Khaled Al Qubaisi, who this week was honoured with a Medal of Loyalty award from Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed for his successes in domestic endurance motor racing, will take to the track at Silverstone in England on Friday in the opening event of the FIA World Endurance Championship series.
Al Qubaisi was celebrated for winning the previous two runnings of the Dubai 24 Hours and the most recent Gulf 12 Hours in Abu Dhabi.
The Emirati driver will make his debut for the Proton Competition team and will race in a Porsche 911 RSR along with German teammates Christian Ried and Klaus Bechler.
Practice begins today at the British track, ahead of the 6 Hours of Silverstone, which will then see the green flag drop at noon on Sunday.
Al Qubaisi, who competed at Le Mans for the first time last year, said he already feels comfortable with the German team, and for that he credits Porsche factory-backed testing sessions last month at the Paul Ricard circuit in France.
“I feel extremely comfortable among the team of Proton Competition,” Al Qubaisi said. “We have positive vibes. Both the team and the engineers were extremely excited to end the initial testing to perfection.”
He said doing well in the three practice sessions, which take place ahead of qualifying on Saturday, was important.
“We need to make good use of our free practice at Silverstone to reach the perfect set-up of the car, then pursue the objective of finishing the race on the podium,” he said.
“The mission is tough, with many teams competing to win, but I have a feeling it can be achieved.”
The Proton team will compete in the LMGTE AM category, which includes eight international teams.
The World Endurance Championship, which is now in its third season, encompasses eight races: Silverstone, Spa-Francorchamps 6 Hours, in May; the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in June; the 6 Hours Circuit of the Americas, in Texas, in September; the 6 Hours of Fuji, in October; the 6 Hours of Shanghai, the 6 Hours of Bahrain and the 6 Hours of Sao Paolo, in November.
The Proton Competition team was founded in 2007 and finished second in the European Le Mans Series last year. The team has used only Porsche cars.
Al Qubaisi represents Abu Dhabi Racing and is sponsored by Emirates Global Aluminium.
His award this week was presented during the eighth annual ceremony to honour sports achievements in 2013 and was organised by the General Authority for Youth Welfare and Sports in collaboration with the National Olympic Committee.
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