MEDIA INFORMATION
2025 UIM-ABP World Aquabike Championship
GRAND PRIX SUCCESS FOR DRANGE, MICKAEL PORET, MEDORI AND MARIANI IN SARDINIA
Sunday, October 19: Benedicte Drange, Mickael Poret, François Medori and Roberto Mariani won their respective Ski Ladies GP1, Ski GP1, Runabout GP1 and Freestyle categories at the Regione Sardegna Grand Prix of Italy in Olbia on Sunday afternoon.
Drange held off Estelle Poret to seal Ski Ladies GP1 honours after World Championship leader Jasmiin Ypraus suffered pre-Moto engine issues and struggled at the rear of the field.
The triumphant Norwegian said: “It was a good race but I didn’t have the best start. I saw that Virginie (Morlaes) had some problems and I got past her. Estelle (Poret) was pushing hard from behind and I managed to keep her off. It’s a victory and it’s my first World Championship Grand Prix victory, so I am really happy about that, finally!”
Third place in the final Moto was enough to confirm Grand Prix success in Ski GP1 for Frenchman Mickael Poret. But the performance of the day came from Belgium’s Quinten Bossche. He stormed through from the rear of the field to win the Moto with Japan’s Toshi O’Hara taking second place.
Mickael Poret said: “I knew what I had to do in the Moto. I had the speed. Olbia is one of the biggest races ever. Of course, Quinten was faster than us but he had a mechanical issue (Moto 2). It’s crazy.”
World Championship leader François Medori controlled the final Runabout GP1 Moto from pole to confirm Grand Prix victory and extend his lead in the World Championship.
Medori said: “Two more to go in Qatar. Now I am 16 points in front of Jéremy (Perez). Today and yesterday was an incredible battle with him. He rode really well and is at his best level. I gave all I could in this race and I am really happy to win in front of my kids and my wife. They don’t come to many races. My team did an amazing job with the ski. We will see in Qatar what happens. I can’t wait to be in Doha in 10 days…”
Roberto Mariani prevailed in the second of the Freestyle Motos to seal Grand Prix success on a tie-breaker from Rashid Al-Mulla.
Ski Ladies GP1 Grand Prix success for Drange
The Ski Ladies GP1 category was nicely poised before the final Moto with Benedicte Drange holding a two-point cushion over Jasmiin Ypraus and a five-point lead over Estelle Poret in the battle for Grand Prix honours. Ypraus led the World Championship lead by four points before this Moto and the final round in Qatar at the end of the month.
But there was trouble for Ypraus before the start as she lined up with a spluttering engine on a back-up ski after her main ski failed to start. Virginie Morlaes claimed the hole shot from Drange, Poret and Heloise Delcluze with Ypraus languishing down in 11th place.
The French girl managed to hold off Drange and Poret into lap one but her hood came loose soon after and she was forced to stop and make emergency repairs, the delay letting Drange and Poret through into first and second and Delcluze, Siiri Salonen and Sofie Borgström up into third, fourth and fifth. Ypraus remained in 11th and out of contention for Grand Prix honours.
Morlaes managed to pass Borgström to claim fifth place as Drange held off Poret to win the Moto by 3.636 seconds and take Grand Prix honours from Poret and Delcluze.
Delcluze finished third in the Moto ahead of Morlaes, Salonen, Borgström, Naomi Benini, Lou Dardillat, Joana Graça, Janina Johansson and the struggling Ypraus. Poret duly gained a seven-point lead over Drange in the World Championship to take to the final round.
Grand Prix success for Mickael Poret in Ski GP1; Bossche storms through field to win Moto 3
Mickael Poret lined up for the last of the Ski GP1 Motos with a three-point advantage over his brother Jéremy and a five-point lead over a tying World Championship leader Oliver Koch Hansen and Kevin Reiterer in the Grand Prix standings. Moto 1 winner Quinten Bossche was out of contention for Sardinian success after his retirement from Moto 2. Felix Helgesen and Eddy Godon were not among the 24 starters.
