Hey, brother, can you spare a few thousand dirhams?
I don't need it to eat or pay for my flat or anything like that. But the reason is as much sustenance for my soul as food is for my stomach.
You'll see with our lead story how expensive motorsport can be, on every level. Even kart racing for a 10-year-old requires a certain level of financial commitment that can go far beyond what parents would pay for, say, rugby or football. Kudos to those parents who sacrifice for their kids' karting; though, it may be they're having just as much fun as the kids are.
And that cost just rises the higher up you go in the racing scene. Get into car racing - even local, grassroots motorsport with a beat-up Civic or Clio - and the amount of money needed to run a season escalates. Talk with any driver at one of the UAE National Race Days and you'll hear how difficult it is for them to find funding.
Consider this: for the least inexpensive form of racing here - the Suzuki Swift Cup - it costs Dh66,000 a season to run, cheap by racing standards but still no small sum. But they supply the car; if you want your own car, the Touring Car drivers will spend up to Dh250,000 a season, plus Dh100,000 on entry fees, tyres and all the other stuff. If you want to run with the big boys, the GT guys can spend anywhere between Dh300,000 and Dh1.1million on just the car; you want to actually use that car racing, it'll cost up to Dh500,000 extra during a season. You could get away with just spending half that, but it just means less practice and fewer performance tweaks; basically, you're not competitive.
Because of this, racing isn't just going fast on the track; it involves plenty of legwork trying to drum up any kind of financing you can find to pay for tyres, fuel, repairs and other incidentals that come with the sport.
Don't I know it. With a taste of racing late last year, I want more. But, well, the finances are a little tight, what with two hungry cats at home to feed.
In this age of austerity, it's getting harder and harder to find the kind of funding needed for race teams here; even the larger, more established teams have a difficult time in getting money to pay for the season. But, especially in this country, it shouldn't have to be that way.
Motorsport is still a relatively young venture in this region; the Autodrome officially opened in 2004. And with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix now two years on, the focus on the sport is ever increasing here, and the pressure to find an Emirati F1 driver is high. The Dunlop 24 Hours of Dubai finished two weeks ago with the largest number of teams ever, and most of those were from Europe. Indeed, racing is playing a part in turning the world's attention to the UAE.
But for racing to really catch on in this country there has to be a commitment on the part of business and government to open up their wallets. And that means at every level, not just Formula One; without karting or grassroots racing, the top levels of motorsport will never gain a hold here.
How many Michael Schumachers or Sebastien Loebs or Valentino Rossis do we have in the UAE right now? You can be sure that we have at least a few with the right talents needed to get to the top, the ones who can not only compete in F1 or WRC or MotoGP, but who can win, too. But we'll never know them if they can't afford to try it out on the track. Think of it not as spending money, but as investing in the future of the country.
And, if you feel like investing in my racing future, too, I'd love to hear from you.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Results:
5pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic (PA) Prestige Dh 110,000 1.400m | Winner: AF Mouthirah, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic (PA) Prestige Dh 110,000 1,400m | Winner: AF Saab, Antonio Fresu, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 1,600m | Winner: Majd Al Gharbia, Saif Al Balushi, Ridha ben Attia
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Championship (PA) Listed Dh 180,000 1,600m | Winner: RB Money To Burn, Pat Cosgrave, Eric Lemartinel
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Handicap Dh 70,000 2,200m | Winner: AF Kafu, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 100,000 2,400m | Winner: Brass Ring, Fabrice Veron, Ismail Mohammed
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
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TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
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A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.4-litre%204-cylinder%20turbo%20hybrid%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20366hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E550Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESix-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh360%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Moral education needed in a 'rapidly changing world'
Moral education lessons for young people is needed in a rapidly changing world, the head of the programme said.
Alanood Al Kaabi, head of programmes at the Education Affairs Office of the Crown Price Court - Abu Dhabi, said: "The Crown Price Court is fully behind this initiative and have already seen the curriculum succeed in empowering young people and providing them with the necessary tools to succeed in building the future of the nation at all levels.
"Moral education touches on every aspect and subject that children engage in.
"It is not just limited to science or maths but it is involved in all subjects and it is helping children to adapt to integral moral practises.
"The moral education programme has been designed to develop children holistically in a world being rapidly transformed by technology and globalisation."
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies direct from Dubai to Rio de Janeiro from Dh7,000 return including taxes. Avianca fliles from Rio to Cusco via Lima from $399 (Dhxx) return including taxes.
The trip
From US$1,830 per deluxe cabin, twin share, for the one-night Spirit of the Water itinerary and US$4,630 per deluxe cabin for the Peruvian Highlands itinerary, inclusive of meals, and beverages. Surcharges apply for some excursions.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
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