One week on from its GT3-Am victory at the 2021 Hankook 24H DUBAI, Car Collection Motorsport took a commanding overall win at the first-ever Hankook 6H ABU DHABI, despite dropping to last place on the opening lap. 

An attempt to pass the pole-sitting Inception Racing by Optimum McLaren 720S shortly after the start proved too ambitious, and Car Collection’s Audi R8, which qualified 3rd overall, was lucky not to be collected after a traction-less 180 in front of the 14-car field. The V8’s superior pace, coupled with diligent pit work and some bold driver stint strategy, allowed Car Collection Motorsport to hit the front during the second hour and, consequently, take advantage of its rivals’ poor fortunes. Never led thereafter, the German team went on to take its first outright win in the 24H SERIES since its Dubai triumph two years earlier.

In what would, bizarrely, become a theme at the Hankook 6H ABU DHABI over the first three years, 2nd and 3rd crossed the line less than a minute apart after six uninterrupted hours of racing. Leipert Motorsport ultimately bested 991 class winner PROFILDOORS by Huber Racing after a race-long battle. The Lamborghini Huracán’s superior pace was parried by the more frugal Porsche 991-II Cup throughout, and the pair was split by just 56 seconds at the flag. 

Though in the hunt at the beginning, front row starters Inception and Attempto Racing were both out of contention by half-distance. Fuel connector issues meant the McLaren lost nearly two hours on pitroad en-route to a disappointed 12th, while the Audi R8, which took the lead around the outside of turn one at the start of the race, had already retired with engine failure.

Drama similarly befell ‘TG’ leader Red Camel-Jordans.nl just 15 minutes from home when one of the CUPRA’s steering arms snapped. This allowed 2021’s eventual Overall GT Teams’ champion, ST Racing, with whom Red Camel had swapped the division’s lead throughout the afternoon, through to victory despite the BMW losing time, and track position, during its final pit stop.

Sally Racing completed a quiet run from the back row of the grid to finish 2nd in ‘TG’ ahead of PK Carsport, the latter recovering from a puncture and bodywork damage that cost the BMW M2 two laps during the first hour. 

Abu Dhabi 2021 would not, however, prove a happy hunting ground for CWS Engineering, Zengő Motorsport or Simpson Motorsport. Both CWS Ginetta G55s were plagued with steering issues and the occasional puncture on their way to 4th and 7th in TG, while race-long coolant issues doomed Zengő to 11th overall, two places ahead of Simpson Motorsport after near-constant “fuel irregularities” for the latter’s Audi RS 3 LMS.

Baron Motorsport took a controlled win at the second Hankook 6H ABU DHABI in 2022, the Ferrari 488 GT3 leading 120 of the completed 166 laps in front of an enlarged 32-car field. Fittingly, Zimbabwe’s Axcil Jefferies, who’d taken his second outright win at the Hankook 24H DUBAI just one week earlier, piloted the Ferrari across the line to record his second 24H SERIES win in as many weeks. 

What promised to be a tantalizing duel between Baron Motorsport and LP Racing ended abruptly during the second hour with right rear wheel hub failure on the Lamborghini Huracán GT3. 2nd consequently went to JR Motorsport instead, the BMW M6 GT3, having dropped to 12th at the start, making a decisive move for the position against Saalocin by KoxRacing inside the closing 15 minutes. 

Behind a surprisingly unremarkable run for Herberth Motorsport (multiple time penalties meant the 2017 Overall GT Teams’ ‘Continents’ champion could only finish 4th), 2021 event runner-up Leipert Motorsport rounded out the overall top five ahead of ARC Bratislava and Huber Racing, the latter emulating its podium finish in 2021 with a decisive 991 class win. 

After an early fight with Huber’s second entry, which ultimately ended with gearbox failure for the latter at half-distance, the UAE’s Rabdan Motorsport took its first podium in the 24H SERIES with a popular 2nd place on home turf. 

The final rostrum spot in 991 meanwhile went to HRT Performance after a bizarre accident between ID Racing and TCR’s Sally Racing during the final 10 minutes. The collision did little to dampen an already frustrating weekend for Sally Racing (prolonged handling issues meant the CUPRA was already running nearly 20 laps adrift of the TCR leader) but did cost ID Racing big time. In a bitter blow, the German team dropped off the 991 podium on the very last lap!