Mickael Poret snatched the hole shot from his brother Jéremy, Toshi O’Hara, Koch Hansen, Reiterer and Soshi Sato. A flying Bossche moved up to eighth behind Yoni Hamelin after starting at the rear of the field. O’Hara managed to pass Jéremy Poret at the end of lap one, although the Frenchman managed to fend off a fierce challenge from Koch Hansen for his third place. Bossche continued his charge and passed Hamelin and Sato to snatch sixth. Both Morgan Poret and Maxence Russel retired after lap one.
The chaos continued with Koch Hansen passing Jéremy Poret to grab third and a determined Bossche passing both Reiterer and Jéremy Poret to move into fourth behind new leader O’Hara, Mickael Poret and Koch Hansen. Ander-Hubert Lauri struggled for five laps with engine issues and also incurred a two-lap penalty for missing a buoy.
O’Hara was able to keep the lead heading into the remaining seven minutes with Mickael Poret holding second and Bossche moving up to third at the expense of Koch Hansen. The Belgian bomber was now in sensational form and he managed to pass Mickael Poret to grab second place and began to close in on the Japanese leader. This was one of the most remarkable drives of the season and the Ostende-based racer managed to see off O’Hara to grab the lead.
From the rear of the field, Bossche took the lead and began to pull away from his rivals to reach the chequered flag 5.201 seconds ahead of O’Hara. Mickael Poret finished third to confirm victory in the Grand Prix with Koch Hansen, Reiterer, Jéremy Poret and Sato rounding off the top seven.
Matteo Benini, Kerto Kase and Hamelin finished eighth, ninth and 10th. Koch Hansen and O’Hara finished second and third in the Grand Prix with Koch Hansen continuing to lead the World Championship from Jéremy Poret by 11 points.
Medori romps to Grand Prix success in Runabout GP1
Championship leader François Medori had pole for the second of the Runabout GP1 Motos from Jéremy Perez, György Kasza, Samuel Johansson and Mattias Siimann. He was also defending a 13-point lead in the World Championship.
Medori claimed the hole shot from Perez, Johansson, Siimann and Andrzej Wisniewski. Kasza then made his move and the Hungarian climbed to fifth at the end of lap one behind the leading quartet and ahead of Robin Laforge, Pierre-François Savelli and Petr Dryjak. Mario Lamy withdrew after two laps.
Kasza continued to pressurise Siimann in the battle for fourth place but there was no stopping Medori and the Corsican avoided trouble overtaking the back markers to win the Moto by 1.764 seconds. That enabled the pharmacist to secure Grand Prix victory and extend his World Championship lead to 16 points.
Perez and Siimann rounded off the podium places in the Moto with Perez and Kasza securing second and third in the Grand Prix. Kasza and Savelli completed the Moto in fourth and fifth and Dryjak climbed to sixth when Laforge picked up a one-lap penalty for missing a buoy. Martin Doulik, Linus Lundberg, Florian Bardoux and Laforge rounded off the top 10. Johansson suffered engine problems, lost out on a potential podium finish and limped to the finish in 18th place. He picked up just three points for his efforts, although he retains third in the World Championship.
Freestyle Grand Prix success for Mariani
Defending European champion Roberto Mariani attempted a difficult double back flip in his impressive on-water programme before he gave centre stage to Moto 1 winner Rashid Al-Mulla to entertain the shore-side crowd.
The Team Abu Dhabi star opened his programme with a series of spectacular somersaults, back flips and spins and an action-packed display saw him collect 206 points. But that was five less than his Italian rival who sealed Grand Prix success on a tie-breaker and extended his World Championship lead to 10 points.
Massimo Accumolo managed to stay ahead of Paulo Nuñes to take third in the Grand Prix and retain a similar position in the World Championship.
Ends