DOHA: The final of this year’s World Superbike Championship (WSBK) will be held under floodlights at the imposing Losail International Circuit, the FIM and Dorna have confirmed here yesterday.
The organisers have also confirmed that the November 2 race be the series’ first-ever night-time race. Constructed in record time of just nine months, Losail Circuit hosted the World Superbike family for five years but the last edition was staged in 2009.
However, whilst those events took place during the day, this year’s event will be the first-ever Superbike round to take place under floodlights.
Thirteen rounds were to be held in the 2014 WSBK, which is run by Dorna, the ruling body that manages the MotoGP show.
However, the South African round at Phakisa will now not take place as the circuit did not meet with the FIM’s homologation standards and the series is now looking for an alternative venue.
“Regarding the Round in South Africa originally scheduled to take place on October 19, FIM and Dorna WSBK regret to announce that, despite the efforts of the local promoter (GAS Sport), the works carried out on the race track are not advanced enough to meet the conditions required to achieve FIM homologation,|” said a WSBK spokesman.
“Dorna WSBK Organization and the International Federation are looking into the possibility of finding a replacement for this race. Depending on the replacement venue, the awards for the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, European Superstock 600 and European Junior Cup, powered by Honda, could be presented either at the French Round, scheduled on October 5 in Magny-Cours, or at the new venue.”
“This is good news for us,” said Nasser bin Khalifa Al Attiyah, President of Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation.
“I am sure Losail Circuit can add value to the World Superbike Championship. The more world-class races we stage, the better exposure our circuit gets. We are happy with that,” Al Attiyah said.
The WSBK joins a host of events which the Losail Circuit hosts under floodlights. In 2007, Qatar hosted the first ever night race and has been welcoming the MotoGP family for the season opener ever since.
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