Muscat, August 8 - The future of Oman motorsports is in good hands if the development of Shihab al Habsi is any indication.
The 13-year-old prodigy in the making is just back from his European tour that ended at the 2017 MSA Kartmasters British Kart Grand Prix at the Paul Fletcher International (PFI) Circuit in Grantham, UK.
Shihab grabbed a podium place finishing second behind his MSport Karting team-mate Morgan Porter. The young lad was excited talking about the way the event unfolded for him.
“It was a tough and good race. I had a long weekend out there and the experience of competing against 16-year-olds was a different experience. I enjoyed the time there,’’ he added.
The final was intense and thrilling and Shihab managed to muster up the second spot after languishing in the fourth place due to a slow start.
“I began slowly and I was in the fourth place in the first 6-7 laps. Then, I nudged ahead and moved to the third place. It was only in the last two laps that I jumped to the second place and finished runner-up,’’ Shihab revealed.
The CIK-FIA World OK & OKJ Championships are scheduled next month and Shihab’s eyes are firmly set on a good performance there.
“I’m confident of a decent performance, I get a good feeling about it,’’ he added.
Shihab’s father-cum-manager Ahmed al Habsi is all praise for his son’s progress over the last seven months.
“We are preparing him by making him compete in about 15 races so far over the last seven months,’’ he said.
Earlier in April, Shihab bagged the third place, his maiden podium, in the X30 Euro Series in Salbris, France.
Shihab also had a fine performance in the Rotax Euro Challenge coming fifth in the German city of Wackersdorf.
Ahmed said Shihab had developed a knack of performing well on wet tracks. Gaining experience racing in the rains has kept Shihab in good stead, feels Ahmed.
Ahmed has decent expectations from the World Championships next month.
“I am hoping that he finishes in the top 10 if not in the top 5,’’ he stated.
This will be Shihab’s second Worlds after last year’s event in Bahrain, where he crashed out.
Ahmed also thanked the Sports Ministry for sponsoring Shihab for a three-year period and also other sponsors like Dodge and Hamed al Wahaibi.
With the support and guidance he is getting, one hopes Shihab turns out to be a real gem in the future for Oman motorsports.
Haridev Pushparaj
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