DUBAI, UAE – GT Academy mentor Rob Barff has played a key roll in the development of Nissan's GT Academy graduates for many years, but last weekend he had a unique experience: The apprentices were chasing the master.
GT Academy International 2016 winner Johnny Guindi teamed up with 2015 European winner Romain Sarazin in Dubai as part of of Guindi's Nissan Driver Development Program.
The pair won their class and finished second overall in the NGK Racing Series two-hour event in Dubai while GT Academy mentor Barff won the race overall.
The event was the final part of Guindi's preparation for his international debut with Nissan GT Academy Team RJN for January's Dubai 24 Hour where he will team with Sarazin and fellow GT Academy winners Jann Mardenborough and Ricardo Sanchez.
"These past two months have been the most draining days of my entire life, but it's been an amazing journey where I've seen myself progress and learn so much every day," said Guindi. "The program has certainly done its job. I feel more than up to the challenge of joining the team for the big race in January."
Sarazin completed his first season as a NISMO athlete in 2016, competing for Nissan in the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup.
"There were many different cars and categories during the race in Dubai, so we had a lot of traffic to manage," said Sarazin. "This will be very similar conditions to what we can expect for the 24 Hour in January. It was a great preparation and awesome to win the race and finish on the top step of the podium."
We've got a racer here! Watch as @johnnygh94 prevails in a THREE-CAR wheel-to-wheel battle at the Dubai Autodrome
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How To Transport a GT4 Racecar from the UK to Dubai
Go behind the scenes in the NISMO garage and find out how the team packs the Nissan 370Z GT4 race car and the entire team into one shipping container. This must then make the mammoth journey by sea to Dubai.
Related:
All GT Academy line-up revealed for January’s Dubai 24 Hour
NISMO Calendar
January 12-14
Dubai 24 Hours, Dubai Autodrome, United Arab Emirates
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