Muscat: The Oman International Drift Championship draws to a close with its fourth and final round at the Muscat Arena. A total of 63 drivers participated in Friday’s round, with an unexpected turn of events with much-awaited battles ending in cars crashing and experiencing technical issues. Well renowned drivers were out from the Top 16 and Top 8, losing their place on the podium early on in the competition. Race Director, Fahmi Al Busaidi said: "This year’s championship was very much different to the previous seasons and OAA is always looking to improve the event in many ways such as the technology used, training our marshals, altering the track to competitive levels. The international drivers we had here had commented on the difficulty of the tracks, and how it was unlike to the ones they participated in other countries.” He added: "Organising such an event is not a one-day job. We started very early in preparing for this competition, coordinating with the various departments to deliver this championship at a professional standard.” The winners for Round 4 of the Oman International Drift Championship are as per the following: INTERNATIONAL Third place: Nikolass Bertans Second place: Ali Makhseed First place: Nasser Al Harbali MENA Third place: Ahmad Daham Second place: Haitham Al Hadidi First place: Ali Makhseed NATIONAL Third place: Ahmed Al Amri Second place: Tariq Al Shaihani First place: Haitham Al Hadidi The winners of the overall OIDC championship are: INTERNATIONAL Third place: Nasser Al Harbali Second place: Benediktas Cirba First place: Ali Makhseed MENA Third place: Ahmed Al Amri Second place: Ahmad Daham First place: Ali Makhseed NATIONAL Third place: Tariq Al Shaihani Second place: Ahmed Al Amri First place: Haitham Al Hadidi Local driver Ahmed Al Amri who was on a winning streak in the last two rounds, was out during the Top 16, and was surpassed in points by Haitham Al Hadidi in the National Category. Haitham Al Hadidi said: "We have really enjoyed these past four rounds and it was just perfect. Everything went well. Many champions came from different countries and it turned out to be such a hard championship. All the winning drivers deserved it, and we are now preparing for the next season. Hope everyone enjoyed it and thanks to OAA and OIDC for such an amazing event and can’t wait to see you next year.” For his very first win as the champion in the International category and then coming in third overall of the OIDC, Nasser Al Harbali is all smiles as he finds the right words to express his delight. He said: "I’m really happy and so proud of my team for making it to the Overall as it wasn’t something we were thinking off. We had a goal just to get a chance to be on the podium in one of the rounds and to be here and say that I not only came first in this round but also won a place for the overall championship is a lot more than I was planning to achieve.” Benediktas Cirba, who lost a place in this round’s Top 3 but came in second overall, was slightly disappointed with the way he performed. He said: "This year I had come to win and that was the prime focus, but the runs not being perfect, it got difficult. However, this year was very hard to compete as the track was very tricky and the drivers were really good, so I’m still glad to get to where I am now.” Overall champion, Ali Makhseed was the crowd’s favourite, as they chant his name all throughout the award ceremony. Ali said: "I feel really good, I feel relieved. After years and years of hard work and determination, it finally led us to this moment. I think we made history today. This is not just my achievement, it is everyone’s achievement, OAA, OIDC and the middle eastern people’s achievement. "So, I’m happy and honoured to be a part of this and hopefully we can come back next year and, in more years, to come. Thank you OAA, thank you OIDC and thank you Oman.” He added: "We’ll be back a lot stronger and fishing for more, aiming for that first spot.” Oman Automobile Association is proud to have held such a successful season for this international championship, with a great show of battles in all four rounds performed by all the drivers who put in their all to win a place at the podium, and aims to host another thrilling and knee-jerking experience in next year’s OIDC. The reception at OAA is open every day for inquiries and issuing international licences. Karting facilities at Muscat Speedway are opened from 9AM to 11PM, from Monday to Saturday.