11/02/2009
NEWS STORY
Speedcar Series is at Losail International Circuit for its first night race this weekend. Running its third round of the season, this will also be the first time that Speedcar Series has raced in Qatar.
A preview press conference was held this afternoon chaired by Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) President Nasser Bin Khalifa Al Attiyah, Speedcar Series Operations Director Claudio Berro, Speedcar Series drivers Jean Alesi and Gianni Morbidelli as well as representatives from GP2 Asia Series.
Nasser Bin Khalifa Al Attiyah welcomed the organisation and participants of the Grand Racing Qatar event saying, "Our strategy has to always bring a top quality race to the circuit. We have been approached by several organisations to run races here. After long discussions leading up to this weekend, we are indeed lucky and proud to have two good Series racing this weekend as well as some famous drivers like Jean Alesi who I am a great fan of."
The weather conditions turned bad this afternoon in Doha with a sand storm and strong winds reducing visibility. Gianni Morbidelli commented, "I hope the sand storm clears up by tomorrow when we go out. It's a new circuit and we're racing at night, the sand could make the track very slippery but we will all have the same conditions out there of course."
Fourteen drivers, including MotoGP Champion Marco Melandri, and over 7 teams are expected to compete over the two-day race weekend on the 5.4 kilometre long track, the largest permanent venue sports lighting project in the world. The floodlights were specifically designed to eliminate shadows and reflection on the circuit.