Libyan Mohamed Bouhadima crowned champion of the sixth edition of the FIA Digital Racing Championship in the MENA region
Amman3 min read
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Libyan driver Mohamed Bouhadima was crowned champion of the sixth edition of the FIA Digital Racing Championship in the Middle East and North Africa, following excitement-filled and challenging competitions held at The ARC esports center at the King Hussein Business Park in the Jordanian capital, Amman, amidst a large audience and supervision by FIA officials.
Bouhadima’s triumph followed a stellar performance in the final race at the Belgian Spa-Francorchamps circuit, where rainy weather conditions imposed additional challenges on the drivers, allowing him to secure the title with a 6.1-second lead over Tunisian Karim Choueirf, who finished second, while Emirati Mohamed Idris took third place.
The championship, which featured 12 drivers, saw intense competition starting from the semi-finals at the Canadian Gilles Villeneuve circuit, where participants qualified for the final through two groups. The stage saw the elimination of Iraqi Mohamed Hadi, the 2024 edition champion, after finishing tenth in his group.
In the first group, Lebanese driver Marvin El Mir took first place ahead of Bouhadima, while Omani Wasif Al-Kharusi finished third. The second group saw the dominance of Sami-Joe Abi Nakhle, who topped the race ahead of Karim Choueirf, while Algerian Mohamed Kheireddine finished third, and Jordanian Sham Abu Jabal secured a qualification spot after finishing the competitions in fourth place.
In the qualifying heats for the final race, reading the track conditions played a decisive role, especially with the rain falling and the track beginning to dry, as Bouhadima, Choueirf, and Emirati Mohamed Idris made the decision to switch to soft tires designated for dry tracks, which gave them a clear advantage.
Bouhadima succeeded in recording the fastest time during qualifying at 1 minute and 52.384 seconds, securing pole position ahead of Choueirf, while Idris came in third.
As the final race started, Bouhadima maintained his composure and lead, despite the remarkable progress of Lebanese driver Marvin El Mir, who moved from seventh to second place on the first lap. The race saw a different strategy in handling tires, given the varying decisions by drivers between full wet and intermediate tires, before weather conditions shifted, favoring those who chose the right time to pit.
Although Sami-Joe Abi Nakhle recorded the fastest lap in the final race with a time of 1 minute and 53.089 seconds, it was not enough to make up for the time lost due to his pit stop strategy, leaving him to finish the race in fourth place, while El Mir fell to fifth.
With this victory, Bouhadima becomes the sixth different champion in the tournament's history, which has seen six different drivers crowned across its six editions, confirming the close skill levels and the strength of the competition among participants.
The championship was organized by Jordan Motorsport and Desert Fox Racing, under the supervision of FIA officials, as part of the activities of the MENA Digital Racing Championship festival.
Bouhadima is scheduled to travel to Shanghai, China, on December 12 to participate in the FIA Prize Giving ceremony, where he will receive his award as the champion of the sixth edition of the championship.
