Jorn
Tandberg, the defending European Champion, will be hoping to break the
Middle East dominance in Class 1 when he starts the defence of his title
in next weekend's BMW Norwegian Grand Prix in Arendal, 17-19, July,
where 40 points will be up for grabs as the UIM WPPA Class 1 World
Powerboat Championship introduces a two race Grand Prix format for the
first time.
Tandberg, a two-times winner in
2008, will line up in the Mercury V8-powered Welmax, as he chases down a
third win on home waters in four years and looks to kick-start his
season after a broken drive shaft ended his race in Qatar.
As
the on-water battle for supremacy between V8 and V12 power-plants
intensifies, the overwhelming threat to a second consecutive win for
Tandberg in Arendal lies with the in-form Victory and Spirit of Qatar
camps.
Fazza, who won in Arendal in 2007,
struck the first blow in the 2009 title race in Qatar, are currently
enjoying an unprecedented trouble free run in a race boat that has not
missed a beat in over two seasons and look to be the team to beat.
Team
mate in Victory 1, throttle man Jean-Marc Sanchez also a winner in
Arendal, will have other ideas, and will be looking to break his long
run of podium finishes nine from ten starts with a win.
The
Spirit of Qatar crews will also have their eyes on the main prize in
Arendal, but on each other as well, as their in-house fight for
supremacy again V8 over V12, and bragging rights intensifies. Qatar 95
grabbed their maiden Edox Pole Position win last time out, but saw the
hard work undone, a win vanish after stopping mid race and their team
mates take second place. Both outfits have modified their boats and
tested recently; confident the gremlins have been fixed. Steve Curtis
believes that he and Sheikh Hassan Bin Jabor Al-Thani will be very quick
in Arendal, but admits they will have to push hard and up their game,
as they look for their first win together in Qatar 96 since teaming up
in 2008.
With one or two driver line-ups
changing and to be finalised, the tussle amongst the middle order is
hard to gauge; Giorgioffshore has enjoyed a run of good results in
recent outings, a podium at the end of 2008 and a fifth in Qatar, and
looks set to continue. Giampaolo Montavoci will be joined in Foresti
& Suardi - Roscioli Hotels by fellow Italian, Giampiero Soave,
making just his second start in Class 1, he made his debut with
Montavoci in the Portuguese Grand Prix in Lisbon in 2004, whilst
Domenico Cirilli's pairing of Abdelkader and Carpitella in C.A.M is
still be confirmed.
Maritimo Australia has
been busy working frantically on both their charges to fix the handling
and technical issues that blighted their return to Class 1 at the season
opener and limited their time on the water. Both crews will be
desperate to produce a solid points' finish; Maritimo 12's throttleman,
Peter McGrath, is optimistic that the modifications have got them 80% of
the way to where they should be and now it's just a case of more time
in the boat with his new driver, Giorgio Manuzzi. Whilst Tom
Barry-Cotter will be hoping that the success he has enjoyed racing in
Australia, successfully defending his Australian Offshore Superboat
title will start to carry over into Class 1 in Maritimo 11.
The
Arendal course, run inside the narrow fjords, is one of the most
spectacular, challenging and demanding on the Class 1 circuit, and for
all the pilots and technicians the twelfth Grand Prix to be run in
Arendal presents a new challenge, as Class 1 introduces a restructured
race-weekend and two race Grand Prix format for the first time, where
success or failure in race 1 will impact hugely on the outcome in race
2.
The new format, warmly welcomed by the
teams and all of Class 1's Grand Prix Organisers, will see first
official practice taking place on Friday afternoon, with an extended
one-and-a-half hour session on Saturday morning for official practice
and qualifying in the Edox Pole Position, with no limit to the number of
timed laps, followed by race 1 in the afternoon, 50.85 nautical miles
made up of 9 laps including one long lap.
A
third official practice session on Sunday morning will be followed by
race 2 in the afternoon with the starting line-up determined by the
results of race 1 and 68.21Nm, run over 12 laps, including two long
laps. Both races count for full championship points.
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