Changes to race schedule

Unfortunately, due to an issue in obtaining permits from the local sporting authorities (relating to COVID) both of the last events of the Gulf Radical Cup had to be postponed. This has meant that a final event at the Dubai Autodrome from the 1st to the 3rd of April will see rounds 11 to 14 take place.

Rounds 13 and 14 will still have double points (including the relevant qualifying sessions and fastest laps points).

Its going to be a busy event with the rounds 11 and 12 being held in the National track and rounds 13 and 14 being held on the Club track.

Round 9 & 10 Report

For Rounds 9 and 10 of the Gulf Radical Cup it ran in support of the Asian Le Mans series at the Dubai Autodrome.

While it's great to share the same event as such series as ALMS, F3 Asia and F4 UAE, it does mean that track time is tight for all. This meant that testing was reduced to just 45 minutes on the Thursday. But it was the same for everyone, so Qualifying would only really be the first time we get to see the real pace of the grid.

However, persistent, thick morning fog had been covering the circuit the last few days and Friday was no exception! This meant a delayed start to the day, also meaning that Friday afternoon would see what is normally done over two days, done in just one afternoon!

Q1 finally got underway, and all eyes were on the top three contenders for the series. That was Alex Khateeb, Ian Roberts and Tarik Kerbouci. And sure enough it was those three drivers fighting for the top places, however Khateeb was able to put in a stunning 2:02.867, with Kerbouci on a 2:04.469 for second and Roberts on a 2:04.594 for third. Putting in a great performance was James Sweetnam on a 2:05.211 for fourth getting ever closer to the top three, 5th was Emirati racer Alhameedi on a 2:05.817.

Q2 again saw the experienced Khateeb on pole, but this time it was Roberts for second and Kerbouci for third.

Race 1 started only an hour later, and it was a great start for Kerbouci in his bright yellow Monster Experience/Ellington Properties SR3 XX taking and early lead from Khateeb. Due to the rush between Q2 and Race 1, Ian Roberts (now running with Dragon Racing), just missed the 5 minute window to get out the pitlane before the grid formed up, so this meant he had to start from the pitlane, but he was pushing hard from the back!

After a couple laps of chasing, Khateeb got right on the tail of Kerbouci, and after a small error out of turn 9, Khateeb was past into the lead. Meanwhile Roberts was making his charge from the back of the grid and was working his way to the front. In Roberts favour was zero time added in the pit stop from the last race, where as Kerbouci was carrying 5 seconds and Khatteb the maximum 15.
Into the pitstops, and all the cars have a 9 minute window to get in, wait for their allocated time and get out, as fast as possible! Or, if a two driver team, as was the case for visiting LMP2 drivers, John Corbett and Neale Muston, do a speedy driver change!

First in from the lead group was Kerbouci, a few laps later in was Khateeb, and as Khateeb rushed out of the pitlane he was just ahead of Kerbouci. However it seemed like Kerbouci quickly dropped off the back of Khateeb, and was posting times 2 or 3 seconds off his normally quick, constant pace. A small gearbox issue had developed and it meant that he was predominantly stuck in only 4th gear in the slow corners, but despite this he pushed on knowing that he had the charging Roberts and Alhameedi behind him. Soon, and taking of advantage of no pit penalty, Roberts was passed Alhameedi (who had 10 seconds added in the pits) and then Kerbouci, and was chasing down Khateeb for the lead.

Alhameedi was flying and it was looking like he would catch Kerbouci right at the end of the race. Just then a 5 second penalty flashed up on the timing screens for Alhameedi for repeated track limit infringements. This meant that even if Alhameedi was to pass Kerbouci for third, he just had to hang on to within 5 seconds of the Emirati racer. Alhameedi did get past and crossed the line 5.7 seconds ahead of Kerbouci, keeping third place. So it was a win for Khateeb, second for Roberts and third for Alhameedi.

There was just under two hours for the teams to turn around the car for race two, fix any damage or mechanical issue.

As all the cars approached the start line it was again a great start for Kerbouci and Roberts over the pole sitter Khateeb. However Khateeb was chasing hard and was able to slip through at turn 7. This left Kerbouci and Alhameedi fighting for second, but also allowing Roberts in 4th to get closer as they squabbled on track! Alhameedi tried to make a pass into the slow turn 10 hairpin, but Kerbouci, while leaving the door open for him went very deep on the brakes forcing Alhameedi to go deeper and inevitably running wide allowing Kerbouci to retake 2nd, some great racing!

