The 2016 edition of 24 Hours of Dubai ended in a positive way for Nova Race. In the first round of the Creventic series that marked the new grid record of 100 cars, the Italian team entered for the first time two Ginetta G55 GT4s, celebrating the sixth place in the SP3 class and the 36th overall with Gianluca Carboni – who made his very first appearance in the UAE race – Roberto Gentili, Luca Magnoni, re-entrant Luca Rangoni and Briton William Moore.

This brilliant result could be easily turned in a podium finish, considering the third quickest time they scored in the qualifying session and the fact that Nova Race crew was steadely in the first three positions. The pit stop for an electronic issue that cost them 15 minutes and then the contact with a Mercedes SLS AMG GT3 while Luca Magnoni was at the wheel, definetly compromised a better result. Despite all, everybody were pleased and now they are waiting for 12 Hours Italy-Mugello scheduled in two months.

Bad luck hit the other Nova Race car shared by Magnoni, Italian Fabio Ghizzi and Mark Speakerwas, German Michael Hofmann and Bulgarian Pavel Lefterov. Fourth in the qualifying, they had to retire after 20 minutes due to a contact with a Porsche at lap 14 that deprive Lefterov and Hofmann of completing only one stint. I was a shame, considering that Speakerwas made an excellent start.

This time the wheel of fortune was wrong, but the perfect time will get back.