Alex Cudlin Increases Championship Lead with Double Victory
Australia’s Alex Cudlin emerged triumphant at Round 2 of the Qatar Superbike Championship after a fantastic duel with Championship rival Mashel Al Niami.
Alex, riding for Team QMMF racing aboard a Kawasaki ZX10, started the weekend well by qualifying on pole position with a 2:02.4, closely followed by local rider, Mashel Al Niami 2:02.6 and rounding out the front row was Nasser Al maiki with a 2:02.8.
In front of a crowd of 5000 people Cudlin stormed away from the line to lead into turn 1 on the first lap of Race 1.
Cudlin and Al Niami dropped the pack with their superiour pace and started to tussle for the lead position.
With changes to the leader board each lap, Cudlin knew he would have to make a perfect final lap to capture the win.
Al Miami drafted Cudlin down the 1.1 kilometer long straight to get into the lead on the final lap.
Cudlin then immediately fought back, passing Al niami into corner 3. However, Al Niami wasn’t going to go down without a fight and passed Cudlin again.
It all came down to corner 10 for the final passing manoeuvre, when Cudlin came from behind under brakes to pass Niami on the inside. Cudlin then held the lead all the way to the finish line to win his 3rd race of the 2015/2016 Qatar Superbike Season by 0.2 of a second.
“That was one amazing race. From the moment the lights turned green the race was on. Mashel and I were able to gap the rest of the riders and it set up a titanic battle. I was losing a lot of top speed down the straight compared to Al Niami,because our engine is standard, so I had to be aggressive in the corners. If there was a gap, I went for it. Mashel was a true warrior in that race and really made me work for it. I’m really happy to win this race and increase my lead in the championship. Of course race 2 this evening will be just as exciting” Cudlin said after Race 1.
Race two was again the same scenario with Cudlin and Al Niami tussling for the top spot.
Eventually Cudlin was able to open up a 1.2 second advantage on lap 13 of 15 after setting the fastest lap of the weekend with a 2:02.0, and able to win the race over Al Niami by 2.1 seconds.
“Race 2 I had some different tactics. I tried to get away at the start but Al Niami was able to hold on. I knew in this hot temperature it would come down to the final 2 laps, as tyre wear for all the riders was an issue. I made sure I saved my tyre as best I could until the final laps. I was able to set the fastest lap of the weekend on the penultimate lap and cross the line for my 4thstraight victory. This I’m happy about as it’s opened my championship up to a 20 point lead. Obviously Mashel is breathing down our necks so we can’t rest. All in all I’m very happy” said Cudlin with a smile.
Alex will now return to Australia for 2 weeks before the commencement of Round 3 on November 9.
