Rain to offer big test to 24 Hours of Dubai racers

Kenny Laurie 18:04 07/01/2014
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  • Rev your engines: Dr. Ben Sulayem with the all-female Racing Divas team.

    The teams competing at the 2014 Dunlop 24 Hours arrived in Dubai today (Tuesday) no doubt hoping they packed a set of wet tyres.

    The 80 teams taking part in the competition’s ninth edition were greeted by a storm of torrid weather that forced the cancellation of a pre-event race.

    The event, which is now a staple of the motorsport calendar, from January 9-11, culminating with a 24 hour race from Friday to Saturday at the Dubai Autodrome has attracted some of the best teams and racers in the world with organisers expecting the race to be the best of the competition’s nine-year history.

    With the rain lashing down, there could be a new unexpected element that the drivers have to face. But Dr. Mohammed Ben Sulayem, former racing driver, President of the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE (ATCUAE) and FIA Vice President believes it’s up to the racers to show what they’re made of.

    “With a terrain like ours, the sand dances for the rain,” said Ben Sulayem. “The rain will make things interesting. How does it drive? In my experience as a driver, it’s not only for you it’s for everybody, it’s not as if there is a cloud over you and everyone else gets to drive.

    "Everybody has it so just deal with it, so you need a good team a good way of thinking, good tyres and a good strategy. And I know overall that whatever strategy you have, once you see the flag, all plans are gone.”

    Unlike many major local events, the UAE can expect to have representation on the podium. Team Abu Dhabi by Black Falcon are the two-time reigning champions at the Dubai Autodrome and have become one of the major players in motorsport.

    While Ben Sulayem, as an organiser, can’t put his weight behind any team, he does believe a strong local contingent is important for the overall sustainability of the competition.

    “This event actually is historical. Having the ninth edition, it is now an important event in the calendar for Dubai, the UAE and the whole area. It’s a very sociable event, it’s accessible, it’s not exclusive to a few people so there is involvement from every section of society, and that is what sport in general should be about.

    “Sustainability is very big in motorsport but to see the quantity and the quality of the entries then you see the competition and the local teams… There is no way you can have sustainability and become one of the biggest sports in a country without a strong local team, it doesn’t work it would just be like a circus coming and going. And it is good to see that all the countries.

    “Everyone here takes it with pride.

    “As an official I support everyone, but I will support our team and they showed what they can do over the last two years, they have a good team, it’s their race so I can see them win.”

    A total of 80 cars are expected on the grid when the UAE flag waves to start the race at 14:00 pm on Friday, with over 300 drivers doing duty during the course of the 24 hours, backed up by over 1000 support crew.

    On track action starts on on Wednesday with optional Private Testing which should see most of the ‘big guns’ out to dust off the festive season cobwebs. The first of three Free Practice sessions will get underway at 11:30 am on Thursday, 9 January.

    This is followed by three qualifying sessions, the first of which gets going at 15:00 pm on the same day. Race day on Friday, 10 January, track action starts at 10:30 am with a half hour warm-up, with the race set to be flagged off at 14:00 pm.

    The chequered flag will wave, to bring proceedings to an end 24 hours later, on Saturday at 14:00 pm.

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