Alhameedi was not giving up though, and chasing hard to get back to Kerbouci, but again another five second penalty flashed up on the timing screen for the 76 car, this time for a start line infringement, no luck for him today! He made another attempt on Kerbouci into turn 7, but this time there was less room and he collided with Kerbouci, pushing him off over the kerb. This was rich pickings for Roberts who slipped through leaving Kerbouci down to 4th.

Roberts was then able to slip through at turn 10 to take 2nd, but as Alhameedi ran wide at turn 11 it allowed Kerbouci to slip through to 3rd. But there was damage for Kerbouci, with his suspension being knocked out of alignment and Alhammedi had signifiant side pod damage.

As the pitstops came about Roberts was first in, then race leader Khateeb, finally Kerbouci. Again with the pit time penalty jumbling up the order, Kerbouci was able to leap ahead of Roberts, and get right back up to race leader Khateeb as they again left the pitlane nose to tail.

However with Kerbouci struggling with his damaged suspension he we was not able to hang onto Khateeb, and it left Roberts charging hard to try and retake 2nd place. As Roberts pulled Kerbouci in the clock was ticking down, in the end it was Khateeb for his second win of the day, Kerbouci held on for 2nd and Roberts had to settle for third, but only 0.4 seconds behind him.

So with 4 races left, and double points for the last two races, there are still a potential maximum of 168 points to be had, and with only 66 points covering the top four drivers, its still wide open!

The Gulf Radical Cup is back to the Dubai Autodrome on the 4th of March for Round 11 and 12.

Round 5 & 6 Race Report

After a long break it was time to get back racing again with the Gulf Radical Cup, this time it was to be at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. Unfortunately Abu Dhabi still has some very tight immigration restrictions, so it’s meant a slightly diminished grid for this race.

Having said that Guy Lambert will be making his racing debut in his GulfSport prepared SR3. Guy has spent a year doing track days and finally made the step up to racing. Also visiting for a one-off race was John Corbett and James Winslow sharing a drive also with GulfSport Racing.

After two days of testing, Friday comes around and it's time for qualifying 1 and 2. Fifteen minutes each session for every driver to put together the best lap they have in them. All on new tyres, it was Alex Khateeb posting a very fast 2:15.213, some 1.9 seconds ahead of series leader Ian Roberts in second and Tarik Kerbouci in third. Unfortunately for Khateeb and Sweetnam (who had put in a great fourth place time) they were spotted by race control crossing the pit exit line, this presents a safety issue and they were both penalised by a three place grid penalty. Pushing them to fourth and seventh respectively, giving the Pole to Ian Roberts.

In Q2 it was Khateeb again putting in a great lap, but this time the gap was smaller to the rest of the field. It was James Winslow in the car for Q2 and he was only 0.129 behind Khateeb, also impressively in his first season and first time at Yas, Tarik Kerbouci was hanging on to the other vastly experienced drivers just 0.799 behind Winslow.

So, later that day it was time for Race 1. Ian Roberts took a great start as did Kerbouci to his right. But flying from further back was Kuwaiti Ahmed Al Shehab, he dived up the inside of Roberts in an effort to take the lead, but he was just short of making the pass. Unfortunately he clipped the rear corner of Roberts spinning him around, also collecting Sweetnam at the same time. With Winslow and Kerbouci having to slow to take avoiding action this allowed Khateeb to sail past on the outside to take the lead. Al Shehab, Roberts and Sweetnam all limped around the track to the pits for checks with their teams. It was a disaster for Sweetnam who had sustained significant front bodywork damage and retired, whereas Roberts and Al Shehab only had light damage and were able to rejoin the race, albeit a lap down. After the race Al Shehab was given a penalty to start race 2 from the pitlane as a result of his contact with Roberts.

This left Khateeb in the lead followed by Kerbouci and Corbett. As the pit stops came around all three lead drivers took to the pits, it was Kerbouci in first, but stalling on the way back out allowed Khateeb to retain the lead. Corbett was out the car and Winslow was in, incredibly Kerbouci, in his fluro yellow SR3 XX Ellington Properties sponsored car was flying after the pit stops and was able to maintain a small gap behind to multiple championship winning driver Winslow. All the time Khateeb was keeping pace and managing a nice lead. As the race drew to a close on the last lap Winslow was able to pass Kerbouci for second.

