Khaled Al Qubaisi and Team Abu Dhabi-Proton Racing won a memorable final race of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) season, the 6 Hours of Bahrain, on Sunday and in the process finished the season in second overall in class LMGTE Am.
Al Qubaisi shared driving duties with David Heinemeier Hansson of Denmark and Patrick Long of the US behind the wheel of the No.88 Porsche 911 RSR for a majority of the just-concluded season.
The victory in Bahrain was all the more remarkable because Team Abu Dhabi-Proton Racing began the race from the back of the grid after suffering technical glitches during qualifying the previous day.
But Al Qubaisi gave the team something to work on after opening the first session of the six-hour race moving up into P3. Team-mate Long then took over the wheel of the No.88 Porsche 911 RSR and pushed to the limit to move up from P6 (out from pits in P6) to 3rd and then to first.
David Heinemeier Hansson then relieved Long and ensured that the lead remained. All three drivers during their stints made sure to hold on to the advantage to craft a memorable win in class and secure a second place overall in the championship.
Khaled Al Qubaisi said: “Great end to a tough season. It was good to win here in Bahrain and gain a position in the championship for overall second.
“We had some bad luck during the season and lost about 50 points, otherwise we could have won the championship in class.”
On their way to second overall in class, Team Abu Dhabi-Proton Racing have had an impressive record – finishing first in Mexico and Bahrain, third at the toughest race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and starting from pole position in Silverstone (UK), Nürburgring (Germany) and Mexico.
