TDT | Manama
Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com
Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) and Bapco Energies held the official launch of this year’s Bapco Energies Bahrain 8 Hours last night. The race will take place on November 3rd and 4th, when the Spirit of Le Mans returns to Bahrain for a weekend of great racing and entertainment.
This endurance racing spectacle marks the grand finale of the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), featuring seven global manufacturers, world-renowned racing teams, and a star-studded driver roster. A tight grid of over 35 sports cars.
Tickets for the Bapco Energies Bahrain 8 Hours are available now and fans are encouraged to purchase their tickets as soon as possible to avoid missing out on this special opportunity at BIC. Tickets for the two-day weekend program cost BD5.50 for adults and BD2.75 for children.
You can purchase online at bahraingp.com or by calling the BIC hotline at +973-17450000. Ticket prices are one of the most affordable ways to watch a World Championship motorsport event.
Hospitality packages are also available at the Spirit of Le Mans Club. Guests can experience fine dining and stunning views with Paddock hospitality. Packages can also be purchased online or via his BIC hotline.
Following the huge success of the ground-breaking green ticket initiative introduced at last year’s WEC races, BIC and Bapco Energies, in collaboration with the Bahrain government, will bring it back for the 2023 event.
For every WEC ticket sold, Bapco Energies will match a portion of the proceeds to a fund that directly supports the planting of new mangroves in Bahrain. The program supports the national goal of quadrupling the area of mangroves across the Kingdom by 2035.
Earlier this year, BIC CEO Sheikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa and Bapco Energy Group CEO Mark Thomas announced that they would invest funds raised at last year’s WEC event into En Wael bin It was presented to Nasser Al Mubarak, Minister of Local Government and Minister of Agriculture.
This made it possible to plant 5,000 mangrove trees. BIC is also pleased to welcome long-time partner Bjorn, who becomes his WEC support partner for the first time. Thomas commented on the event as follows: “We are very proud of our partnership with BIC to bring the 11th WEC to Bahrain.
It is a great showcase of technology that drives outstanding performance, with a focus on raising awareness of sustainability, and the impact of the Green Ticket initiative continues to grow year on year.
“We look forward to building on last year’s success in funding a plantation of around 5,000 mangrove trees. Our goal this year is to build on the excitement that motorsport brings. In the spirit of celebration, we aim to surpass this number and make an even bigger impact.At the launch, Shaikh Salman said: “The World Endurance Championship offers fans world championship racing, exciting entertainment and We offer a great experience that combines family fun.
The Spirit of Le Mans returns to Bahrain with an open paddock and an incredible line-up of cars, including the largest number of entries in the history of the hypercar category. “It is a great honor to once again host the final race of the WEC season and we would like to thank WEC and its partners for trusting us to host this great opportunity to celebrate the series’ 2023 champions.”
“We are also grateful to our partners at Bapco Energies, who have been working with us since the beginning of our WEC journey in 2012, and we are particularly pleased to be working with them again on the Green Ticket Initiative. .”
FIA WEC CEO Frédéric Recchien added: “It is always a pleasure to visit Bahrain and host the final race of the season at BIC. Sheikh Salman and the whole team at BIC have always made us feel very welcome and we look forward to being crowned world champions here every year. I am honored to receive this gift.
This year’s Bapco Energies Bahrain 8 Hours will be the 12th time that the WEC has raced in Sakhir, and the fifth time that the event has been held in the current 8-hour format. Featuring sports cars from the biggest brands in the global automotive industry, his WEC competition teams will be at full strength in three categories: Hypercar, LMP2 and LMGTE Am.
Many of auto racing’s most popular star drivers will be behind the wheel of the candidates, who will share the task of tackling BIC’s 5.412-kilometre track from day to night, starting in the afternoon sun and finishing under the stars. Creates a wonderful sight. Brightly lit by BIC’s state-of-the-art floodlights.
WEC hypercars become top attractions
The WEC Hypercar class is top-level competition and will be the highlight of the Bapco Energies Bahrain 8 Hours weekend. The 2023 campaign will therefore see up to 12 hypercars on the tarmac, representing eight teams and six manufacturers.
Four of this year’s teams, including Toyota Gazoo Racing, Peugeot Total Energy, Porsche Penske Motorsport and Ferrari AF Corse, each entered two hybrid cars. Other teams with one car each include Cadillac Racing, Floyd Vanwall Racing Team, Hertz Team JOTA and Proton Competition.
This will be the first time that Porsche, Ferrari, Cadillac, Floyd VanWall, Hertz Team JOTA and Proton will be racing in the hypercar category in Bahrain, making it an incredible show of the world’s most advanced race cars.
WEC title still up for grabs in Bahrain
Both the FIA Hypercar World Endurance Drivers Championship and the FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP2 drivers are set for a final championship showdown in Bahrain.
Up to four different crews still have a chance to be crowned hypercar driver. Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Brendon Hartley, Ryo Hirakawa and Sébastien Buemi are sharing duties as candidates for the team’s No. 8 GR010 Hybrid, with the current leader aiming to win the drivers’ championship for the second year in a row. .
They each have 133 points, followed closely by teammates Jose María López, Kamui Koabayashi and Mike Conway, who drive the No. 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing car, with 118 points each. Two Ferrari AF Corse crews followed in third and fourth respectively.
Alessandro Pier Guidi, Antonio Giovinazzi and James Calado drive the team’s No. 51 Ferrari 499P Hybrid with 102 points, while the No. 50 crew of Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina and Nicklas Nielsen are fourth with 97 points each. It becomes.
In the battle for the FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP2 drivers, three crews remain with a chance of victory in Bahrain. Team WRT’s Luis Deletraz, Robert Kubica and Rui Andrade are currently in the lead with 135 points.
Europol Competition’s Alberto Costa, Fabio Scherer and Jakub Smichowski were second with 102 points each, followed by United Autosport’s Frédéric Rubin and Filip Hansson with 101 points in the No. 22 Challenger. It is in 3rd place.
You can also win the FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP2 teams.
Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East supports WEC on track
As well as the WEC matches, it will also host top-class racing from the region’s leading one-make series, the Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East.
The championship, run by Lechner Racing, was born in BIC and is still based here. The opening match of the 2023/2024 season will be held in Bahrain, with further meetings to be held thereafter. Many of the region’s leading drivers of various nationalities compete against professional teams over two races during the WEC weekend.
They will be behind the wheel of identical Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (type 992) cars and competition will take place in the Pro, ProAm and Am classes. Off the course, BIC has plenty of colorful attractions for the whole family to enjoy on both days. These can be purchased at his BIC vending area and include stunt shows, classic car shows, car simulators, roaming performers, children’s stage shows and other great entertainment.