Guy Lambert was on for an amazing 4th place in his debut race, but was given a drive through penalty for a pit window infringement, pushing him back to 5th, leaving Marcus Bamberg to take 4th place.

Race two took place the following day and it was again Khateeb on pole, but it was Winslow that had the holeshot and took the lead into turn 1 from Roberts, then Khateeb and Kerbouci. Roberts who was looking strong as Khateeb tried to pull out a gap, however with a poor result from yesterday Roberts had no pit penalty so was hoping to stay up front and propel himself to the lead after the pit stops. As the pit window opened all the cars dived in, with Khateeb on the maximum 15 seconds added, Winslow on 10 seconds added and Kerbouci on 5 seconds added. But this was the last of the Yas Marina circuit Winslow and indeed his co-driver would see, as the car was retired with a suspension failure.

So, it was indeed Roberts emerging in the lead, now all he needed to do was get his head down and drive to the finish. Roberts has shown strong consistency over the years and was able to keep Khateeb behind him right to the flag, and Kerbouci taking another impressive 3rd place. Roberts drove a faultless 45 mins, certainly making up for Race 1. Kerbouci, who had never driven at Yas Marina and was also extremely happy with his weekends work to take home two podium places, and to have been on track racing against very experienced drivers around him. However it was Khateeb who put himself back at the front of the series standings, with Roberts second and Kerbouci third. 

It will be a few days until the drivers and teams will be back at it at the Dubai Autodrome on the 29th of January for round 7 and 8.

Round 3 & 4 Race Report

Double win for Roberts, but Drama for All!

What only felt like days, but was actually three weeks, and we were back at the Dubai Autodrome for Round 3 and 4 of the Gulf Radical Cup.

Again, a handful of drivers took advantage of the extensive test time offered on both Wednesday and Thursday. So, after the last test on Thursday afternoon, on what seemed like a greasy, hot track it was Alex Khateeb again topping the time sheets, but with last races surprise winner Tarik Kerbouci only 0.05 behind him on a 2.05.756. However, they and the other drivers had gone faster in morning practice, so it was expected to see some quick times in Q1 tomorrow.

Overnight a fog had formed, but just before Q1 started it had cleared, leaving a cool, heavy air, the type of air that these high revving RPE race engines love.

Q1 got underway, and as always all drivers were on new, un-scrubbed tyres, so it would see the fastest laps come right at the end, and that it did, with 9 of the 11 drivers posting their fastest times on the last lap. Khateeb was on an absolute flyer with a 2.02.731, the only driver to post a time on the 02’s, really impressive! But bunched up behind and only covered by 2.8 seconds was the rest of the field, led by Tarik Kerbouci on a 2.03.888, his team were thrilled, but Tarik was not, desperate to take it to the more experienced Khateeb. In third was was the flying UAE racer Al Hameedi, another very quick newcomer. Down in 5th was Roberts, after a communication error meant he came in two laps early, but Ian would have his day!

As normal Q2 starts just 10 minutes from the end of Q1, and the whole field rolls out again. Khateeb drops in a blistering 1.02.615, but it's Roberts to join him on the front row this time, with a PB of a 1.03.808 and Kerbouci just 0.057 behind him on a 1.03.865. Alhameedi is there again in 4th and Marcus Bamberg finding some pace for a great 5th. 

The only new comer to the grid this time is the young Kuwaiti Mohammed Al Kazeemi, he had limited testing the day before, but posted a time more than 3 seconds faster than his best the previous day in testing!

All cars passed post qualifying technical scrutineering (checking such things as ride height and weight)

So at the start it was Khateeb away well with Kerbouci right behind him, they stayed inches apart all the way in to turn 1, with contact Kerbouci was forced off the track and dropped way down to 5th. Behind them more action was unfolding as Johnny Khazzoum and Ian Roberts came tougher, with the result of Roberts being sent into a spin. As Roberts went round he clipped the number 5 car of Curtis damaging his rear wing. 

Going in to the very quick turn 3 at 190kph the SR3’s are very reliant on the downforce generated by the car, especially the large bi-plane rear wing. Curtis was about to prove this as he unknowingly went through turn 3 with this rear wing damaged. This resulted in the car spinning and making hard contact with the wall. He was ok, but he car was heavily damaged and marooned in the middle of the track.

