The 24 Hours of Dubai did not go quite according to plan for ADAC GT Masters driver and FIA GT3 European Champion Dominik Baumann. After a contact with a fellow competitor, the BMW Z4 GT3, driven by the Austrian and prepared by Schubert Motorsport, was so badly damaged that it had to retire in the pits before the half-way stage had been reached.

Nonetheless, Baumann drew at least one positive conclusion from his trip to the Middle East: "I knew that, basically, I needed to get a lot more experience with the BMW Z4 GT3 under my belt, since previously, I´d had only one test session with the Z4 at Oschersleben. The 24 Hours of Dubai represented the ideal opportunity for me to get to know the car."

The Tyrolean driver is moving to the compact BMW sports car for his third season in the ADAC GT Masters after two years in the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3. Ex-ADAC Formula Masters driver Baumann, enthusing about the Z4 GT3: "Whilst the GT3 sports cars may all look very different, they are almost equally as fast at the end of a timed lap. What´s fascinating is the way in which the lap time is achieved, because these vehicles behave very differently. The BMW develops a tremendous amount of downforce, and that made me sit up and pay attention straightaway."

Baumann sums up: "The Mercedes SLS AMG and the BMW Z4 are both excellent racing cars. For sure, after some two years with the Mercedes, I now find the thought of this new BMW extremely exciting, and I´m looking forward to a very successful season."