Newly appointed test & development driver for Zyrus, Haytham Qarajouli has entered the ‘Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS’ in the Endurance category.

Haytham joins Grasser Racing team from Austria in the ‘Lamborghini Squadra Corse’ supported team, who will field a double car charge with two Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2’s in PRO and Silver Cup classes in the Endurance Cup.

Qarajouli joins a talented young trio, all making their debut in the GT World Challenge Europe with car #19. Qarajouli teams up with British driver Hugo Cook and Italian Lamborghini Junior driver Mateo Llarena.

This is Grasser Racing team’s (GRT) ninth season in the GT World Challenge endurance championship, and the team celebrated both team and drivers’ Champion titles in the Silver Cup last year, 2023.

The Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 is a new challenge for the youngster from Kuwait who earned his spurs winning the Ligier European Series Championship in 2022, with 6 race victories. He was also highly successful in endurance racing with one victory and three podiums in the GTX class of the 24H Series including, Abu Dhabi 6H, Kuwait 12H and Dubai 24H.

In the other car, the PRO line-up of Lamborghini factory drivers in the #163 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 includes industry stalwarts Christian Engelhart, Marco Mapelli and Franck Perera, a first-class line-up of drivers in the hunt for the overall victory.

The season kicked off with the official test for the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS Endurance Cup on 5/6 March at the Circuit Paul Ricard. 

Qarajouli, although his first outing in the GT3 car, had some prior experience at circuit Paul Ricard in previous championships. He set about adapting to the new car during day one with relative ease and on day two progressed significantly, demonstrating a good overall pace and was quickly up to speed.

In a few weeks time, the season opener will take place on the same former Formula 1 circuit in the south of France.

The second round on the calendar is the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa at the end of June, which is also the big highlight of the season. After the endurance classic in Belgium, two 3-hour races take place at the Nürburgring and Monza before the series makes its first appearance in Saudi Arabia for the grand finale taking place on the new F1 Jeddah Grand Prix circuit at the end of November.

**Haytham Qarajouli:** “I am incredibly proud to join Grasser Racing Team representing Zyrus and the Lamborghini brand in the GT World Challenge Europe. GT3 racing has been a goal of mine for a long time and was very impressed with the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2. It’s a fantastic car to drive and the Championship is regarded as the pinnacle of GT racing, on iconic circuits, some of which I have experienced over the past few years and I am especially looking forward to the Jeddah round, as it’s a unique new street circuit. I want to thank my family and Zyrus team for making it all happen, we are all looking forward to racing at Circuit Paul Ricard and the rest of the season ahead.”

**Gottfried Grasser, Team Principal of GRT:** “We are extremely proud to be competing in the Endurance Cup this year with such a strong line-up. Endurance racing has always been part of our team’s DNA, which we were able to prove once again last year with the Silver Cup championship. After winning the title, we are of course hungry for more in 2024, which is why we are all the more delighted to be competing in the PRO category again with the fantastic support of Lamborghini Squadra Corse and our new partners from Mountain Wolf. Christian, Marco and Franck are absolute professionals and with three factory drivers of this quality we feel we are ideally positioned for this challenge. In addition, we have a driver pairing with promising rookies in the Silver Cup. Hugo, Mateo and Haytham have made a great impression on the career ladder and we will do everything we can to support them with top material to realise their potential in the highly competitive Endurance Cup. Many thanks to all our partners and sponsors for making this project possible.”

**GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup 2024**
05/04/24 – 07/04/24 Circuit Paul Ricard 500 km, France
26/06/24 – 30/06/24 CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, Belgium
26/07/24 – 28/07/24 3H Nürburgring, Germany
20/09/24 – 22/09/24 3H Monza, Italy
21/11/24 – 23/11/24 Jeddah Corniche 1000 km, Saudi Arabia