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Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) and the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) are combining this year’s WEC event with the BIC National Day Festival for a four-day family extravaganza.
The event, running from December 13 to 16, will feature the fourth round of the 2019/2020 FIA WEC season. It is a gruelling eight-hour event, the second-longest on the WEC roster, behind the 24-hour Le Mans race.
Gerard Neveu, CEO of the FIA World Endurance Championship, said: “We are looking forward to returning to Bahrain International Circuit. It’s our home in the Middle-East and we love the track and the racing here. This year, we have even extended the race so we can spend more time with motoring fans in Bahrain.
“The eight-hour event really pushes the cars to their max, so teams will be tested not only on how fast their car can go, but how well it does in the weather conditions that day. The race will also be very exciting, since Toyota, which leads the scoreboard, will be starting with a significant handicap, giving the other teams a fantastic chance to shine.”
Just as in previous seasons, there will be competition in four categories, comprising the Le Mans Prototype 1 (LMP1), LMP2, Le Mans Grand Touring Endurance (LMGTE) Pro and the LMGTE Amateur classes.
Motor racing fans attending the FIA WEC Bapco 8 Hours of Bahrain will be able to enjoy an Open Paddock experience, offering a behind the scenes spectacle of the race experience. All racing will be open to the public on December 13 and 14, with the race set to get underway at 3pm on the Saturday. The day right after the FIA WEC Bapco 8 Hours of Bahrain, an in-season “Rookie” test will also be held at BIC, which fans will be able to watch from the Main Grandstand.
Aside from the WEC, there will also be racing in racing in two highly popular support series: the MRF Challenge single-seater championship from India and the BIC-based Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East. The MRF, which has featured the likes of Mick Schumacher, Harrison Newey and Tatiana Calderon, will be holding four races over the weekend. The Porsche GT3 Cup, which is the leading one-make circuit racing series in the entire region, will run two races.
“We are very proud to be welcoming back the World Endurance Championship this December,” said Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa, chief executive of the BIC. “The Bapco 8 Hours of Bahrain, together with the BIC National Day Festival, makes for a unique celebration. We expect to attract some of our biggest ever crowds to enjoy the very best of endurance racing and the huge amount of entertainment on offer for National Day, including regional superstars for our supporting concert programme. It will be a truly festival atmosphere at the Home of Motorsport in the Middle East.
“We expect 15,000 to 20,000 people to attend the event. We are also hoping to showcase Bahrain as a prime tourist destination. The 400 to 500 members from the racing teams always look forward to coming back here and we hope to have an even more special event with them this year.”
In addition, some of the major attractions at the festival are the live music concerts featuring top Arab artists including Emirati superstar singer Balqees. Tickets are priced at BD1 per person per day and can be purchased via the BIC Sales Department or starting tomorrow, at the BIC Welcome Centre or the BIC stand at City Centre Bahrain.
