Jaber clinches runner-up spot

Bahrain’s Jaber Al Khalifa clinched the runner-up spot in the bronze class in Race 1 Round 5 of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East on the Dubai Aerodrome’s 4.29km track.

After a skilful display of racing across 14 laps Jaber came in behind Qatar’s Rob Frijns, but the finish was enough to see him stay top of the standings in the bronze category and secure crucial points before returning to home soil for the season 7 finale in Bahrain in just under two weeks’ time.

Speaking after the race Jaber Al Khalifa said, “Race 1 was really good for me and did what I was expecting to do. Though the car was really hot inside from the weather, I didn’t have any issues with the corners which proves that the new configurations suits my driving very well.

Overall I maintained a tight gap between Rob Frijns and myself all the way to the end of the race and am pleased with the result.”

The Grand Prix Circuit of the Dubai Autodrome had been reconfigured to provide drivers and motorsport fans alike with 14 high-octane laps of action – a significant change offering up a shorter and faster track of 4.29km. Already from the morning’s qualification it was clear that the drivers would be up for the challenge, with Jeffrey Schmidt able to start the race in pole position ahead of Ireland’s Ryan Cullen and Kuwait’s Zaid Ashkanani – mirroring the top-three in the driver’s standings ahead of this decisive round.

With only a handful of points separating Schmidt and Cullen, the stage was set for an intensely competitive race between the two talented drivers and the rest of the pack as Ashkanani dropped two places by the first bend of lap 1 thanks to a poor start, allowing Abdulaziz AlFaisal to catapult himself into the podium battle.

This set Schmidt and Cullen up for a breath-taking bumper-to-bumper contest throughout the first nine laps, ahead of the pack.

With only four laps to go, the scene was set for pandemonium as Ryan Cullen spun out after pushing too hard and the failed manoeuvre reshuffled the pack and brought Ashkanani back in contention for a podium finish, all but confirming yet another dominant win for Schmidt ahead of AlFaisal in second.

Regarded as the purest form of racing with all drivers competing in identical fifth generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cups, the unique one-make series consists of 12 races between November 2015 and March 2016 with Season 7 concluding at Bahrain International Circuit on March 4-5.