Abdulla Al-Khelaifi
Qatari racing driver (born 1990)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Abdulla Ali Al-Khelaifi (born 8 May 1990 in Doha) is a Qatari racing driver.[2] He last competed in the 2025 GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup for QMMF by Saintéloc Racing.[3]
| Abdulla Al-Khelaifi | |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  Qatari |
| Born | Abdulla Ali Al-Khelaifi 8 May 1990[1] Doha, Qatar |
| European Le Mans Series career | |
| Debut season | 2026 |
| Current team | Team Qatar by Iron Lynx |
| Categorisation |  FIA Bronze |
| Car number | 62 |
| Starts | 4 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 1 |
| Poles | 2 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| Best finish | TBD in 2026 |
| Previous series | |
| 2025 2025 2025 2024–25 2024 | GT World Challenge Europe Middle East Trophy Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East Asian Le Mans Series 24H Series |
| Championship titles | |
| 2025 | Middle East Trophy |
Career
24H Series
Following a four year hiatus from racing, Al-Khelaifi joined the 2024 24H Series, where he signed with HRT Performance to compete in the 24 Hours of Barcelona. He would be joined by fellow Qataris Ibrahim Al-Abdulghani and Ghanim Al-Maadheed, as well as German driver Julian Hanses to drive the No. 931 Porsche 992 GT3 Cup. During the 24 Hour races, points are awarded at the 12-Hour mark in the race to all teams. Al-Khelaifi and HRT were leading the race at the 12-Hour mark. They would go on to win the race.
992 Endurance Cup
Following his win in the 24 Hours of Barcelona, Al-Khelaifi entered the inaugural 992 Endurance Cup held at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. He would once again be joined by Al-Abdulghani, Al-Maadheed, and Hanses to drive the No. 31 Porsche 992 GT3 Cup for HRT Performance in the Amateur class. They would qualify fourth in their class. During the course of the 12 hour race, the team slowly made their way up the order and eventually into the class lead. They would hold onto the lead to win the race.
Gulf 12 Hours
Al-Khelaifi joined 2024 Gulf 12 Hours, in which he was driving the No. 91 Porsche 992 GT3 Cup for QMMF by HRT Performance in the 992 Cup class.[4] Al-Abdulghani, Al-Maadheed, and Hanses would join Al-Khelaifi in the No. 91. After qualifying on pole, they would go on to win the race in the 992 Cup class.
Asian Le Mans Series
2024–25
Halfway through the 2024–25 Asian Le Mans Series, Al-Khelaifi signed with Herberth Motorsport to drive in rounds three through six of the championship.[5] The No. 46 Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) consisted of an all Qatari lineup of Al-Khelaifi, Ibrahim Al-Abdulghani and Ghanim Al-Maadheed. The team was ineligible to score points, however, they would have a lackluster run of races with a best finish of seventeenth. Al-Khelaifi and the team later withdrew from the final race of the season at Yas Marina.
Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East
Al-Khelaifi joined midway into the 2025 Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East at Lusail International Circuit driving in the Pro/Am class in an entry supported by the Qatar Motor & Motorcycle Federation. He qualified on pole for the first race, however, he would be beaten by Mohammed Bin Saud Al-Saud and finish second.[6] In race two, he would break through to get his maiden win in the championship.[7]
Middle East Trophy
In early 2025, Al-Khelaifi joined the 2025 Middle East Trophy driving the No. 974 HRT Performance Porsche 992 GT3 Cup car in the Amateur class. He would once again be joined by fellow countrymen Al-Abdulghani and Al-Maadheed as well as German driver Julian Hanses. They would have a dominant performance, winning both the Dubai 24 Hour and the 6 Hours of Abu Dhabi.[8][9][10][11]
GT World Challenge Europe
2025
For his main campaign, Al-Khelaifi moved over to Europe and signed with Saintéloc Racing to drive their No. 27 Audi R8 LMS Evo II in the 2025 GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup.[12] Since Al-Khelaifi has a Bronze rated FIA Driver License, he competed in the Bronze class of the championship. He would join Ibrahim Al-Abdulghani, Ghanim Al-Maadheed, and Julian Hanses in the endurance cup rounds. At Monza, Al-Khelaifi would score their best result of the season of fifth thus far.
Personal life
Al-Khelaifi has been a Senior Pipeline Engineer at Qatar Petroleum since 2014.
Racing record
Career summary
* Season still in progress.
Complete TCR Europe Touring Car Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
† Al-Khelaifi did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed over 75% of the race distance.
Complete 24H Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete Asian Le Mans Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete Middle East Trophy results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
* Season still in progress.
Complete European Le Mans Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Team Qatar by Iron Lynx | LMGT3 | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | CAT 4 |
LEC Ret |
IMO |
SPA |
SIL |
ALG |
7th* | 14* |
Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results
| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Team Qatar by Iron Lynx |
 Giuliano Alesi Julian Hanses |
Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | LMGT3 | 324 | 48th | 16th |