Meanwhile the leaders were passing turn 10, and as they came through turn 11 the Marshalls deployed the safety car boards to allow the recovery team to go get Curits’s car. But not all the drivers had seen the yellow flags and boards and continued to race for a few more corners, causing James Sweetnam to run into the back of Marcus Bamberg, now there were two stricken cars at either end of the track.

It took three laps to remove the stranded cars and racing could restart, Khateeb assumed a commanding lead again with Roberts chasing him down. Kerbouci who had been overtaken by 4 cars under yellow flags was working his way back up before the pit window opened. Both Roberts and Kerbouci were ordered in by their team in the hope to get them back out in clear air. But Kerbouci was carrying a 15 second successes penalty from his last race win a few weeks ago, and he dropped back down the order.

Abdulnasser Alhameedi was on a charge, but the pace of Roberts this weekend was just too much to allow him to get close enough to make a move. 

As the cars crossed the line it was Khateeb in first, Roberts second and Alhameedi in third, but the drama as far from over. In an unprecedented move the stewards took a decision to disqualify 5 drivers they felt had ignored the yellow flags and safety car order, also feeling the wrath of the stewards was Khateeb, he was handed a 10 second penalty for forcing Kerbouci off the track at the start. Khateeb had finished 9.844 seconds ahead of Roberts on the road, thus handing the victory to Roberts. Also Khazzoum was also handed a 10 second penalty for contact with Roberts at the start of the race. 

While Roberts was pleased of course to take victory it did mean that he now had the maximum 15 seconds added to his pitstop time, and Khateeb only 10, surly this was Khateebs race, especially as Kerbouci had withdrawn from the second race!

However, Roberts got the jump and lead in to turn 1, with Khateeb and Alhameedi hot on his heels. Thru turn 11 and into 12 Khateb was able to take the lead from Roberts.

Meanwhile there was a train of cars lead by Bamburg from Al Shehab, Sweetham, Khazzoum and Al Kazeemi.

But on lap 5 Al Shehab was shown the Drive Thru penalty board for being out of position at the start, he served this the next lap, sending him right to the back.

As the pitstops approached, disaster struck from Al Hameedi as he dropped back off the time sheets with an issue with his car, and Al Shehab left the pits slowly, eventually coming to a halt with a broken throttle cable!

Khateeb and Roberts were back out in front with Khateeb controlling a comfortable 5 second gap, however Roberts has shown he is a very consistent driver and a slip up from Khateeb would see him loose the lead! 

But, luck proved not to be on Khateebs side again, as his car cut out coming out of turn 16, meaning Roberts took the lead. For the remainder of the race it was clear that Khateeb had an issue, while he was still running it wasn’t at enough to get back at Roberts who made no mistakes!

Meanwhile Al Kazeemi was really finding his feet passing Khazzoum and Bamburg, but maybe all the excitement was getting too much as he ran wide into turn 14 undoing all the hard work he had just put in!

However AL Kazeemi had a great weekend and he commented:

“I had an amazing weekend and have been waiting for this opportunity for years and finally got the chance. Its a great way to start my racing career, thank you Gulf Radical Cup for the amazing organisation looking forward for many more!!”

Keeping himself out of trouble and continuing to drive consistently was Amir Feyzulin, he was rewarded with a well deserved third place!

But it was Roberts who took the honours and a great double win! This means that Roberts now leads the series from Khateeb in second by just 2 points, and then Amir Feyzulin in third.

Some time off now, but racing will resume in January 2021

Round 1 & 2 Race Report

After a long and nervous summer waiting to see if the world would allow racing again, it finally arrived - the 2020/21 Gulf Radical Cup at the Dubai Autodrome!

11 drivers, from 7 different countries were on the entry list for Round 1 and 2 on the 3.5km Dubai Autodrome National track.

In testing on Wednesday and Thursday it was Alex Khateeb posting the fastest times, but there were plenty of seasoned drivers and some very impressive new drivers close behind him, only time would tell, with all to be revealed in Q1 Friday morning.

Weather in the UAE from November to March is about as good as its gets,  and Friday morning saw air temperatures of about 27 degrees, but the wind had picked up, bringing some dust to the track.

All 11 cars rolled out at 08:45 for Q1. Drivers are only allowed to use one set of tyres for Q1, Q2, Race 1 and Race 2, so keeping the laps to a minimum in qualifying is really very important, if you want a compliant car at the end of race two some 200km of race pace driving later.