Behind the 991 podium, Les Deux Arbres completed a controlled race to take the ‘TC’ win and finish 11th overall on the road. 2nd for CWS Engineering was a reprieve for its struggles at the event in 2021, though electrical problems meant the British team’s sister G56, which led the class early on, was pushed back to 5th behind 3rd-placed LAMERA by Racetrack and series newcomer, Valluga. 12 laps further back, the aftereffects of a heavy crash during qualifying doomed the Ligier JS2 R of early favourite SK Racing to a long race to 6th.  

Across in TCR, AC Motorsport followed up its TCR podium in Dubai its first win of the season, four laps clear of the pole-sitting Zengő Motorsport and PCR Sport’s debuting CUPRA Leon Competición TCR. Ironically, the Hungarian team survived a clash with PCR’s sister Mercedes-AMG during the opening hour to do so. 

Pure Rxcing’s Porsche 991.2 GT3 R made it three different winning teams and manufacturers from three editions at the 2023 Hankook 6H ABU DHABI in one of the closest finishes ever to an official 24H SERIES event. 

Pure Rxcing, having qualified on pole, crossed the finishing line just 7.226 seconds clear of Herberth Motorsport, the latter having completed a storming drive from 19th on the grid after losing its only timed lap during Q1. In a grandstand finish, the Pure Porsche took the lead from the hyper-miling Herberth, on-track, with just 15 minutes left on the clock, but still had to pull a 10-second cushion over its rival to cover a time penalty handed down for overtaking another car off-track earlier in the race. 

Less than three seconds further back in 3rd, the brand-new Haas RT, just one week on from a career-making 5th place at the Hankook 24H DUBAI, took its first-ever podium ahead of 2022 Overall GT Teams’ ‘Europe’ champion Phoenix Racing.

So close was the 2023 edition of the Hankook 6H ABU DHABI, just under 22 seconds covered the top four after six hours of uninterrupted endurance racing!

A decisive drive to 992 victory for Red Camel-Jordans.nl (vindication for its 2021 heartbreak) meant most eyes were instead focused on a race-long battle for 2nd between three of HRT Performance’s four Porsche 992 GT3 Cup. What had looked to be (at least) a nailed-on podium for the Qatar Motor & Motocycle Federation-supported #931 behind 992-Am class-winning #928 was cruelly denied in the closing moments by terminal braking problems. HRT’s #931 entry, which had threatened the 992 frontrunners early with a long-fuel strategy, looked on course to take the final podium spot. This though was also in vain as the Porsche, on fumes, dropped behind both its sister #930 and Willi Motorsport by Ebimotors on the final lap, the latter fighting back from a 120-second penalty handed down for a safety car infringement.

Series returnee Tischner Motorsport, back for its first 24H SERIES event since 2016, pushed eventual GTX winner razoon – more than racing hard to the flag, ultimately falling less than five seconds short of victory (Portugal’s P21 Motorsport rounded out the class podium). Across in GT4, 2023 24H SERIES title contender Buggyra ZM Racing took its first series win ahead of Britain’s Ram Racing, the latter’s early lead undone by a loose fuel filler cap on the Mercedes-AMG GT4.

Momentary power loss aside, Sharky-Racing completed a quiet run to TCR victory on its 24H SERIES debut, just six seconds clear of a fighting recovery drive for Wolf-Power Racing. The three-time Overall TCE Teams’ champion ended qualifying with broken right rear suspension and struggled with drivetrain concerns during the race. Such was the pace of the Audi RS 3 however, victory might have been on the cards had the race lasted just two more laps.  

Hankook 24H DUBAI winner AC Motorsport meanwhile had a nightmare weekend in Abu Dhabi. A collision in Free Practice meant the Belgian team’s lead #188 Audi missed qualifying to replace a driveshaft and a broken shock absorber, and eventually limped home a classified 3rd – 34 laps behind – after suffering another suspension failure during the race. By then, the sister Audi had long-since retired with terminal gearbox issues. 

Held as a championship event for the first time, the 2023 Hankook 6H ABU DHABI was also the closing event for CREVENTIC’s inaugural Middle East Trophy. 

Following an official track day on Thursday 18 January and a full day of private testing on Friday 19 January, the fourth annual Hankook 6H ABU DHABI gets underway with official Free Practice on Saturday 20 January at 10.20 hrs local time. This will be followed by three, 15-minute qualifying sessions later that evening, running from 17.10 hrs to 18.05 hrs. The green flag for the 2024 Hankook 6H ABU DHABI itself is scheduled to fly at 10.00 hrs local time on Sunday 21 January, with the race running uninterrupted until 16.00 hrs that same afternoon.
 
Further event information can be found HERE