Starting the race in fifth place, Ashkanani needed to finish in the top three to guarantee his first title in the series if Schmid, his closest rival, triumphed. Schmid did what he needed to do, having gone into the race trailing Ashkanani by five points in the standings, as he converted pole position into the lead at the start and then led to the finish.

Ashkanani was fifth in the early stages, but he moved up to third midway through the race as he came out on top of a battle with Karim Al Azhari and Abdulaziz Al Faisal, the double champion. Schmid acknowledged that he found the season’s result hard to accept after falling short by such a narrow margin.

“Obviously I am disappointed as I wanted to be drivers’ champion,” the Austrian said. “I have worked hard all season to secure victory, and to lose by just one point is extremely hard to take.”

Ashkanani had won the first round of the weekend on Friday, ahead of Schmid, with those extra points proving decisive in deciding the destination of the title.