The third and final race of the Dubai Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Asia Pacific event didn’t disappoint as drivers pushed themselves to the limit to showcase the best of their skills and finish their UAE tour on a high. With the whole grid on new rubber, Challenge racers could afford to push from start to finish without having to worry about tyre management, which resulted in the quickest race time of the weekend for the whole pack.
In the Trofeo Pirelli AM, polesitter Christian Brunsborg (Formula Racing) took another win, making it five out of six between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The Dane was challenged by Frenchman Ange Barde (SF Cote D’Azur Cannes – IB Fast), the only rival who throughout the two UAE race weekends was able to put a stop to his domination by winning yesterday the first race at Dubai Autodrome. Barde equaled Brunsborg on pace in the first few laps, but as the race went on he saw the #4 car sail into the distance and had to settle for a very good second place. Claus Zibrandtsen (Formula Racing) followed him to finish third and take the last step of the podium.
In Coppa Shell it was again Roman Ziemian (Al Tayer Motors) who took top honors. The only driver on the grid to have won all the six races contested in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the Pole performed this hat-trick thanks to another lights-to-flag win, proving he is a true force to reckon with when it comes to the Coppa Shell class. He was followed by teammate Tani Hanna (Al Tayer Motors) who overtook Ernst Kirchmayr (Baron Motorsports) on the third lap to stay there for the remainder of the race, with Ernst Kirchmayr (Baron Motorsport) sealing the last spot on the podium.
Another fiercely contested race was on the menu of Coppa Shell AM, especially in the first three laps of the race that saw Rene Matera (Scuderia Praha), Andrew Gilbert (Al Tayer Motors) and Mohamed Al Qamzi (Al Tayer Motors) in a three-way fight for the top spot. Gilbert took the lead in the early stages, but Matera was able to fight back before half race and never looked back despite relentless pressure from the Al Tayer Motors rival. Behind the duo, Race 1 winner Kirk Baerwaldt (Blackbird Concessionaires) had an eventful race, suffering from an early spin that put him in last place. Despite this setback, the driver from Singapore found the pace for an impressing recovery drive that saw him take third place from Al Qamzi with just two laps to go, crowning a good weekend with another podium finish.