Drifting
Shehzad Soorabally Drifts to the Win at Last!
The 20 year old driver outshines his coach Emmanuel d'Hotman, the reigning champion, to finally clinch the title at his third try at the Red Bull Car Park Drift
Mauritius is the latest country to have been admitted in the select club of the Red Bull Car Park Drift Series. Since the first national event in 2014, the Red Bull-driven event has attracted crowds of thousands each year. And they witnessed each time the victory of gifted driver Emmanuel d’Hotman, the Mauritian King of Drift three times in a row.
The Mauritian edition of the Red Bull Car Park Drift now has a new champion. On Saturday August 26 at the Champ de Mars, in the capital city Port-Louis, 20-year old Shehzad Soorabally finally clinched the title at his third try, driving his beefed up BMW E30 and outshining the one who coached him, Emmanuel d’Hotman, who finished second.
Shehzad Soorabally is a petrolhead since his childhood years, which is not a surprise as his father was himself a regular competitor in the Mauritian rallye scene. He is very psyched about his victory, after getting the second place in 2015 and the fourth one last year.
“I didn’t expect to win this time. There were lots of very good contenders but some of them got some technical problems. I just gave the best I could. Many thanks to my parents who always supported me, especially my father who helped in gearing my car. Now I have to get ready for the big final. It’s a dream come true to represent my country and I’ll train as much as I can to give it my best shot in Kuwait in December! “
The 2017 edition was meant to be a tight race, many drifters having shown their skills during training sessions. Unfortunately, some serious contenders were not able to deliver due to technical problems. Along others, Jaisan Newaj and Ramesh Ramdin who had finished second and third for last year’s edition and who had new setups on their cars to go for the win this year, had to quit.
After the first two rounds, only four drivers were left for the final stage, with D’Hotman and Soorabally being a class above. Both did very spectacular and accurate moves, but D’Hotman, despite an impressive drive, was penalised for a technical mistake in the “spiral”. Shehzad Soorabally clinched the title with 370 points, scoring better than Emmanuel d’Hotman with 348 points.
Thousands of spectators had gathered around the circuit on the parking lot of the Champ de Mars to check out the amazing show from the Mauritian drifters. The crowd was literally dazzled by Brian Capper, the South African trial bike champion, with his breathtaking moves, overhead jumps and thrilling stunts !