In February, many drifters from all over Europe and the Middle East met in Oman, where the Oman International Drift Championship takes place. Three rounds are planned per week, so plenty of action can be expected in the second month of the year.
The first round took place last Thursday and Friday, with 38 drivers battling it out for victory. Practice and qualifying rounds took place on Thursday, with the top 32 drivers progressing to the final on Friday. Competition favorite – Irishman James Deane achieved the best result in qualifying with 96.7 points. Second-placed Sebastian Fontijn scored 93.7 points and third place went to Juha Rintanen with 91.7 points. All three drivers drive with Samsonas gearboxes.
James Deane was unbeatable on Saturday despite the best efforts of R. Babugulian, B. Čirba, N. Al Harbali, C. Van Oort and J. Rintanen. Even the pursuit of N. Al Harbali’s car, which was on an open fire, was no problem for the Irish, while the battle against Finland’s Juha Rintanen was a worthy finale. Third place was fought out between Latvia’s Edgars Krogeris and the Netherlands’ Chris van Oort, with the BMW F22 from Latvia coming out on top. This means that all three of the top drifters at the first round of the Oman International Drift Championship were driving with Samsonas Motorsport gearboxes and we are delighted to have helped them achieve such results.
The second round of OIDC will be held at February 15-16
