Successful conclusion to the season for the Black Falcon team

Second place at the 12h race in Abu Dhabi

The team BLACK FALCON was able to continue the past years’ successes in the 2015 edition of the 12 Hours of Abu Dhabi, and came in second and seventh in the two Mercedes Benz SLS AMG GT3s.

The fact that the team from Meuspath at the Nürburgring had perfectly prepared for this race was already shown in free practice. The Mercedes Benz SLS AMG GT3 under the denomination of ABU DHABI RACING BLACK FALCON with the start number 1 and the drivers Khaled Al Qubaisi (UAE), Jeroen Bleekemolen (Netherlands) and Maro Engel (Germany), was able to record the fastest time during the final free practice session and thus started the qualifying as the favourite. In the qualifying, the car with the number 1 only just missed the pole position by 0.144 seconds and had to settle for the third position on the grid. The sister car with start number 2 was a touch faster, driven by Abdulaziz Al Faisal (Saudi Arabia), Hubert Haupt (Germany) and Yelmer Buurman (Netherlands). The second starting position was secured only 0.061 seconds behind the leader.

The race that is divided into two 6-hour stages kicked off in bright sunshine and pleasant temperatures. At the flying start the two BLACK FALCON SLS were able to pass the leader and directly began to increase their lead. Both sets of drivers achieved consistently quick lap times during the first six hours of the race and were able to secure their top positions. When they reached the chequered flag for the first 6 hour race, the team BLACK FALCON was in positions two and three, with start number 2 with Al Faisal, Haupt and Buurman crossing the finish line just before the start number 1 with Al Qubaisi, Bleekemolen and Engel.

The second 6-hour race was started after a two-hour break. Once again it was the BLACK FALCON SLS that had a perfect start and directly pushed forwards to positions one and two. Thanks to continuously fast lap times by the driver and perfectly executed pit stops by the pit crew, the starting number 2 was able to get away from the main field and carve out a lead of about one minute. Victory was within reach. However, a safety car phase crossed the plans of the team around Team Principal Sean Paul Breslin. The field was able to close the gap again and the lead was gone. After the safety car phase the race saw a thrilling duel for first place between Al Faisal, Haupt and Buurman and the Ferrari of Kessel Racing Team. In the end the drivers with the starting number 2 had to settle for a close second place. Nevertheless, it was a second place the drivers could be proud of. The sister car with Al Qubaisi, Bleekemolen, and Engel was on its way to securing third place, but unfortunately was thrown back by an unscheduled pit stop, which cost the team several rounds. So, in the end, the team had to settle for a thankless seventh place.

The team BLACK FALCON was thus able to add another great result to the many past successes of a sensational 2015 season. At the first 24 hour classic in the New Year, in Dubai, from January 14 to 16, the Meuspather team is again planning to climb to the top of the podium. Two brand new Mercedes Benz AMG GT3 and a Mercedes Benz SLS AMG GT3 will be used to battle for victory.