Al Hameedi (UAE)

But with new, un-scrubbed tyres, and dust on the track it would take a few laps to see the times fall into place. But in the end, the top three all placed their best lap on lap 8, with Khateeb (UK) posting a blistering 1.24.557, Francis (DEN) putting in his best lap ever on a 1.25.630 for second, and first time qualifier Al Hameedi from the UAE posting an amazing 1.25.701 for third. However, with 2nd to 7th all being covered by only 1 second its was going be close!

Only 10 minutes separate Q1 and Q2, no changes or refuelling allowed, drivers just wait in the car, take on a little water and are straight back out to show what they have! 

With tyres at near operating temps from the first lap, it was expected to see the drivers posting their times early on, and so they did! On lap three the front two rows were set!. That was Khateeb on a 1.24.485, Francis going faster again on a 1.25.363, with another new comer, Tarik Kerbouci in his new SR3 XX on a 1.25.445 and Ian Roberts (UK) for fourth on a 1.25.680. Again, 2nd to 9th place was covered by just one second!

A couple of hours later, saw the start of Race 1. All 11 cars were flagged off for the formation lap, but as the cars came round turn 16, it looked like formation had been thrown out the window! Approach speed is meant to be 50 km/h set by the pole sitter, but the cars came flying round the last corner and not in formation, however the starter turned off the red light and they race was on.

Khateeb took an early lead, with Roberts, Curtis (UK) and Khazzoum (LEB) chasing him down. However Khateeb was able to get up to speed quick and pull a comfortable gap. This left a group of drivers jostling for 2nd to 5th. Another newcomer James Sweetnam (UK) had a spin and took a hard knock to the side of his car, taking him out of the race on lap one, but he was able to get away from the track so racing could continue.

Khateeb (UK)

Into the mandatory pitstop it was Khateeb with a decent lead and with all drivers having to stop for the same 45 seconds in the pits the race was his to take!

However about 10 laps from the end of the race the flying Emirati Al Hameedi suffered a technical problem leaving his car marooned just off the track going on to the last corner, forcing the officials to deploy the safety car. After what seemed like an age, the car was finally removed and racing could resume with just three laps to go. But with all the cars now bunched up it would be very close. Khateeb was able to get the jump, followed by Roberts, Curtis and Kerbouci! With Roberts struggling to get past a back marker Curtis and Kerbouci slipped through, and on the penultimate lap Kerbouci made a pass on Curtis for second. So that meant Khateeb took the first win of season, Kerbouci for an incredible second and Curtis taking third.

Kerbouci (FRA)

However, and despite the very fast and messy start, Kerbouci was handed a very tough 30 second penalty pushing him back to 8th on the official results, and promoting Roberts to the last step of the podium. This was a crying shame for Kerbouci given this was his first race in any formula - but no one ever said racing was fair and race 2 was only a matter of hours away!

Race 1 - 1st Khateeb, 2nd Curtis and 3rd Roberts

Race 2 took place a coupe of hours later (normally held the following day), this time the first 4 drivers had had a talking to from the Clerk Of the Course and were under strict orders to keep formation at the start. Again Khateeb formed up at the front of the grid, and sure enough he came round the last corner at a nice steady pace, but it was Francis on the front row next to him that lagged behind, leaving Khateeb to again take the advantage at the start.

Ex A1 GP racer used his experience against the rest of the field to again pull an early lead, he now had an extra 15 seconds to make up for given the success pit stop penalty he picked from from his race 1 win. He was being pushed hard though by new comer and very determined Kerbouci in his fluro yellow SR3 XX. Hot on his heals was also Roberts and Francis! However on lap 10 Khateeb slowed and was passed by Kerbouci, and then Roberts and Francis. This lead to great excitement on the pit wall from the GulfSport team as this saw their three drivers first, second and third going in to the pitstops. 

Francis (DEN)

However their attention was turned quickly to the pit lane when all three GulfSport cars came in for their pitstops together. Kerbouci first, followed by Francis and Roberts who was carrying a 5 second success penalty from race one. But with Kerbouci stalling leaving his pit box Roberts was right behind him, closely followed by Francis. So the three of them set off to race out the last 15 laps. However Roberts would loose control of his car through the tricky turn 6 while trying to chase Kerbouci letting past the charging Francis and Russian driver Amir Feyzulin.

