Who will be the new drift king?
The leading car park drift competition in Egypt returns with 16 of the finest drifters in the country, Mohamed Abdel-Razek reports
In its seventh edition, Car Park Drift, (CPD), the traditional drift competition which paved a new road for car racing in Egypt back in 2011, remains the most prominent event on the calendar. CPD is now the only race car competition that gives the opportunity to Egyptian race car drivers to represent their country in a regional competition, as the winner of the CPD in Egypt will go to Qatar in December to compete with the best drifters in the Middle East.
The CPD is based on testing the ability of the driver to complete the track route, trying to keep his car sliding sideways all the time while completing all the challenges like the clipping point and the box and many others without hitting barrels or any other obstacles that should not be touched.
Today, Thursday 18 May, the qualifying round will begin. Sixteen drivers will qualify for the finals tomorrow in Tulip Hotel on Suez Road. In the past two editions surprises were everywhere, including when Ahmed Dessouki screamed out his talent, winning the race with a car not as powerful as those of more experienced drivers and despite being his first ever participation. Last year was another surprise when Maged Abu Selim managed to capture the title from Rami Serri, Haitham Samir and Moataz Atef to represent Egypt in the Middle East finals.
So what will happen tomorrow Friday 19 May? Will there be more surprises? Al-Ahram Weekly sheds light on some of the main contenders for the 2017 CPD, their latest news and preparations, with some exclusive news.
Hossam Soliman
One of the more talented drivers who puts a lot of effort in his car, raising its standards each year. However, Soliman has not been lucky the past years with so many mechanical failures. Last year he introduced his monster e92 with the LS3 system, but gearbox failure ruled him out early. This year Soliman comes in with a whole new LS3 system including the gearbox. "I don't think of any of the other drivers. I will choose to concentrate on myself," Soliman said. He added that his dream is to represent Egypt in the finals and that he will push hard from the beginning in order to collect the most points to prevent equalising in points at the end of the race. With a new modification in the angle kit, anticipate some wild driving from Soliman.
Maged Abu Selim
"Being the title holder this year, my will and eagerness to win is even stronger," said Abu Selim. Selim said he respects all 15 drifters, believing anyone could win the race. Abu Selim did not modify his car; only the livery design will be changed this year. "My car's history is keeping me calm," he said. "With free engine failures I'm relaxed. I will raise my tempo gradually from the qualifying round and the first heat on Friday."
Moataz Atef
Another experienced driver who has been behind the front lines for a while now for various reasons. Last year Atef suffered engine failure in his E30 1jz with a damaged cylinder head. When asked about the drivers that might give him a hard time, Atef produced a long list: Samir, Serri, Hisham Al-Khatib, Abu-Gharib and Ahmed Hammada. Atef added that he modified his car by adding a bigger turbo hoping to drive away from mechanical failures especially the oil pump. "I hope it stays in one piece till the end."
Rami Serry
Serry was the first ever to win the CPD and represent Egypt in Lebanon's Middle East finals in 2011. He also won the CPD three consecutive times and collected the largest number of podium appearances in the history of the competition. However, in the past three or four years, Serri experienced several disappointments with mechanical failures that ruled him out of the competition or made him lose enough points to prevent him from winning the CPD. Serri recently threw a new engine under his hood after he blew the old one two weeks ago in the Battle of the Wheels. He has been waiting for his personal tuner Sameh Mohamed to return from abroad to retune his ECU. "I have three drifters in mind that I believe will be so competitive with me: Abu Selim, Zordok and Sayed Abu Gharib," said Serri. The former CPD champion added that he changed his power steering system from mechanical to electronic which was the reason behind last year's upset. Says Serri: "I will push har d from the start in order to reach my limit as well as the car's limit by the end of the race."
