DUBAI — The Saudi Falcons Team, in association with Schubert Motorsport, will be aiming to make amends for last year's disappointment when two cars are entered in this weekend's eighth Dunlop 24-Hour Dubai 2013, the first circuit endurance race of the new season. A missed braking point and a spin three corners from the end cost Saudi Falcons 1 a potential podium finish in 2012 with the team finishing fourth overall. The second Saudi Falcons car was badly delayed when the car's fan belt failed. This year the Saudi Falcons Team Schubert has again entered a pair of 4.4-liter BMW Z4 GT3s in the race, which will take place on the challenging 5.39-km Dubai Autodrome circuit. It is the third season that the team has been represented in the Dubai race, which grows in stature and importance each year. Mercedes SLS AMG GT3s filled the top three places last year, with Emirati Khaled Al-Qubaisi, England's Sean Edwards, Dutchman Jeroen Bleekmolen and Germany's Thomas Jager winning the race in the Abu Dhabi Black Falcon 3 car. The second place fell to Bernd Schneider's team in the Heico 1 Motorsport 6 Mercedes SLS AMG GT3 and the second Heico 1 Motorsport Mercedes was third. This weekend, the Saudi Falcons Team Schubert 1 will be crewed by the Saudi drivers Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al-Faisal and Faisal Bin Laden, Austrian Dominik Baumann and the German duo of Dominik Schwager and Dirk Adorf. Abdulaziz and Faisal are also registered with Saudi Falcons Team Schubert 2 alongside the German trio of J?rg Müller, Claudia Hürtgen and Dirk Müller. “The whole team is fully focused on this weekend's 24Hr Dubai,” said a team spokesman. “Abdulaziz Bin Turki and Faisal will each lead a car and our goal is to win the race. “Last year was a disappointing outcome for us,” said team engineer Stefan Wentl. “We were chasing hard for nearly 20 hours and then a stone damaged the air filter and we lost the time making the repairs.” Abdulaziz sounded confident and said that this is the best way to use their Porsche GT3 winter break. “We are participating in the race during the winter break of the Porsche GT3 CCME race and other formats we participate in. Dubai 24Hr comes as an opportunity to increase our success in different races, gain more experience and make our country proud. “The race holds a lot of challenges for us since we will be facing tough competition from international and well-established names in the sport. Despite all this we are going for the win,” he added. Teams will be permitted free practice on the course Thursday morning prior to qualifying and night practice in the afternoon and evening. The race will start at the Dubai Autodrome at 14.00hrs on Friday (Jan. 11) and finish at the same time on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 12). — SG