Kerbouci drove a remarkable race from start to finish, setting the record straight from his first race penalty, and taking a win in his new SR3 XX on his second ever race. A well deserved second for Nicolas Francis who had proved great pace all weekend and also a fantastic third for Feyzulin, who was also driving better than ever in his SR3 this weekend. However Amir was initially denied the podium given a hasty penalty handed out by the stewards which was later corrected - but this gave Khazzoum a rather pointless trip to the podium, only to be told he could not keep the trophy - he offered to sell it back!

Talking to Tarik Kerbouci the race he added:

“I would like to thank the Gulf Radical Cup. The race weekend was organised with great detail and care. I was happy to have my first race at the Dubai Autodrome and the result I had to take a win was amazing. This really would not have been possible without the amazing support and possibilities given to me by my sponsor of Ellington Properties (https://ellingtonproperties.ae). Also, i’d like to thank my team GulfSport Racing, family and friends who were there to support us!”

Race 2 - 1st Kerbouci, 2nd Francis & 3rd Khazzoum

Series sponsor Meritus Developments were on hand to present trophies, interestingly there were 6 different drivers on the podium for both races!

Khateeb narrowly leads the overall standings from Kerbouci by just two points, with Amir Feyzulin in 3rd.

Roberts (UK)

Pre Season Test Review

Ian Roberts posted the second fastest time at the Pre Season Test

The Gulf Radical Cup Pre Season test took place yesterday at the Dubai Autodrome, with 7 of the championship drivers taking the opportunity to get a step ahead of the rest of the field before next weeks first event.

Running on the National Circuit (the same track for the first rounds next week), saw three drivers dipping into times in the 1m25s, getting close to race pace! This also proved as a very valuable 3.5 hours of Radical only test time for a couple of drivers that will be making their racing debut next week.

Johnny Khazzoum who took part in the test commented:

“It was a wonderful experience to be a part of the Gulf Radical Cup Pre Season Test, it was highly productive having the track exclusive for Radicals and very well organized by GulfSport Racing. The 3 and a half hours were more than enough to test and help us get ready for the race. It's electrifying to know that there will be more cars on the gridline on the first race. 

My personal experience with three events last season was absolutely phenomenal; hence I decided to participate in the full Championship 2020-2021! Gearing up with full-throttle practice sessions and a month-long preparation, I am truly thrilled and excited for the upcoming races. I am looking forward to a challenging and competitive race with the gentlemen. I would like to wish everyone all the best and a safe Racing season this year. Of course id like to thank my sponsors this year Fusion5 Advertising, Steppi, Food to Go and Supercarsmajlis.”

Johnny Khazzoum - last racing at Yas Marina last season.

The latest SR3 XX on track at the Pre Season Test

Including the Dragon Wednesday test on the 11th prior to the event, there is a total of 8.5 hours of track time available to drivers for the first event!

Rounds 1 and 2 see both races and qualifying take place on the Friday (13th), so it will not only be important to be quick but maybe the fittest drivers might emerge first at the finish line!

Below is the provisional entry list for Round 1 and 2 at this stage. Also here is a link to the event timetable.

New Drivers, Series Partners & Pre Season Test and Final Date Confirmed!

Its just over 5 weeks to go until the start of the 2020/21 Gulf Radical Cup (GRC), and it's very exciting to make some announcements!

Firstly, Meritus Development (www.meritusdevelopment.com) have signed as a new series sponsor. Their financial support to the series will allow the GRC to keep a check on ever escalating costs handed down from the circuits and also make some other enhancements to trophy’s and awards.

CEO of Meritus Development, Andrew Lemon (ex GRC competitor 2006 to 2008) said:

“Ever since I took my last chequered flag in the 2008 Gulf Radical Cup, I have wanted to be back there soaking up the great atmosphere that is always in the GRC paddock. To have Meritus Development involved to help support and improve the series is a pleasure.”

To help kick the season off, there will be an exclusive Gulf Radical Cup Pre Season Test at the Dubai Autodrome, in the morning of the 2nd of November. This exclusive, Radical only track time will be great testing for the first round, a couple of weeks later. The entry fee will be AED 2,950 for this exclusive track time, on the National layout, the same as Rounds 1 and 2. Entry link HERE.

Yas Marina Circuit have confirmed another race date in March 2021, meaning that we can formally announce that rounds 13 and 14 will take place on the 18th to the 20th of March, now meaning that the 2021 Gulf Radical Cup Champion will be crowned at the Yas Marina Circuit for the first time in many years.

