The Oman Racing Team endured a difficult start to the Blancpain Endurance Cup race at the Nurburgring but recovered to finish strongly
Ahmad Al Harthy, Jonny Adam and Devon Modell brilliantly overcame huge odds after opening lap contact threatened to derail their Pro-Am championship hopes.
The team aimed to secure third in the Pro-Am championship and started the three-hour contest from class pole position for the first time and sixth on the overall grid.
However the #44 Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 was tapped and pitched into a spin at the first corner.
Recovering from stone dead last in 52nd position, Al Harthy, helped by an early Safety Car, charged through the order into 14th in Pro-Am and 37th overall by the end of the first hour.
Modell and Adam continued the charge and finished 26th place overall, eighth in Pro-Am, securing fourth in the Pro-Am Championship, a point clear of fifth place.
Frustratingly though, the team missed the coveted third in points by the same margin.
“We were so close to achieving our target of third in the championship, it really couldn’t have been any closer”, said Al Harthy after the race.
“We did everything we could, Devon and Jonny both did a great job, and to come back through from last place to score some points in eighth in Pro-Am was a fantastic result.
“There was nothing I could do at the start. I was minding my own business and I got tapped and turned around.
“That was it, the hopes of the top three in the championship ended there.”
He added: “It’s been quite a frustrating year, we’ve had the pace for the podium every weekend, but a few little things got in the way and that’s the difference in a championship as close and competitive as Blancpain.”
