Kukhuns to take on top drift drivers

AMMAN — The second round of the Jordan Drift Championship kicks off on Friday with the participation of more than 40 drivers at the SOFEX racetrack.

The event is headed by the winner of the first round Mohammad Kukhun, who beat 31 drivers at the Arena racetrack in Madaba to take the lead after clocking 1m27.55s in his BMW A46 and collecting 519 points. He was followed by his brother Omar Kukhun (1m29.45s, 506 points) in his BMW A36 and Othman Takriti (1m22.58s, 490 points) in his BMW A30.

Othman Naseef, Jordan Motorsports CEO, told The Jordan Times that drifting is gaining unmatched popularity among fans.

“Since we introduced drifting in 2014, in a controlled environment, this type of sport has gained a lot of dedicated fans and drivers.

“We are happy to see that positive response from everyone,” he said.

“We expect more a challenging atmosphere this round as the track is different from the Arena in Madaba and it needs more focus and skill,” Naseef added.

Drivers are judged according to speed, angle and perfect track line (90 points), Showmanship (5 points) and smoking tyres (5 points) which gives it the right edge that only experienced drivers are able to make a difference.

According to Naseef, April 24 will witness the second round of the Rally Championship.

“We will celebrate Labour Day with the second round of the Speed Test Championship May 1st at the Royal Automobile Club of Jordan Racetrack [RACJ],” Naseef said.

“We are trying to keep fans in the same mood for auto sports so they can enjoy their time. The event at the RACJ will be more of a family event so we ask fans to join us and enjoy the event,” he said.

Drifting consists of three rounds with the last round hosting the best 13 drifters. Drivers will have to have a special drift driving licence and they will be judged by a committee of experienced drivers.

Drifting is a kind of driving technique that goes back to the 70s in Japan and used by drivers through oversteering and causing a loss of traction whether in the rear wheels or all tyres while controlling a certain entry to exit of a corner.