Even with just over 5 weeks to go, there is a provisional entry list of 10 drivers for the first race in November, with new cars on the way (an SR3 XX arrived on the UAE two weeks ago), we are looking forward to a great grid, despite the current global difficulties.

New drivers to be announced are the likes of racing ace Alex Khateeb, last season sharing with Johnny Khazzoum (also returning this season) on occasion. Now with his own car, Alex is out there to try and take full honours! Another new addition to the grid is UK businessman James Sweetnam. Both Alex and James will be running with AUH Motorsports. In addition, GulfSport Racing will be running the latest SR3XX and SR10 (in its own class) with two new drivers hailing from France.

Fred Jacobs from Gulf Radical Cup said:

“We are getting pretty excited as the season approaches, and are really pleased with these announcements and progress being made given the world we live in right now. I think its testament to the reputation the Gulf Radical Cup that people keep giving their support year on year!”

Click the link here to take a look at the latest season race schedule and also click here for the online entry form for the November 2nd Pre Season Test.

Save the date!

It’s true to say we live in a somewhat uncertain world now, however as the world get used to the new normal a lot of work has been going on with the race circuits, the motorsport federation EMSO and ourselves to get back on track and racing.

There is now a slightly revised 2020/21 race schedule on which we can at this point confirm 6 of the 7 events. The 7th event (likely to take place at Yas), will be confined in due course. We felt it better not to wait for that, but to publish these 6 dates to allow drivers and teams to start planning ahead.

For the first time in many years the racing season will kick on in Dubai and not at the usual event at Yas Marina Circuit at the end of October. This is due to the changes in the F1 schedule, with that event now being run in November. However with continued difficulty in travel to Abu Dhabi we have taken the decision to not start racing at Yas until the start of 2021. There are a lot of discussions going on behind the scenes but again we felt it best to commit to what we have and that means starting the season in Dubai in November and then again back there in December.

Sereis Co-ordinator Fred Jacobs added:

“Its been a really odd time of course, but it's looking really great for the new season. We have a slightly delayed start to the season, but given the way the world is now we are all a little more conditioned to being flexible! However, the season will get underway at the Dubai Autodrome and we look forward to welcoming everyone back”

As usual we are welcoming back faces from last season but are also pleased to see new faces signing up for the first race in November. We will start to release driver and team details over the coming weeks.

For now we hope to see you at the track in the lead up to the start of the racing season, many drivers have continued to do trackdays throughout the summer. 

If you have not entered the series yet, and are looking to, or are indeed new to the Gulf Radical Cup community, then please get in touch and let us now how we can assist you.

Entries Open for Gulf Radical Cup

The Gulf Radical Cup is scheduled to re-start after the summer in the UAE. 

With the 2019/20 season coming to an end right before the COVID-19 lockdown everyone looks forward in anticipation for the new season!

Organiser of the series, GulfSport Racing have in place a provisional calendar and have started taking early entries.

GulfSport’s Martin Hope said:

“We are very pleased that we are able to schedule our 2020/21 calendar, we expect there to maybe be some tweaks but with the Gulf Radical Cup is the only series in the region running 7 events, we are looking forward to a busy winter of racing, all the drivers are keen to get back out there after this long break.”

Already signed up, and taking advantage of the early entry offer (closed end of June), is new comer Marcus Bamberg. Having bought his Radical SR3 RSX last season he very diligently spent the winter testing making sure he was up to speed, by the time he made his debut in the 2020/21 season he was right on the pace.

Marcus said:

“I have been doing trackdays in the UAE for a few years in my Lotus. However I was constantly being overtaken on track by very quick Radicals. So naturally as a driver you are always looking to go faster. It was actually significantly cheaper to get my hands on an SR3 than start to look at big Supercars, even then I think the Radicals would still come pass me. But more than the speed is the racing! The Gulf Radical Cup community is very friendly, but also great competitors out on track! Im looking forward to my first full season!”

Another new comer from the previous season is Johnny Khazzoum, he also came from many trackdays in his Radical, but also put in some great performances last season.

2020/21 Vice Champion and going for the crown this season is D5 Racing’s Jeff Curtis. Having finished 3rd over all in the season before Jeff is on track for his best season yet.

With some new drivers testing in the off season we hope to see one new faces.

Entires remain open and GulfSport are working closely with drivers to make sure they can cater for local and foreign drivers.

