Every motorcycle rider secretly wishes to be a racer. An indisputable fact. But lack of opportunity, lack of finances and lack of conviction are few of the reasons why those dreams go bust. However, the announcement of the Qatar SuperStock 600 Championship means that two out of those three factors have been taken care of.
The QSTK600 will be a road racing championship under the auspices of the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) and Losail Circuit Sports Club. There will be 12 races over six rounds to be held at the Losail International Circuit with the first round to take place in December 16-17.
A stock 600cc motorcycle will be the weapon of choice and with all the riders competing on the same machine; it will be a level playing field that will ensure that the most talented rider reaches the top spot on the podium.
With an aim to keep the racing affordable, this one-make championship will have a consolidated entry fee that will include the cost of the bike, fuel for the race and use of professional mechanics to keep the bike race-ready.
“It is very exciting for us to announce the Qatar SuperStock Championship. Our vision is to open up the doors for more riders to participate in such competitions. We are trying to keep the cost as low as possible so that we can get maximum numbers to participate in the championship,” said QMMF president Abdulrahman al-Mannai during the launch yesterday at the Losail Circuit.
“It’s good for us as a federation because we would like to assess the skills of young Qataris. We are very happy with what Saeed al-Sulaiti has achieved but we would like to see more Qataris competing with him on a world class level. And I think this is a fantastic platform to allow us to do so,” added the QMMF president.
While the focus will be to support and promote local talent, this championship will be open to everyone who wants to participate, insisted Khalid al-Rehmaihi, Losail Circuit Sports Club vice chairman and general secretary. “This is an open championship for anyone to participate. Of course our aim is to support local riders and they understand that. We have met with them and spoken with them but we don’t want to close the door on other riders. Qatar is a country for everyone. So everyone is welcome to participate,” said al-Remaihi yesterday.
Kenan Sofuoglu, five-time World SuperSport champion, who was present at the launch event lauded this effort by Qatar to give local talent such an excellent platform to hone their skills. “I have to say congratulations to Qatar. This is a great platform for people who want to start a motorsport career,” said Sofuoglu yesterday.
“16 years ago when I started racing, my dream was to race in a Supersport championship. And now I am here and winning titles. And I think there will be a Qatari rider dreaming about winning a Supersport championship too,” he added.
There will be two official tests in November to identify the 30 riders who will be taking part in this championship. This will give the riders a chance to get acquainted with the machine ahead of the season.
After December, the other rounds will take place on January 20-21, 2017, March 23-24, April 7-8 and the final round will be on May 5-6. All the rounds will be day races, except the March round, which will be under the floodlights, a support race for the Qatar round of MotoGP. Further details like the finances involved will be announced soon.
So there’s the opportunity. And it’s going to be affordable. Now to find the conviction…