Team Victory med de båda förarna Arif Al Zafeen och Mohammed Al Marri vann det andra racet i det pågående Grand Prix i Doha, Pearl Qatar Grand Prix. Det innebär att de båda förarna tillsammans nu har tagit sin tredje seger av fyra möjliga sedan de började köra tillsammans i Dubai i slutet av förra säsongen.
Här är den senaste pressreleasen på engelska:
Saturday, 17 March, DOHA (Qatar): Victory’s Arif Al Zafeen and Mohammed Al Marri came from behind to win race 2 of the Pearl Qatar Grand Prix, taking their third win together from four starts since teaming-up in Dubai at the end of last season.
Team Abu Dhabi’s Rashed Al Tayer and Majed Al Mansoori made it a one-two celebration for the United Arab Emirates taking their second podium of the Grand Prix weekend, with Thursday’s race winner’s Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al Thani and Steve Curtis completing the podium in Spirit of Qatar 96.
Today’s result puts Victory and Spirit of Qatar 96 joint top of the Championship standings on 32 points, with Team Abu Dhabi two points adrift in third.
But the Dubai duo did not have it all their own way and had to overturn a strong challenge after a breathtaking start to the race by Italian outfit Poliform.
The drag race from the green flag saw pole-sitters Spirit of Qatar 96, Team Abu Dhabi and Victory 3, line a breast and just feet apart as they hurtled into the first turn. But it was Guido Cappellini and Class 1 debutant Gian Maria Gabbiani in Poliform, starting on the outside of the line of eight, who showed a blistering turn of speed to get out front and come across to lead at the end of lap 1.
Cappellini and Gabbiani, who failed to make the start of race 1 and forced to sit out the next two practice sessions with a recurring engine problem, held off the challenge of Al Zafeen and Al Marri, edging out to a four second lead before a technical problem forced them to slow, conceding the lead and retiring from the race on lap 6. “We are not exactly sure what the problem was but there is a lot of oil in the engine bay,” said Cappellini. “It was a great start by us considering this was the first time out on the race circuit and our first laps in three days. It was a big surprise.”
With Poliform out, Al Zafeen and Al Marri were able to control the race and extended their lead, going on to complete the 11 lap, 66.54Nm race in 39mins 13.68s to win by over 15 seconds. “This is our answer to what happened to us in race 1,” said Al Zafeen. “It was a good fight with Cappellini at the beginning, but once we were out front we were in complete control.”
Behind the race leader’s, Team Abu Dhabi and the Spirit of Qatar boats raced line astern, neither making any inroads to the other, with Al Tayer and Al Mansoori able to maintain a comfortable 11 second gap over Spirit of Qatar 96.
For Sheikh Hassan and Steve Curtis any hopes of completing the Doha double evaporated at the first turn, losing the advantage of being in pole position and dropping to fourth at the end of the first lap. “It was absolutely flat calm out there and we bogged down at the start,” said a disappointed Curtis. “I wasn’t surprised to see Guido come across. He’s got a very fast boat and with the extra 250rpm the supercharged engines have been given he was always going to be up there.”
Following their disqualification from race 1, teammates Ali Al Neama and Matteo Nicolini faced an uphill task, starting from seventh place on the start line, and were unable to make any inroads completing a frustrating weekend finishing in fourth.
Fendi Racing’s team manager, Marco Bonomo, had said before the race that after all the hard work that the team had put in to repair the boat after Luca Fendi and Giovanni Carpitella’s brush with a sandbank earlier in the week, if they finished it would be like winning, the Italian duo coming home in fifth place to pick up seven valuable points.
There was more frustration for Norwegian outfit Relekta who ended a disappointing start to their year with a second retirement for Ugur Isik and Christian Zaborowski – stopping on lap 4.
Welmax duo of Paul Gaiser and Bjorge Jacobsen paid back their team’s efforts for repairing the boat after they crashed out in second practice by putting in a cameo role, taking to the water to complete a handful of laps.
PEARL QATAR GRAND PRIX, RACE 2 – results
1. 3 Victory – A Al Zafeen (UAE) / M Al Marri (UAE) 00.39.13,68
2. 5 Team Abu Dhabi – R Al Tayer (UAE) / M Al Mansoori (UAE) + 00.15,72
3. 96 Spirit of Qatar – H Al Thani (QAT) / S Curtis (ENG) + 00.28,53
4. 95 Spirit of Qatar – A Al Neama (QAT) / M Nicolini (ITA) + 00.49,53
5. 10 Fendi Racing – L Formilli Fendi (ITA) / G Carpitella (ITA) + 1 LAP
6. 74 Poliform – G Cappellini (MON) / G M Gabbiani (ITA) DNF
7. 91 Relekta – U Isik (TUR) / C Zaborowski (NOR) DNF
8. 90 Welmax – P Gaiser (BRA) / B Jacobsen (NOR) DNF
9. 23 FA.RO. ACCIAI – M Roggiero (ITA) / P V Nilsen (NOR) DNS
UIM CLASS 1 WORLD POWERBOAT CHAMPIONSHIP – after race 2
1= 96 Spirit of Qatar – 32pts 1= 3 Victory – 32pts 3. 5 Team Abu Dhabi – 30pts 4. 95 Spirit of Qatar – 9pts 5. 10 Fendi Racing – 7pts 6= 91 Relekta – 0pts 6= 74 Poliform – 0pts 6= 23 FA.RO. ACCIAI – 0pts 6= Welmax – 0pts
MIDDLE EAST CHAMPIONSHIP – after race 2
1= 96 Spirit of Qatar – 32pts 1= 3 Victory – 32pts 3. 5 Team Abu Dhabi – 30pts 4. 95 Spirit of Qatar – 9pts 5. 10 Fendi Racing – 7pts 6= 91 Relekta – 0pts 6= 74 Poliform – 0pts 6= 23 FA.RO. ACCIAI – 0pts 6= Welmax – 0pts
