Ahmad Al Harthy

Ahmad Al Harthy (born 31 August 1981 in Muscat, Oman) is Oman's top racing driver and one of the Middle Eastern Sultanate's leading international sportsmen. He is the 2012 Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain Pro-Am 1 Champion.

Career

Early years

Although dabbling with karting at the age of seven, following a visit with his older brother to his local kart track in Oman, it wasn't until Al Harthy reached his early 20s that he was able to set-out on the path to a career in motorsport.

His first car racing experience came in 2006 in the Bahrain based Thunder Arabia Championship where he broke new ground as the first Omani born driver to compete in single-seater (or formula) racing. Finishing the season as Vice-Champion with two race wins and 10 podiums from 14 races, Al Harthy sought a fresh challenge for the following year and decided to pit himself against the best competition in Britain in the Formula Renault BARC Championship.

Formula Renault BARC

Joining the Hillspeed team at the start of 2007, Al Harthy went on to enjoy a successful three year stint with the squad. Improving steadily throughout his first season, in which he achieved his debut Formula Renault podiums in the end-of-year Winter Championship, he became a consistent front-runner in 2008. Concluding his second season in the category fifth overall, Al Harthy secured three podium finishes along the way and also qualified on pole position twice.