RIYADH: Saudi Arabia's Prince Abdulaziz Al-Faisal cruised to a comfortable victory in Round 6 of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East while Bahrain's Sheikh Salman Bin Rashid Al-Khalifa retained his championship lead at Reem International Circuit outside Riyadh Thursday. After claiming pole position for the second straight day, Prince Abdulaziz led from start to finish, claiming the win by 18 seconds to atone for his setback 24 hours earlier when the defending champion could only manage fourth place. The real drama, however, was unfolding behind him as Sheikh Salman survived a spin on the first corner which dropped him to fifth position, but managed to snatch second spot from Abu Dhabi's Khaled Al-Qubaisi on the final lap. That was the climax of a breathtaking race-long battle for the podium places which changed hands several times as Salman, Al-Qubaisi, teenager Fahad Al-Gosaibi and Saudi Bandar Alesayi fought for every inch on the twisting Reem circuit. After climbing from third to second spot with a brilliant start, Al-Qubaisi held on to that position until half-way through the 18th and final lap when first Alesayi threatened to move past him before Sheikh Salman squeezed ahead of them both. He now takes home a six-point lead over Prince Abdulaziz to carry into Rounds 7 and 8 at Bahrain International Circuit on Feb. 18-19. Championship standings: 1. Salman Bin Rashid Al-Khalifa (BAH) 110pts; 2. Abdulaziz Al-Faisal (KSA) Al-Faisal Racing Team 104pts; 3. Khaled Al-Qubaisi (UAE) tolimit Arabia 98pts; 4. Fahad Al-Gosaibi (KSA) ClassicArabia Racing 85pts; 5. Bandar Alesayi (KSA) 80pts; 6. Musaed Al-Murar (UAE) tolimit Arabia 57pts; 7. Ibrahim Salloum (UAE) Abu Dhabi Falcon Racing 49pts; 8. Johannes Waimer (GER) 37pts; 9. Fawaz Al-Gosaibi (KSA) ClassicArabia Racing 27pts; 11. Alain Muraour (F) 25pts.
