Harper claims first 24 Hour race win in Dubai

Dan Harper, a Northern Irishman, won his first 24-hour race for Team WRT and BMW in Dubai.

The 24-year-old claimed top overall honours in the 24 Hours of Dubai, the curtain-raiser for the endurance racing season.

Harper, who graduated from BMW’s junior program before becoming a factory driver in 2023, is celebrating his biggest accomplishment of his career.

He was joined in the #777 Team WRT BMW by Darren Leung, who Harper has raced alongside for two years, Al Faisal Al Zubair, Ben Tuck and Max Hesse.

The crew were battling at the front throughout the 24 hours at the Dubai Autodrome, and Harper and his team-mates finished the race one lap ahead of the second-placed Porsche 911 of Alex Malykhin, Alexey Nesov, Harry King and Thomas Preining.

“What a result”, Harper posted on social media.

“A flawless car from BMW, flawless driving from my team-mates, and flawless strategy calls from the team.”

I’m incredibly happy to have won my first 24 Hour race overall.

It marks a strong start to 2025 for Harper, who tested BMW LMDh Hypercar in the World Endurance Championship’s rookie test in Bahrain in November.

In 2023 and 2024, Harper won the British GT and GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup alongside Leung in a BMW. She is also a former Porsche Carrera Cup GB champion.