DUBAI, UAE – A late-race accident brought a premature end to Al-Manar by Dragon Racing’s challenge for a podium finish at the Michelin 24H Dubai, despite a strong and resilient performance throughout the endurance classic at Dubai Autodrome.
Oman’s Al-Faisal Al-Zubair, alongside Axcil Jeffries of Zimbabwe, American Dustin Blattner and German driver Dennis Marschall, showed front-running pace in their Ferrari 296 GT3. The quartet had led the race early, recovered impressively from setbacks and were running fourth overall when Al-Zubair was involved in an accident three and a half hours from the chequered flag after completing 504 laps.
Al-Zubair was taken for precautionary medical checks and later released without injury, but the incident ended the team’s hopes of defending the race victory they had secured in 2025. Team WRT completed a dominant performance with BMW M4 GT3 Evos finishing first and second after 604 laps, while the Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo claimed the final podium position.
STRONG START AND EARLY RECOVERY
Dennis Marschall took the opening stint, with Team WRT’s Kelvin van der Linde initially setting the pace. After the first 30 minutes, Marschall sat 16th but steadily climbed to 13th after an hour and then 12th shortly afterwards.
A well-timed first pit stop and driver change under a Code 60 saw Dustin Blattner take over and catapult the Al-Manar by Dragon Racing Ferrari into the top six. When racing resumed at full speed, the Ferrari briefly led the field following a tactically executed pit stop, with Max Moritz in the Herberth Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 R running second.
LEADING THE RACE AND FIGHTING BACK
Blattner maintained the lead until pitting after two hours and 40 minutes, dropping to 23rd. Undeterred, he began another charge through the field, reaching 16th before Axcil Jeffries took over.
At the four-hour mark, Al-Faisal Al-Zubair returned to the cockpit in 17th position and quickly began making progress through the opening hours of darkness. After five and a half hours, the Omani had climbed to sixth, with the Haas RT Audi leading the race. Moments before a scheduled fuel stop just before six hours, Al-Zubair surged as high as third before rejoining in 14th.
NIGHT STINT KEEPS PODIUM DREAM ALIVE
With just over 14 hours remaining, Marschall resumed driving duties with the Ferrari running 10th, as Paradine Competition’s BMW M4 GT3 Evo led ahead of the two Team WRT BMWs.
Strong stints from Jeffries and Al-Zubair during the night saw the Ferrari break into the top four by the halfway point. Jeffries was running fourth with nine hours to go, and the team maintained its position among the front-runners through daybreak and into the early daylight hours.
LATE ACCIDENT ENDS CHALLENGE
Tragically, the team’s impressive run came to an end when Al-Zubair was involved in an accident with three and a half hours remaining. Although uninjured, the incident halted the Ferrari’s progress and resulted in the team being classified 47th overall.
QUALIFYING AND PRACTICE PERFORMANCE
The Tsunami RT Porsche 911 GT3 R topped Friday morning’s free practice with a lap of 1min 57.655sec. Al-Manar by Dragon Racing completed 48 laps, posting a best time of 1min 58.777sec to finish 15th among 34 GT3 entries.
In qualifying, the Saintéloc Racing Junior Team set the fastest time in Q1. Al-Manar’s Ferrari placed eighth before a much stronger Q2 performance elevated the team to third, behind the Winward Racing and TFT Racing Mercedes entries. Dragon Racing’s second Ferrari topped Q3, while the Al-Manar car ended the session seventh.
Combined qualifying times placed the two Winward Racing Mercedes on the front row, with the Saintéloc Racing Junior Team Audi R8 in third. Al-Manar by Dragon Racing secured an impressive fourth position on the grid in their Ferrari 296 GT3, underlining the team’s potential in a race that ultimately ended in disappointment despite a determined and competitive showing.
