Oman Air Motorbase team-mates Ahmad Al Harthy and Michael Caine
celebrated their first race victory of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship
season during round five at Snetterton 300 Circuit on Sunday, 16 June, to give
a major boost to their 2013 title bid.
Coupled with an eighth place finish in the second of the weekend’s
60-minute races, round six, the duo has provisionally climbed into the
championship top four, within just seven points of the series lead, with four
rounds remaining.
Although originally finishing in a nonetheless excellent second
position during the first of Sunday’s races, to secure the Oman Air Motorbase
team’s first ever British GT podium, Ahmad and reigning champion Caine were
elevated into first post-race when the rival Porsche of Jon Minshaw and Phil
Keen were given a 30 second time penalty for overtaking under yellow flags.
“It’s great for everyone at Oman Air
Motorbase to have won for the first time in British GT”, said an elated Ahmad, “It was a great race for us, we qualified well and to come through from
eighth on the grid to second place was fantastic. To then take the win is the
icing on the cake.”
“Everyone back home in Oman, all my
sponsors and supporters who’ve been with me each step of the way, they are the
ones who deserve this win. The first few laps were very tough, I just had to
stay out of trouble and keep pushing. The team did an amazing job in the
pit-stop, Michael then did an incredible job in his stint as usual. It’s great
for everyone who has supported this programme.”
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Having qualified eighth fastest for round five, Ahmad took the
opening stint at the wheel of the Oman Air, Oman Ministry of Sports Affairs,
Oman Ministry of Tourism, Nawras, National Bank of Oman and Muscat Eye Laser
Center-backed Porsche 997 GT3R and delivered a superb performance.
Climbing into fifth place on the opening lap, the 31-year-old
remained right in the wheeltracks of the cars ahead but didn’t take any
unnecessary risks as he sought to preserve the car and tyres. On lap seven, he
saw his chance to slice past Steve Tandy’s BMW Z4 at the hairpin to take fourth
and then proceeded to pressurise Minshaw’s Trackspeed Porsche.
Pitting from fourth place at the end of lap 14 to hand the Oman
Air Motorbase car over to Caine, the team did an unbelievable job with the
pit-stop to enable the British driver to venture back out into the race in the
lead ahead of the Trackspeed car – now with Keen at the wheel.
Although slipping to second shortly after due to the performance
differential between the two Porsches, Ahmad and Caine’s car running with 75kg
of added ballast, managed to see off the challenge of the M-Sport Racing Audi
to retain second – before ultimately taking the win.
In round six, Caine took the opening stint and handed the car over
to Ahmad on lap 14 from 10th place. Rejoining the race in 17th
position, the Omani driver worked his way through to eighth place at the finish
to cap a fantastically competitive weekend.
There is now a long eight week break in the Avon Tyres British GT
Championship calendar with round seven of the 2013 season taking place at
Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit on 10 & 11 August 2013. Before
then, Ahmad will be back in action in the Blancpain Endurance Series for round
three of its season, at Paul Ricard HTTT in the south of France, on 29 &
30 June.
ENDS
For media enquiries please contact:
Oman Ministry of Tourism Representative Office in the UK and Ireland
Alison Cryer/Nick Smith
Tel: + 44 208 877 4503/4
Email: nick@firstpr.co.uk
Oman Ministry of Tourism Representative Office in the UK and Ireland
Alison Cryer/Nick Smith
Tel: + 44 208 877 4503/4
Email: nick@firstpr.co.uk
Visit: www.omantourism.gov.om
Note to editors:
Images of Ahmad Al Harthy taken by Jakob
Ebrey Photography
Twitter: @AlHarthyRacing
For more information regarding Ahmad’s
sponsors please visit:
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