The Swiss-born UAE resident and his Kuwaiti team-mate Ashkanani have reached the half way point in the season looking unbeatable in their pursuit of a team and drivers’ championship double.
Schmidt was still recovering from a recent knee operation when he scored back-to-back victories at Yas Marina Circuit last Friday to stretch his remarkable Porsche GT3 Cup winning sequence to six races.
“Those two races at Yas were definitely the hardest for me,” he said. “I arrived late, had only one test, and didn’t know the track.
“I was recovering from knee surgery so I wasn’t 100% fit. But I managed two pole positions and two wins so I was very pleased. Now the knee is getting stronger and I can go faster.”
Schmidt’s clean sweep of race wins so far added to Ashkanani’s succession of podium finishes, giving Al Nabooda a formidable 99-point lead in the GT3 Cup team championship, the No.1 target in the Dubai outfit’s 10th anniversary season.
Race 1 Round 3WATCH Race 1 of Round 3 as Jeffrey Schmidt rips up Yas Marina Circuit and our regional racers battle for position in one of the closest dogfights of Season 7 so far #Porsche
Posted by Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East on Tuesday, January 26, 2016
And if anyone can beat Schmidt to the chequered flag, or even the outright drivers’ title this season, the 21-year-old believes it could be Ashkanani.
“At the start of the season, Zaid was finding it difficult when he was also competing in the GP3 series,” said Schmidt, who leads his team-mate by 22 points at the top of the standings.
“But since the GP3 series finished he’s been able to concentrate on driving the Porsche alone, and he’s getting quicker and quicker every round. He told me he loves the Dubai Autodrome circuit and for sure he’s going to be strong this weekend.”
The action at Dubai Autodrome this weekend starts on Friday with free practice (09:30 GST), followed by qualifying (11:55) and the first of two 10-lap races (16:45).
The Saturday schedule is free practice (09:00), qualifying (11:35) and the main race (16:00).
