• After beating thousands of applicants, and intense gruelling challenges over many weeks, four motorsport contenders made it to the final
  • South African sales professional, Branden Hancock, with a passion for fitness and motorsport, was crowned the winner and named the 2023 Al-Futtaim Toyota Gazoo Racing Off-Road Ambassador
  • Winner will drive the adrenaline-fuelled, high-performance Land Cruiser GR Sport for the entire year and receive an all-expenses-paid trip to a global racing event, including a chance to participate in the FIA Cross Country Challenge

Dubai, UAE: The region’s first home-grown motorsports reality TV show, the Al-Futtaim Toyota Motorsport Academy had its thrilling grand finale streamed to millions of motorsports enthusiasts across the Middle East on Shahid, the region’s leading Arabic streaming platform.

Dubai-based Branden Hancock was crowned as the winner and the Al-Futtaim Toyota Gazoo Racing Off-Road Ambassador for 2023, after edging out fellow finalists Nour Dawood (second place), Aksana Yordanov (third place), and Nicolas Gondard (fourth place).

Branden Hancock, a 35-year-old sales professional from South Africa, takes home the coveted title

As the grand winner, Branden will enjoy a range of stunning benefits that include taking the keys to the mighty Toyota Land Cruiser 300 GR Sport for a year, participating with the Al-Futtaim Toyota Gazoo Racing Team at the 2023 FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) Final in Morocco in October, and taking part in Al-Futtaim Toyota’s exciting automotive activities and launches throughout the year.

Commenting on the occasion, Jacques Brent, Managing Director, Al-Futtaim Toyota & Lexus, said: “After a season of intense competition and thrilling off-road action, we are excited to announce the winner of the inaugural edition of the Al-Futtaim Toyota Motorsport Academy. On behalf of the entire Al-Futtaim Toyota team, I offer the warmest congratulations to Branden Hancock for his outstanding achievement and our heartiest compliments to the finalists, as well as the legion of motorsport enthusiasts who qualified – you are all champions to us.”

A total of 1,200 automotive enthusiasts had applied for the first edition of the Toyota Motorsport Academy, an initiative from Al-Futtaim Toyota that brought the UAE’s automotive and off-roading communities together. The academy selected 150 applicants for the first-of-its-kind driver development programme designed to enhance sporting skills.

Commenting on his win, Branden said: “Being named the Al-Futtaim Toyota Gazoo Racing Off-Road Ambassador 2023 after a very competitive time at the Toyota Motorsport Academy feels like an unreal moment for me – it is a dream come true. From meeting the Al-Futtaim Toyota Gazoo Racing team at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge to winning the first edition of the Academy, it has been an exciting journey, and I thank Al-Futtaim Toyota for making this possible. As this year’s ambassador, I am very excited to see what the future brings and look forward to an intense calendar of events.”

Toyota Motorsports Pedigree

The launch of the UAE’s first Al-Futtaim Toyota Motorsport Academy is a milestone achievement in the nation’s motorsport history. It showcases Al-Futtaim Toyota’s continued investment in developing the motorsport community around the region, and reinforces the brand’s motorsport heritage spanning five decades of successful participation in the World Rally Championship, Formula One, FIA Cross Country World Cup and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Al-Futtaim Toyota Motorsport was also lauded for its outstanding commitment to developing motorsport in the MENA region by winning the ‘Best Innovative Sports Brand’ award at the 10th annual Sports Industry Awards 2023. Al-Futtaim Toyota has been at the forefront of the sport as the sponsors of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge and the renowned off-road race Dubai Baja.

About Al-Futtaim Toyota

Toyota, a Japanese automotive manufacturer founded in 1937, is the world's market leader in sales of hybrid electric vehicles. Toyota has been exclusively distributed in the UAE by Al-Futtaim Automotive, part of Al-Futtaim Group, for over six decades, and has been leading the sustainable mobility movement since 2008.

With a large line-up of vehicles ranging from SUV, compact, sedan, coupe, MPV and LCV, as well as a wide range of Hybrid options, Al-Futtaim Toyota is setting new benchmarks for clean motoring in an effort to actively contribute to a lower carbon footprint in the UAE. 2017 saw the introduction of the zero-emission hydrogen-powered Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV) Toyota Mirai, in a pilot aiming at studying the possibilities of establishing a hydrogen-based, carbon-free society.

Toyota’s line-up features several hybrid vehicles including the sporty, practical and environmentally friendly RAV4, the C-HR, an innovative compact SUV, the seven-seater Highlander which is the brands biggest HEV to date, the powerful and efficient Corolla and the sleek and sophisticated Camry.

In September 2019, after a 17-year wait, Al-Futtaim Toyota launched the new 2020 Toyota GR Supra in the UAE, much to the delight of fans and loyalists across the country. With the all-new fifth-generation model, the legendary name returned to set the roads ablaze with a comeback only fitting of the Toyota Supra story, with the 2021 version launching a year later in October 2020.

In August 2020 Al-Futtaim Toyota shook up the lifestyle pickup segment with the introduction of the all-new eighth-generation Toyota Hilux Adventure. This was the first time ever that the Hilux is available as a retail model in the UAE, meaning that it is no longer limited to dominating the commercial-use sector.

For more information and to book a test drive of the latest Toyota models please visit www.toyota.ae 

About Al-Futtaim Automotive

Al-Futtaim Automotive, one of the main five operating divisions within the UAE-based Al-Futtaim Group of companies, is a conglomerate of motoring-related businesses, franchising some of the world’s most-recognized automotive brands and services.

Operating in 10 countries across the Middle East, Asia and Africa and empowered by around 9,000 associates, the UAE-headquartered Group’s services span across distribution of new and used vehicles, manufacturing, leasing, and aftersales.

Ranging from passenger cars to SUVs, commercial vehicles, industrial and construction equipment as well as motorbikes and quads, Al-Futtaim Automotive Group offers an integrative customer-centric experience for motorists, fleet operators and contractors alike, and strives to become the leader in tailor-made mobility solutions.

About Al-Futtaim Group

Established in the 1930s as a trading business, Al-Futtaim Group today is one of the most diversified and progressive, privately held regional businesses headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Structured into five operating divisions; automotive, financial services, real estate, retail, and health; employing more than 33,000 employees across more than 20 countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa, we partner with over 200 of the world's most admired and innovative brands.

Al-Futtaim Group’s entrepreneurship and relentless customer focus enable the organisation to continue to grow and expand, responding to the changing needs of our customers within the societies in which we operate. By upholding our values of respect, excellence, collaboration, and integrity, Al-Futtaim Group continues to enrich the lives and aspirations of our customers every day. For more information, visit: www.alfuttaim.com

Contacts for media:
Nour Aboulaban | Gambit Communications | nour@gambit.ae
Laureline Schwarz | Head of Corporate Communications | Laure-Line.Schwarz@alfuttaim.com
Hajar AlSuwaidi | Retail Marketing Manager | Hajar.AlSuwaidi@alfuttaim.com

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