Sam and his Oman Racing with TF Sport teammates Ahmad Al Harthy and Charlie Eastwood were the top-performing Aston Martin line-up over the weekend. 6th in the opening race was followed by a hard-fought 5th-place in the second 4-hour event puts the #69 Vantage GT3 on a solid footing heading to the final two rounds this weekend in Abu Dhabi.

Saturday’s action got underway with back-to-back qualifying sessions to set the grid for the two 4-hour races. With Aston Martin Factory Driver Charlie Eastwood taking on qualifying duties, the bold liveried purple and yellow TF Sport-run Vantage GT3 would line up in P6 later that day for Race 1, and P10 for the second race.

The opening laps of Race 1 saw positions changing across the 22-car field before it settled down as the sun started to set across the Dubai Autodrome. The trio of Sam, Ahmad and Charlie challenged for the final podium position in the opening stages, but the team struggled with ultimate pace across the full race distance, holding their starting position to claim 6th at the flag.

Race 2 saw Sam take the start, and in an action-packed opening lap he capitalised on the opportunity to move up the order to run in P5. Making his championship debut, Sam continued to push on as the light faded, moving up to 4th and running as the lead Aston Martin before pitting. Over the next three hours, Sam watched on as his teammates continued to mount an attack, managing strategy, and running firmly in the podium positions. As the race continued with several caution periods, Ahmad and Charlie defended hard but the #69 Vantage GT3 ultimately couldn’t take the fight to the front-runners, finishing in a hard-fought 5th place.

The closing races of the Asian Le Mans Series takes place this weekend, 18-20 February at Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi.