occupies second on 235 points but works Honda trio Tiago Monteiro (204 points), Norbert Michelisz (190) and Rob Huff (180) all retain mathematical possibilities to snatch the position.
The Moroccan driver Mehdi Bennani, who became the first Arabic driver to win an FIA world championship motor race when he won at WTCC Race of China in 2014, will head to the Middle East as the WTCC Trophy winner for 2016 following another impressive season driving a Sébastien Loeb Racing Citroën C-Elysée WTCC. He is sixth in the WTCC Drivers’ standings with 176 points but could end up a career-high third in the table if results go his way in Qatar.
Emerging young stars take on category experts and ex-grand prix drivers in race-ready versions of punch-packing road cars from Chevrolet, Citroën, Honda, LADA and Volvo.
With aerodynamic aids, carbon fibre parts, 1.6-litre turbo engines and six-speed sequential gearboxes, World Touring Cars can reach a top speed of 265kph, placing a huge onus on driver skill and judgement, while creating a dramatic spectacle for fans.
Race strategy goes out of the window as drivers push hard from start to finish without the need to make pit stops. They don’t do favours and certainly don’t expect any in return.
The grid for the Opening Race is decided by the Qualifying Q2 results with the fastest 10 lining up in reverse order. The grid for the Main Race follows the combined qualifying classification order.
In addition, Manufacturers Against the Clock (MAC3) is a Tour de France-inspired team trial and new for 2016. It puts team competition to the fore at each WTCC weekend with three drivers from each manufacturer lapping together against the clock.
On Thursday 24th November, track activity starts at 16:00 with 30’ of Free Practice 1 and finishes at 21:00 with another 30’ for the Free Practice 2.
On Friday 25th November, Qualifying sessions are from 14:30 until 15:30, when it starts the session of Manufacturers Against the Clock (MAC3). The Opening Race is scheduled at 21:00 and the Main Race will be at 22:10.
The entrance at the Grandstand and PADDOCK is free for the 2-days event and the VIP ticket is 1.200QR for the 2 days or 700QR for Friday only.
And for those fans wanting an adrenaline rush and fun with friends, the Go Karting track will be open during the 2-day event with a price of QR 100 for a 15-minute session from 16:00 to 21:00.
More information and tickets at www.lcsc.qa
Follow us on our social media channels:
@ILQlive
@ILQlive
@ILoveQtr
ILoveQatar
You have successfully registered your account!
Please confirm your e-mail address by clicking on the URL sent to you.The e-mail usually arrives in 5-10 minutes.
How ajeeb was that!? Thanks for contributing to our community! Your post will appear after we take a quick look!
