HMR: Aiming for a 2nd consecutive class win at the 24 Hours of Dubai
Friday, January 14, 2011
Abu-Dhabi based race team HMR is setting its sights on making it two wins out of two when it takes to the grid this Friday for the 24 Hours of Dubai.
Competing in the 24 Hours of Dubai for the first time in 2010 (under its previous name; AUH Motorsports) the GT4 team took an impressive victory in its class, and this weekend the young team will be hunting down victory once again.
This year the team boasts an impressive driver line up with team owner; Abu Dhabi businessman Humaid Al Masaood, teaming up with pro drivers BTCC star Steven Kane, official Aston Martin Racing Factory Driver and class winner of 2010 Spa 24 Hours Sam Hancock and 2009 Radical European Masters champion Alex Kapadia.
The 24 Hours of Dubai is the Middle East's biggest endurance racing event and despite only in its sixth year, it has already established itself as an important part of the international endurance calendar.
This year, a record number of 90 cars will take to the grid with other big racing names including WTCC driver Augusto Farfus, DTM star Bernd Schneider and NASCAR driver Michael Waltrip competing in the race. One of HMR's main competitors in its class will be the Lotus Evora GT4 which will be driven by a strong driver line up including Leo and Greg Mansell; the sons of ex-F1 racing driver Nigel Mansell.
The race at the 5.39km Dubai Autodrome will start at 14.00 local time on Friday 14th January, with qualifying taking part today (Thursday 13th January).
Humaid Al Masaood, team owner and racing driver, commented; "It was a fantastic achievement for the team to win its class in the 24 Hours of Dubai at its first attempt, and it has made us even more determined to do it again this year. There is a lot of strong competition on the grid and as endurance racing is so unpredictable we're taking nothing for granted. However we have a strong driver line up and a great team working on the car so we'll be fighting our hardest for that victory."
Steven Kane commented; "I am really looking forward to competing in the 24 Hours of Dubai on behalf of the HMR team, which despite being less than two years old, already has a proven track record at this event. Although it's my first time racing an Aston and first time on this track I'm going to be drawing on my experience in BTCC over the course of the race weekend and can't wait to get started."
Alex Kapadia commented; "I'm very happy to be invited back to try to retain the class win we took last year. Humaid has got a great team of guys on the car and his own speed has come a long way in the last 12 months. I think we are now one of the most even sets of drivers on the grid. "
Sam Hancock commented; "A big thank you to Humaid and the guys at HMR for inviting me to join them at the Dubai 24 Hours. I've done the race once before in 2005 and I can't wait to go back there. The team has winning experience in this event and I'd love to help them achieve a second successive class win."