-
Home
-
Latest Headlines
-
- TV Shows
-
TV Schedule
-
SPEED Showcase
-
- NASCAR
-
Latest Headlines: NASCAR
-
-
Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
-
Latest Headlines: Moto-Racing
-
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Games
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
- Home
- TV Shows
-
TV Schedule
-
SPEED Showcase
-
- NASCAR
- Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
GT Racing
GT: Black Falcon On 24H Dubai Pole
Jeroen Bleekemolen storms to pole following overnight rebuild for Black Falcon Mercedes crew...
Jeroen Bleekemolen, Sean Edwards, Bernd Schneider and Khaled Al Qubaisi celebrate pole for the 24 Hours of Dubai. (Photo: John Dagys)
For a moment on Wednesday, it looked like Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon's race was over, following a high-speed testing accident by Khaled Al Qubaisi that destroyed the defending winner's Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3.
But 24 hours later, the No. 1 entry of Al Qubaisi, Jeroen Bleekemolen, Sean Edwards and Bernd Schneider was on pole for the 8th annual Dunlop 24 Hours of Dubai, in a remarkable comeback that saw the German squad virtually build up an entirely new car overnight after sourcing a replacement chassis from a fellow competitor.
Still wearing the silver livery from Preci-Spark Racing, which brought a spare SLS to the Middle Eastern enduro, Jeroen Bleekemolen turned in a session-best 1:59.104 lap time in qualifying Thursday. The flying Dutchman edged out the No. 26 Attempto Racing Porsche 997 GT3-R of Kevin Estre by 0.381 seconds to grab the top spot.
"They put the engine, the gearbox, the fuel tank, the suspension and many other parts from the original car in and really did an amazing job, because the car felt great," Bleekemolen said. "The fact that I was able to claim pole on what was only my third lap of the weekend at the Dubai Autodrome is almost unbelievable."
Craft Racing AMR will line up third on the 78-car grid, thanks to a 1:59.676 lap time set by the team's Aston Martin Vantage GT3 of Darren Turner, Stefan Mucke, Darryl O'Young, Frank Yu and Tomonobu Fujii.
Completing the top-five overall and in the A6-Pro class were the two Saudi Falcons BMW Z4 GT3 machines, led by factory driver Dirk Mueller, Joerg Muller, Claudia Hurtgen and Saudis Faisal Binladen and Abdulaziz AlFaisal in the No. 24 entry.
Of American intrest, 2011 ALMS PC co-champion Gunnar Jeannette was 11th quickest in his RAM Racing Ferrari F458 Italia GT3 he'll share with fellow sports car veterans Guy Smith and Johnny Mowlem, while DragonSpeed's Audi R8 LMS ultra, featuring the likes of Eric Lux and Enzo Potolicchio, will roll off 24th overall.
DragonSpeed's entry is one many teams opting for "Am" classification in the A6 class, which will result in the car unable to exceed the minimum reference lap time of 2:05 in the race. Nominated professional driving squads can run unrestricted but face weight, fuel and ride height penalties.
Other class pole-sitter include Besaplast Racing (SP2), All-Inkl.com Munnich Motorsport (A3T), JR Motorsport (A5) and RJN Motorsport's Nissan 370Z, which locked out the top two positions in SP3 with its lineup of GT Academy drivers, including 2012 U.S. winner, Steve Doherty.
The 8th annual Dunlop 24 Hours of Dubai gets underway Friday at 2 p.m. local (5 a.m. ET) with live video and commentary, hosted by Radio Le Mans, available at http://www.24hdubai.com/
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
But 24 hours later, the No. 1 entry of Al Qubaisi, Jeroen Bleekemolen, Sean Edwards and Bernd Schneider was on pole for the 8th annual Dunlop 24 Hours of Dubai, in a remarkable comeback that saw the German squad virtually build up an entirely new car overnight after sourcing a replacement chassis from a fellow competitor.
Still wearing the silver livery from Preci-Spark Racing, which brought a spare SLS to the Middle Eastern enduro, Jeroen Bleekemolen turned in a session-best 1:59.104 lap time in qualifying Thursday. The flying Dutchman edged out the No. 26 Attempto Racing Porsche 997 GT3-R of Kevin Estre by 0.381 seconds to grab the top spot.
"They put the engine, the gearbox, the fuel tank, the suspension and many other parts from the original car in and really did an amazing job, because the car felt great," Bleekemolen said. "The fact that I was able to claim pole on what was only my third lap of the weekend at the Dubai Autodrome is almost unbelievable."
Craft Racing AMR will line up third on the 78-car grid, thanks to a 1:59.676 lap time set by the team's Aston Martin Vantage GT3 of Darren Turner, Stefan Mucke, Darryl O'Young, Frank Yu and Tomonobu Fujii.
Completing the top-five overall and in the A6-Pro class were the two Saudi Falcons BMW Z4 GT3 machines, led by factory driver Dirk Mueller, Joerg Muller, Claudia Hurtgen and Saudis Faisal Binladen and Abdulaziz AlFaisal in the No. 24 entry.
Of American intrest, 2011 ALMS PC co-champion Gunnar Jeannette was 11th quickest in his RAM Racing Ferrari F458 Italia GT3 he'll share with fellow sports car veterans Guy Smith and Johnny Mowlem, while DragonSpeed's Audi R8 LMS ultra, featuring the likes of Eric Lux and Enzo Potolicchio, will roll off 24th overall.
DragonSpeed's entry is one many teams opting for "Am" classification in the A6 class, which will result in the car unable to exceed the minimum reference lap time of 2:05 in the race. Nominated professional driving squads can run unrestricted but face weight, fuel and ride height penalties.
Other class pole-sitter include Besaplast Racing (SP2), All-Inkl.com Munnich Motorsport (A3T), JR Motorsport (A5) and RJN Motorsport's Nissan 370Z, which locked out the top two positions in SP3 with its lineup of GT Academy drivers, including 2012 U.S. winner, Steve Doherty.
The 8th annual Dunlop 24 Hours of Dubai gets underway Friday at 2 p.m. local (5 a.m. ET) with live video and commentary, hosted by Radio Le Mans, available at http://www.24hdubai.com/
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
FIA GT Nogaro
LATEST HEADLINES: AUTO-RACING
-
INDYCAR: Inside IndyCar's New Speed, Safety And Technology Initiative…
INDYCAR's Derrick Walker takes Marshall Pruett through where the… -
PHOTOS: Indy 500 Carb Day 2013
Enjoy a selection of photos from Indy 500 Carb Day, including the… -
VIDEO: Amazing 4-Wide Finish To Indy Lights Freedom 100
Ireland's Peter Dempsey came from fourth at Turn 3 on the last lap… -
INDYCAR: Pagenaud Leads Indy 500 Carb Day Practice
After getting whooped in qualifying, Honda turns up the wick for… -
INDYCAR: Miller's Mailbag, 5.24
It's time for SPEED.com's weekly IndyCar Q&A with Robin Miller's… -
USAC: Honda To Sponsor National Midget Championship
Honda announced it would be the title sponsor for USAC’s National… -
GRAND-AM: Valiante Joins 8Star For Mid-Ohio
Daytona Prototype ace to sub for Stephane Sarrazin in next month's… - More News