Series regulations are also with the UAE Federation and are hoped to be published soon.

If you are thinking at racing in the Gulf Radical Cup or want to take part in a Radical trial day with GulfSport Racing, then please get in touch.

Race 13 & 14 Report

Due to the global Issue of the Corona virus a few drivers were forced to drop out from the last race of the season. In fact a directive from the Dubai Sports on Thursday temporarily had the weekend cancelled due to concerns over the virus, however this was later retracted. We were unable however for unknown reasons to hold any podium presentations has a result.

Non the less the main championship contenders were all still there and ready to race!

Going into the weekend Jani Hjerppe had a lead of 44 points, but with double points for both races at the last event it meant that 112 points were still to collect, it was wide open! Even Sean Simpson sitting in third could jump up the order with a good weekend and take the honours!

So in Q1 series leader Hjerppe was on track (this weekend sharing with GRC regular Mantyla). Also out in Q1 was James Edmeades sitting second place with his co-driver Jeff Curtis on 198 points. With only 15 minutes to put down your best lap its was going to come down to the wire. Seven laps in it was Hjerppe to show his hand with a 1:25.018, he seemed pretty safe with that until on the last flying lap Edmeades dropped a 1:24.837 to take the pole!

Ten minutes later Q2 started, those with a two driver pairing had to switch. Sean Simpson was very quickly on the pace setting a pole laps 6 in with a 1:25.549. Showing real pace for the first time was Steve Adams posting the other front row time. However, Jeff Curtis on the penultimate lap denied Steve that glory, initially pipping him by just 0.05 of a second, and then finding 0.3 more on the last lap.

Race 1 started a few hours later, at the start a bunch of cars ran wide while jostling into position, James Edmeades emerged in the lead with Hjerppe right behind him. Newcomer (and on his first ever race start) was Marcus Bamberg, doing very well in the middle of the pack.

Steve Adams in third had Konstantin Gugkaev chasing him, with the gap never any more than 0.3 of a second it was certainly Adams feeling the pressure. For 11 laps they were nose to tail, but when Adams came into turn 16 just a little too hot he span out and gifted the place to Gugkaev.

Coming into the pitstops Edmeades handed over to Curtis and Hjerppe handed over to Mantyla, but after two laps the Dream Racing car of Manyla did not come around. The car had been retired on track with a suspension failure! This potentially opened up the race for Jeff to walk of in to the lead. 

However, Sean Simpson had other ideas, lapping consistently faster than Curtis, putting him on course to be right behind Curtis on the last lap, if Curtis did not falter! Falter he didn’t, and sure enough Simpson was right in his mirrors on the last lap, but it wasn’t enough, and Curtis sailed over the line 0.0365 ahead for victory. This meant that Edmeades/Curtis now took the lead of the series!

So, the last race of the season was about to start, and technically Hjerppe, Curtis/Edmeades and Simpson could still take the honours!

Indeed, it was Simpson that had the bit between his teeth and lead away from the start, a lead that he would maintain all the way to the flag, great effort, but would it be enough! 

It was Adams who got the jump on Curtis and was running second. This would remain until the pitstop with Curtis unable to find a way past. Due to the pit penalty Curtis & Edmeades had picked up in race one Adams was able to extend his lead over them, but Hjerppe had slip passed him in the pitstop. So, it was Simpson out front, followed by Hjerppe, Adams and Edmeades some 8 seconds down the road. 

Edmeades was able to pull in Adams over a couple of laps, but struggled (as did Curtis) to get past. Nearing the last few laps of the race he found a way past, but Edmeades did not have the pace to get close to Hjerppe. Fastest lap went to Hjerppe and this would prove critical, as that pulled him level on points with Curtis & Edmeades as the crossed the finish line. In this situation Sporting Regulations dictate that points ties are resolved by the driver that has won most races, and in this situation that means Hjerppe takes another series title with 5 wins, over Curtis & Edmeades 3.

By winning the 2019/20 Gulf Radical Cup in his 240kph, 226bhp two seater Radical SR3, Hjerppe wins the opportunity to race on the famous Silverstone Grand Prix with the Radical UK Factory Team, and Curtis/Edmeades receive a fully funded test in an LMP3 car in Spain with Virage Racing. The 2020/21 Gulf Radical Cup, one of ten Radical championships that run in  will commence in October and will be the 15th continuous season of this very popular, and the UAE’s longest running circuit, race series.