After coming down from the high of my first win in the Gulf Radical cup last month, my focus quickly shifted to the next round at the Bahrain International Circuit. Arriving in Bahrain we are greeted by a carnival like atmosphere, and while I wish I could say it was due to my new found fame, I have to concede that it is a lot more to do with the fact that we are on the same Desert 400 bill along with the Aussie V8 supercars who are in town for the only round of their fantastic championship that is held outside the Southern Hemisphere. Adding to the hoopla is the Speed car series whose many illustrious names (as well as the most outstanding collection of pit girls I have ever laid eyes on) are also attracting plenty of attention.

I wish I could say that this weekend went as smoothly as the first one, but sadly I can't. After curing an imbalance in the car that caused some sloppy practice times, qualifying ended with another comfortable pole position, but from there it went down hill. The start of the first race quickly went from nervous butterflies to complete exasperation as my reaction to the lights going green jammed the throttle open leaving me trying to slow down a car on full revs with a quickly fading brake pedal. Not a good combination. Three corners later I had figured out how to drive around the problem (keep the throttle from hitting it's stop), but by then the damage was done and I had completely boiled my brakes. Not good at the Bahrain circuit due to the combination of long straights and tight corners. To compound my disastrous DNF I had to start race 2 from the back of the grid. Determined to make amends I had an inspired run from the back of the grid and finished in 2nd place less than 0.5 sec behind Bahraini favourite (and all around nice guy) Fahad Al Musalam.

Two weeks later; back in Dubai for round 3; we are once again a support race for a big event, this time the Dubai Motorsport festival. Qualifying resulted in a front row start in 2nd place a ridiculous 0.016 sec behind flying Dutchman Maurits Knopjes (don't worry I can't pronounce his name either). The races proved to be equally tightly contested with little to choose between us, with both of us taking a win and a second place apiece, as well as splitting fastest lap times in both races. So far, so good, the 'Carbon Creation' has been unusually reliable, stuck throttle not withstanding, and I go into the next round with a healthy lead in the championship. Looks like I'm gonna have a fight on my hands though....