Mohamad Chehab (centre) celebrates after winning the season opener of the Red Bull Parking Drift World Finals in Abu Dhabi.
bay today, Journalist
Mohamad Chehab will represent the UAE at the 2023 Red Bull Parking Drift World Finals after winning the season opener and qualifying race in Abu Dhabi over the weekend.
The UAE capital hosted the first match of the latest installment, with excited crowds filling the stands for an extremely close contest.
For the first time in five years, the Red Bull Parking Drift had the opportunity to thrill the Abu Dhabi crowd, with young and old coming to the Corniche’s State Tower to watch Chehab with Nissan and the brand new Nissan Z, Ministry of Tourism and Culture and Abu Dhabi Than the sports committee.
Chehab’s result makes him the first person to book a seat at the Red Bull Parking Drift World Finals, which will be held at the end of the year. For the 26-year-old, it was his second consecutive stellar performance in Abu Dhabi to back up his performance at the 2022 World Finals in Jeddah.
For drift legend and Red Bull Car Park Drift Technical Director Abdo Feghali, it’s the perfect start to the 2023 season on the Abu Dhabi Corniche.
“We are delighted to be bringing the event back to Abu Dhabi for the fans and the drifting community here. What a great race, the UAE is always strong and congratulations to Mohamed for being the first person to reach the World Finals.”
“The season is still a long way off but we’ve had a fantastic start and based on what we’ve just seen this could be one of the best years ever for Red Bull Car Park Drift.”
What makes this race special is its combination of speed, engine power, driving accuracy and the ultimate art of drifting, all complemented by an atmosphere filled with smoke from burning tires.
A special jury will determine the performance of the contestants and assign points according to the updated technical criteria. Dominating the track requires an extraordinary balance of speed, precision and showmanship, which is only enhanced by the way the cars look, the roar of the engines and the smoke from the tires.
A significant portion of the total points awarded by the judges will be allocated to drifting skills, while the remainder will be allocated to multiple unique challenges, within square and spiral paths, and the ability for drivers to get as close to the cars as possible into the cones without dropping them run down.
The Red Bull Parking Drift Championship was held in 2008 in the indoor parking lot of a shopping mall in Beirut, Lebanon.
This is a great opportunity for drift enthusiasts to test their skills in a sporty and safe environment that meets safety standards.The event saw the rise of Lebanese racing champion Feghali, who became a legend in the field, and the unprecedented success of the championship made it an annual regional main event and later a global series as its popularity grew.