Sunday, December 10:  Italian Alberto Comparato topped the times in the second practice session for the Road to Sharjah-Grand Prix of Sharjah on Sunday morning.

The youngster left it until the final 15 minutes to card a fastest lap of 46.606 seconds and push Mad Croc Gillman Racing’s Grant Trask down to second after the Australian had topped the times for much of the one-hour session on Khalid Lagoon.

After a dramatic second sprint race on Saturday afternoon, Erik Stark’s yellow card was rescinded by UIM officials and Ahmad Al-Fahim’s red was downgraded to a yellow on Saturday evening. But a previous yellow awarded in Sardinia meant that Al-Fahim -  who has been running on a provisional licence from the start of the season - missed the rest of the race weekend through suspension.

Marit Strømøy and Duarte Benavente were the first two drivers on to the race course in millpond conditions for the final practice stint. Trask, however, began strongly and laid down the gauntlet with a run of 47.198 seconds.

That time stood for over 45 minutes of a session where World Champion Jonas Andersson only ran for one lap. Comparato benefitted from clear water late on to card his fastest lap.

Strømøy continued to clock up the testing and development time with the Mercury V8-engined four-stroke DAC. The Norwegian finished her 21-lap  stint with a best run of 48.009 seconds that put her into sixth.

Both Filip Roms and Kalle Viippo skipped the session after boat damage sustained on Saturday. Team Abu Dhabi’s Shaun Torrente was also absent after his spectacular accident in Sprint Race B.

The 2023 Road to Sharjah-Grand Prix of Sharjah takes centre stage at 15.00hrs this afternoon.