The SLS AMG GT3 entered by the customer team Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon again celebrated an clear victory at the 24 Hour Race in Dubai (10 to 12 January 2013). The gullwing race car with start number 1 and drivers Khaled Al Qubaisi (UAE), Bernd Schneider (GER), Jeroen Bleekemolen (NED) and Sean Edwards (GB) took the start from pole position and won the race with an advance of two laps. The team thus repeated their success of last year.
The preparations for the 24 Hour Race hereby did not start very promising for the AMG customer team Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon. Following an accident during a test session on the 5.39 kilometres long Grnad Prix Circuit at the Dubai Autodrome on Wednesday, the gullwing race car with start number 1 was so badly damaged that it was impossible to repair the car on-site. The team then decided to acquire the spare car of the British team Preci-Spark and worked through two sleepless nights to get the car ready to start the free practice sessions and the qualifying on Thursday. Despite they were not able to proceed to a proper roll-out, Jeroen Bleekemolen set the fastest qualifying time already in his third lap – this was the basis for the later success of the team. The winning SLS AMG GT3 was the first supplied customer gullwing race car ever. Preci-Spark was the first AMG customer team which had taken over an SLS AMG GT3 in the year 2011.
In the first part of the race, the gullwing car of the team Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon could always be found in the leading group until it lost some positions due to bad luck during some Code 60 situations. In a Code 60 situation, the cars are guided around the track at slow speed to clear the scene of an accident before the race is restarted. The team did not suffer any further problems throughout the rest of the race, rejoined the race leaders and made its way through into first place.
Alexander Böhm, Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon team manager: „I am more than happy. After the accident on Wednesday, we all were prepared to pack up and return back home. Our mechanics, however, with their strong will and their incredible determination, managed to fit car with the new chassis. The car was ready five minutes before the pit lane was closed and was running for 24 hours without any problem. Our drivers had a good pace throughout the race and they did not experience any problem regarding reliability. I wish to express a special thank to the twins David and Godfrey Jones of the team Preci-Spark for their helpful and spontaneous co-operation!”
Bernd Schneider: “A fantastic success and a great day for the AMG customer sport. After the accident on Wendesday, nobody in our team would have expected us to finish on top of the podium today. Our SLS AMG GT3 was really quick and running like a clockwork. This now was my third attempt to win the Dubai 24 Hours Race and I made it finally. A big thank you to the whole team!”
Schneider, five times DTM Champion and AMG brand ambassador, participated in the Dubai 24 Hour Race for the third time thanks to the AMG customer sports driver support. In 2012, he finished second and in 2011, when he made his debut, he became seventh overall.
The second SLS AMG GT3 of the AMG customer team Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon with start number 2 finished the Dubai endurance race in seventh place. Andreas Simonsen (SWE), Steve Jans (LUX), Simon Knap (NED), Sergei Afanasiev (RUS) and double starter Khaled Al Qubaisi (UAE) started the race from 14th position on the grid. The gullwing race car had moved up in the top five before it lost many positions after a collision. During the race, the team however was fighting back through the field and moved into seventh overall place.
