JEDDAH — Abdulaziz Bin Turki AlFaisal finished fifth in 24 Hour race at the Nürburgring Nordschleife Circuit after an impressive performance in one of the world's toughest annual endurance races. Abdulaziz raced a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 – prepared by the Black Falcon squad – and shared driving duties with German racer Hubert Haupt and Dutch duo Jaap van Lagen and Yelmer Buurman. His was the first Mercedes car home. The Saudi hero confirmed his skill in endurance racing in the best possible way at the start of 2015 when he claimed victory in the Dubai 24 Hour race, prior to his appearance in Germany. Abdulaziz was able to climb into the podium positions at the Nürburgring Nordschleife but the changing weather conditions left the team having to make an extra stop. While many cars withdrew due to mistakes, Abdulaziz maintained his composure to complete the race in fifth place out of the 102 cars which reached the checkered flag, and did so as the leading ‘Silver Arrows' car. The length and challenge presented by an endurance race – compared to a race which lasts an hour or two – also helps with the development of a driver. Consequently, the Saudi star benefited from this experience in order to complete his preparations for the famous Le Mans 24 Hours, which will be held next month. “I thank God first and foremost for this wonderful result,” said Abdulaziz. “To finish the race itself is a remarkable achievement and I am very happy to achieve fifth position in this difficult race.” He added: “This race is of huge importance, given the number of cars involved and the fans who attended from all over the world. It's a fantastic event and I feel proud just to be participating alongside the best drivers in the world, and to raise the banner of Saudi Arabia on this event.” Abdulaziz stressed that an overall position on the podium would have been possible had the team not headed into the pits to change tires due to rain. He added: “We decided to enter the pits in order to change to wet tires due to the rain. Unfortunately the rain stopped and the circuit soon dried, so after only three laps we had to go back into the pits and re-fit the dry tires. This decision cost us a spot on the podium.” He thanked the Black Falcon team for its tireless work on the car and all of the local and global sponsors who aided the team. — SG
