Proton Huber Competition finishes this year's 24h Dubai in second position and shows a strong team performance at the event in the desert metropolis. At the same time, the team took part in the Porsche Sprint Challenge Southern Europe.

Even before the start of the 24h Dubai, the Proton Huber Competition team had to overcome a number of challenges. On Boxing Day, the organisation postponed the race due to transport difficulties. While some racing teams had to cancel their participation as a result, Christoph Huber's racing team worked hard to make the start possible.

And so the Proton Huber Competition Porsche 911 GT3 R of Rinat Salikhov, Sergei Borisov, Victor Shaytar and the experienced Porsche ace Sven Müller took part in this year's 24h Dubai. While the team has contested the endurance race several times with a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, this was the first time the team from Hofkirchen in Bavaria had entered a GT3 car in the race.

Sven Müller stormed to the front from ninth on the grid right from the start. Müller showed a strong and competitive performance in his first stint and took the lead for the first time after around an hour of racing.

Over the next 23 hours of the race, the quartet of drivers consolidated their position in the leading group and were constantly one of the first pursuers of the Audi team, which ultimately took a commanding lead. Even during a short but heavy rain shower on Sunday morning, the Proton Huber Competition team remained faultless and made up around a minute's deficit with good speed on a damp track. The team also gained a further 2 minutes and 30 seconds on the leading team thanks to a tactical trick in the pit lane, allowing the car to return to the lead lap.

In the end, Sven Müller saw the chequered flag in second position after a demanding 24 hours of racing, with the Porsche quartet around 90 seconds behind the victorious Audi. For Proton Huber Competition, this is a successful GT3 debut at the almost traditional endurance race in the United Arab Emirates.

"After the difficult 2023 season, this was a very good start to the season for us," said a delighted Team Principal Christoph Huber. "Preparations for the race were extremely complicated due to the postponement. But as a team, we still managed to make it to the start. The entire team put in a flawless performance here in Dubai. Second place is a strong performance for us, which I am very happy with. Starting the season with a double programme on two continents is a big challenge, which we mastered with flying colours."

At the same time as the start in Dubai, Proton Huber Competition also took part in the Porsche Sprint Challenge Southern Europe in Portimão. The team entered six Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars in Portugal. Alexander Tauscher, Horst Felix Freymuth, Josh Stanton and Sebastian Freymuth competed in the Sport Division, while Merabi Mekvabishvili and Robert Sulma lined up in the Club Division.

Last year's Porsche Carrera Cup Germany driver Tauscher won the first race on the Algarve coastal circuit. Freymuth and Felbermayr also finished in the top six in the half-hour race, with Josh Stanton in 14th position. In the second race, Tauscher was the best-placed Proton Huber Competition driver in eleventh position. Freymuth and Stanton were involved in accidents by rivals of rivals in the second race, which is why they were unable to reach the chequered flag. Sulma finished third and fourth in the Club Challenge - Mekvabishvili finished both races in eighth place.

Franziska Lambacher, Project Manager Porsche Sprint Challenge Southern Europe at Proton Huber Competition: "First of all, congratulations to our team in Dubai. Here in Portimão, Alexander Tauscher was able to celebrate his first victory in the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup - we are all very happy for him. I am also satisfied with the performance of our other drivers, they showed consistently strong performances. Unfortunately, Sebastian Freymuth and Josh Shanton were forced to retire in the second race through no fault of their own, which prevented further strong results. Our team performance over the whole weekend was exceptional, we overcame the challenge this weekend with flying colours! I'm very proud of our performance and I'm really looking forward to the rest of the season."