Aussies in action at the Gulf 12 Hour 

The final round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge heads for Yas Marina this weekend for the Gulf 12 Hour with three Aussies in action for the series finale.

It seems like an age since the Bathurst 12 Hour opened the year back in February, with the series also having gone to South Africa, Belgium and Indianapolis.

Heading for his first outing since he sustained an injury in a high speed crash at Eau Rouge in the Spa 24 hour, is back-to-back B12H winner Kenny Habul in the #75 SunEnergy1 Mercedes-AMG.

Habul will pilot the car alongside Philip Ellis, Dominik Baumann and Martin Konrad in his return to the race track after suffering a serious back injury,

Habul went into the wall at the exit of Eau Rouge at the Spa 24, and will make his comeback to the track at the Gulf 12 Hour

Whilst they are out of the running for the IGTC’s Independent Cup, Habul will also head to the B12H in a bid for a rare three time winner, as well as going for a three-peat, something which has only been achieved by John Bowe and Joules Gounon, with the latter having won with Habul in 2023 alongside Luca Stolz.

The other Aussies heading for the Gulf 12 Hour in and in with a mathematical shot at Pro-am IGTC Independent Cup title is Stephen and Brenton Grove, who will be in the Earl Bamber Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 R (992), with Penrite Racing’s new acquisition Richie Stanaway also on board for the ride.

Whilst in with a chance, it’s a bit of a mountain to climb, with Pro-am champions Jonathon Hui, Kevin Tse and Eddie Cheever leading the way, the Grove team would need a retirement from the Sky Tempesta Racing McLaren 7 20S GT3 EVO.

The deficit is sixteen points, so aside from a retirement from the leaders, the Antipodean steered Porsche would also need to win or finish second.

The Grove father son duo steered their Porsche to an outright P4 at the Dubai 24 earlier in the year

In the overall stakes, it’s Habul’s ex-partner in crime Gounon who leads the way by only eight points for the title in the #14 Mercedes-AMG, who’ll be alongside Maximilan Goetz and Fabian Schiller.

With only a seven point gap between first and second place, the chasing Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 of Phillip Eng, Sheldon van der Linde and Charlie Weerts needed to finish above them and have them down the pecking order.

The Gulf 12 Hours takes place on December 8-10, albeit with the first test session scheduled for Thursday night.

GT World’s live YouTube coverage begins with Saturday evening’s four-part qualifying session before the race itself is streamed for free and uninterrupted on Sunday. 

Thursday 7 December
19:30 – 20:30 Open Practice 1

Friday 8 December
13:15 – 14:15 Open Practice 2
15:15 – 16:15 Open Practice 3
17:30 – 19:30 Open Practice 4

Saturday 9 December
11:15 – 12:15 Free Practice 1
14:20 – 15:20 Free Practice 2
18:00 – 18:15 Qualifying 1 – LIVE
18:25 – 18:40 Qualifying 2 – LIVE
18:50 – 19:05 Qualifying 3 – LIVE
19:15 – 19:30 Qualifying 4 – LIVE

Sunday 10 December
10:00 – 22:00 Gulf 12 Hours – LIVE

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