Casey Stoner rode to a second consecutive title on Sunday to celebrate his birthday at Phillip Island in the Australian MotoGP race.
Casey Stoner rode to a second consecutive title on Sunday to celebrate his birthday at Phillip Island in the Australian MotoGP race.

Sport

Rain cannot dampen Stoner's double delight

Casey Stoner delivered the best birthday present to himself he could find - a second Moto GP title - with a win at rainy Philip Island in the Australian Grand Prix.

Reuters

October 17, 2011

PHILLIP ISLAND, Australia // Birthday boy Casey Stoner breathed a sigh of relief Sunday after surviving a drama-filled day to seal his second MotoGP championship with his fifth successive Australian Grand Prix victory.

Stoner started the day feeling queasy at the news of rival Jorge Lorenzo's severely injured finger and finished it under immense pressure as driving wind and rain sent riders scattering like nine-pins in the latter stages of the race.

With Lorenzo ruled out of the race and in hospital for plastic surgery, the Australian was a shoo-in to seal the title with two races to spare but had to survive the odd hair-raising wobble in the final laps.

"Phillip Island doesn't let you go home without a wet session, and we got it during the race, unfortunately," the 26 year old said, after late rain showers turned the negotiating corners into something of a lottery.

"I've gone into that last turn, and as soon as I've cracked that throttle again, the rear came around and my heart was up in my throat."

Stoner, an intensely-driven rider not given to major displays of emotion, beamed on the podium in front of a cheering crowd and rated the title-sealing race as one of the best of his career.

But he would be happy to never celebrate another birthday at Phillip Island, he said, despite passing them with success on the race weekend.

"It'd be nice to have a birthday at home one day," said Stoner, who talked of a post-retirement future taking over his father's farm and is looking forward to the birth of his first child in a few months.

Stoner notched his ninth win from 16 starts in a supremely dominant season, and extended his MotoGP record total to 11 poles at Phillip Island.

The title was much sweeter this time around in his first year with Honda's stable of stars, he said, than with Ducati in 2007, where he was the main show but battled illness and mechanical frustration in his last seasons.

"This championship definitely felt the best," he said.

"In 2007, we were criticised for all kinds of things ... This year no-one's got excuses. There's three other riders on the same bike."

Stoner, relishing the re-introduction of 1000cc engines next year, said: "I've always preferred 1000s when I've got on them... With a lot of circuits it's going to be a lot more fun."

The specs

Engine: 2x201bhp AC Permanent-magnetic electric

Transmission: n/a

Power: 402bhp

Torque: 659Nm

Price estimate: Dh200,000

On sale: Q3 2022 

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The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Power: 268bhp / 536bhp
Torque: 343Nm / 686Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
On sale: Later this year
Squid Game season two

Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk 

Stars:  Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun

Rating: 4.5/5

What is double taxation?
  • Americans living abroad file taxes with the Internal Revenue Service, which can cost hundreds of dollars to complete even though about 60 per cent do not owe taxes, according to the Taxpayer Advocate Service
  • Those obligations apply to millions of Americans residing overseas – estimates range from 3.9 million to 5.5 million – including so-called "accidental Americans" who are unaware they hold dual citizenship
  • The double taxation policy has been a contentious issue for decades, with many overseas Americans feeling that it punishes them for pursuing opportunities abroad
  • Unlike most countries, the US follows a citizenship-based taxation system, meaning that Americans must file taxes annually, even if they do not earn any income in the US.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”