2007 UIM F1 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Grand Prix of Qatar 1, Doha – November 23rd-24th, round 5 of 8
Grand Prix of Qatar 2, Doha – November 26th-27th, round 6 of 8
For immediate release
Thursday, November 22nd, 2007
QATAR TEAM’S JAY PRICE MUST FORCE A PODIUM
FINISH IN THIS WEEKEND’S GRAND PRIX OF QATAR
Finland’s Sami Selio set to defend slender three-point F1 series lead in Doha
Multiple World Champion Cappellini keen to continue winning record in Qatar
DOHA (Qatar): Competitive action in the first of the two back-to-back Qatar F1 world powerboat races fires into life on Friday morning, when entrants from at least 10 countries take part in the first practice session for Friday afternoon’s all-important time trials to determine the starting order for Saturday’s 3rd Grand Prix of Qatar, round five of the 2007 UIM F1 World Championship.
Spearheading the Qatar Team’s challenge for honours will be Louisiana-based racer Jay Price and his 27-year-old Italian team mate Leo Bonelli in a pair of Mercury-engined BaBa race boats, entered by the Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF). Price graduated to the pinnacle of world single-seater boat racing with the Qatar Team after taking part in the prestigious F2000 series.
After four rounds of the 2007 championship in Portugal, France and two races in China, the American lies in fifth position in the World Championship standings, 32 points adrift of Finnish series leader Sami Selio and 29 behind multiple World Champion Guido Cappellini, largely as a result of bad luck and two non-points scoring displays at the Chinese races in Xi’an and Shenzhen. Veteran Cappellini has already taken 55 GP wins in his long and distinguished career.
Price is within striking distance, however, of the Emirati racer Thani Al-Qamzi, who lies third with 35 points and the Emirates Team racer’s Californian colleague Scott Gillman, a veteran of 23 GP wins who will not race in Doha. Bonelli, from Cremona, currently lies 13th in the championship with seven points, although 20 are available to the winner of Saturday’s crucial race.
“It means such a lot to the entire Qatar Team that we achieve a good result in this race,” said Price, who finished eighth in last year’s UIM F1 World Championship. “I owe it to all the hard work that everyone has put into this programme over the last few months to deliver a good performance. We have all been working hard. I hope that it all pays off.”
Formula One racing is dangerous, fast and frenetic and racers can leave nothing to chance over short courses, such as the one they will face adjacent to the Doha Corniche that has been set up by Mohammed Al-Jaidah and his team at the QMSF.
While Selio and Cappellini are seen as the form drivers from their respective F1 Team Energy and Tamoil F1 operations, Al-Qamzi has more than matched more illustrious team mate Gillman this season and the Emirati would love to take a third F1 GP win in Qatari waters. He will be joined by Ahmed Al-Hameli and newcomer Majid Al-Mansouri in the Emirates F1 Team.
Jonas Andersson is one of a group of talented racers from Europe. The Swede previously benefited from the management of the QMSF’s Pelle Larsson and lies sixth in the Pole Position Championship this season – Cappellini leads this category by six points from Al-Qamzi – but is yet to convert his qualifying performances into top GP race finishes.
He, like sixth-placed French racer Phillipe Dessertenne and Sweden’s Pierre Lundin, needs a top finish in Qatar to move up the points’ leader board at a crucial stage in the title race. Australians, David and Bob Trask, have also shown good form this year, with David managing to edge into fifth position in the Pole points’ table.
“Jay and Leo will have their work cut out to reach the podium against very strong opposition, but I am confident that our meticulous planning has left us in a very good starting position,” said the Qatar Team’s F1 manager Pelle Larsson. “We have addressed the reliability issues and shed around 10-12kgs of weight from the race boats to make us more competitive.”
Timetable of events – Friday, November 23rd
10.30-11.30 Free practice on race course
13.00-13.45 First time trials
14.45-15.30 Second time trials
16.00-16.30 F1 Powerboat Shoot-out – Pole Position
2007 UIM F1 Pole Position Championship – positions after round 4 of 8:
1. Guido Cappellini (I) Tamoil F1 54 pts
2. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) Emirates F1 Team 48 pts
3. Sami Selio (FIN) F1 Team Energy 43 pts
4. Scott Gillman (USA) Emirates F1 Team 40 pts
5. David Trask (AUS) XPV Racing 29 pts
6. Jonas Andersson (S) F1 Team Sweden 21 pts
7. Jay Price (USA) Qatar Team 15 pts
7. Phillipe Dessertenne (F) CTIC Charente Maritime 15 pts
9. Ivan Brigada (I) Tamoil F1 7 pts
2007 UIM F1 World Championship – positions after round 4 of 8:
1. Sami Selio (FIN) F1 Team Energy 53 pts
2. Guido Cappellini (I) Tamoil F1 50 pts
3. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) Emirates F1 Team 35 pts
3. Scott Gillman (USA) Emirates F1 Team 35 pts
5. Jay Price (USA) Qatar Team 21 pts,
6. Pierre Lundin (S) Comparato Racing 14 pts
6. Phillipe Desertenne (F) CTIC China Charente Martime 14 pts
13. Leo Bonelli (I) Qatar Team 7 pts
2007 Teams’ Championship – positions after round 4 of 8:
1. Emirates F1 Team 70 pts
2. Tamoil F1 Team 60 pts
3. F1 Team Energy 58 pts
4. Qatar Team 28 pts, etc
Ends
For further information:
Neil Perkins, NDP Publicity Services, Mobile: + 44 7831 123153, E-mail: ndppublicity@compuserve.com. www.ndp-publicity.com (press releases).