Ram Racing Ferrari Leads at Halfway Mark in Dubai

Photo: John Dagys

With early race favorites Team Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon hitting trouble, Ram Racing has taken the lead in the Dunlop 24 Hours of Dubai, with an intense three-way battle for the lead developing as the around-the-clock enduro reaches the halfway mark.

Reigning ALMS GT champion Jan Magnussen holds a two-minute margin over the 4 Fach Auto Tech Porsche 997 GT3 R driven by American Porsche Junior driver Connor De Phillippi, with the Dirk Werner-driven No. 76 Team Schubert BMW Z4 GT3 of Dirk Werner in a close third.

All three cars have exchanged the lead over the last two hours.

The story of the race so far came in the 10th hour when the race-leading Black Falcon Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 lost more than 20 laps when it struck electrical issues.

The Bernd Schneider, Jeroen Bleekemolen, Khaled Al Qubaisi and Andreas Simonsen-driven machine, which was in pursuit of its third consecutive overall win, held nearly a two-lap lead at the time.

Black Falcon’s hopes of securing victory now rest with its No. 2 Mercedes, also featuring Bleekemolen and Al Qubaisi on the driving strength, which runs in fifth overall.

There have been a total of eight Code 60s, the most recent coming in the 12th hour when the No. 142 BMW silhouette car of Jean Pierre Lequeux caught fire on track.

Class leaders at the halfway mark include  the No. 88 Dragon Racing Ferrari (A6-Am), the No. 154 Nova Race Ginetta (SP3) and Nissan’s all-GT Academy driver No. 123 Nissan 370Z (Sp2).

RESULTS: Hour 12

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John