UIM F1 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Grand Prix of Sharjah, round 6 of 6
December 15th, 2006
For immediate release
Monday, December 11th, 2006
QATAR TEAM AIM TO END F1 RACING
SEASON ON HIGH NOTE IN SHARJAH
Price and Roggiero prepare for Sharjah showdown;
Cappellini and Gillman go head-to-head for world title
SHARJAH (UAE): While the Qatar Team?s Jay Price and Massimo Roggiero will be aiming to end their UIM F1 World Championship on a high note in this weekend’s Grand Prix of Sharjah, Italy’s Guido Cappellini and American Scott Gillman of the Emirates Team line up in a head-to-head contest to see who will claim the 2006 World Championship title.
Both are locked together on 65 points and the winner of Friday’s Grand Prix of Sharjah will take all the glory away from another exciting season of F1 racing.
The Qatar Team suffered a disappointing outing in Abu Dhabi last weekend, after Jay Price had finished second overall in China back in October and Roggiero had qualified third for the UAE race.
An accident ruined Price’s qualifying challenge in the team Mercury-engined Baba and Roggiero was sidelined with engine-related problems mid-way through the race.
But the Sharjah course posts a different challenge for the Qatar Team and team spokesman Mohammed Al-Jaidah, Head of Formula racing at the Doha-based Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF), is confident that Price and Roggiero can finish the season with a podium.
~The team traced the fault in Jay?s boat to a hydraulic problem and we should be ready and raring to go for the weekend,~ said Al-Jaidah. ~The Sharjah course is sheltered from the wind, so the weather conditions should not be too tricky. Realistically, I am confident that we can reach the podium and end the season on a positive note.?
Failing to score points in Abu Dhabi has pushed the Qatar Team into fifth place in the UIM F1 Teams’ Championship behind Team Charente Maritime. The host Emirates Team look set to clinch the UIM F1 Teams’ Championship, courtesy of Los Angeles racer Gillman and Emirati Thani Al-Qamzi, but Jaidah is hopeful that the Qatar Team can climb back into fourth place in Sharjah.
Price and Roggiero arrive on the Corniche in Sharjah, lying equal fifth and 12th in the Drivers’ Championship respectively. A win could catapult Price into fourth place in his first season of F1 racing, while a 20-point score could lift his team mate from 12th to fourth, such is the competitiveness of the F1 discipline this season.
Teams will take to the water for the first free practice sessions on Wednesday afternoon, before the first and second time trials and the Shoot-Out get underway on Thursday afternoon (December 14th).
The Grand Prix of Sharjah will bring the curtain down on another season of F1 racing on Friday afternoon.
UIM F1 Drivers Championship (positions after round 5 of 6)
1. Scott Gillman (USA) 65 pts
1. Guido Cappellini (I) 65 pts
3. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) 43 pts
4. David Trask (AUS) 21 pts
5. Ivan Brigada (I) 20 pts
5. Jay Price (USA) 20 pts
7. Bob Trask (AUS) 19 pts
7. Phillipe Chappe (F) 19 pts
9. Phillippe Dessetenne (F) 17 pts
9. Fabio Comparato (I) 17 pts
11. Jonas Andersson (S) 16 pts
12. Massimo Roggiero (I) 12 pts, etc
UIM F1 Teams? Championship (positions after round 5 of 6)
1. Emirates F1 108 pts
2. Tamoil F1 88 pts
3. XPV Racing 40 pts
4. Team Charente Maritime 36 pts
5. Qatar Team 32 pts, etc
Ends
For further information:
Neil Perkins, NDP Publicity Services, Qatar Mobile: + 974 5435185, UK Mobile: + 44 7831 123153, E-mail: ndppublicity@compuserve.com. www.ndp-publicity.com (press releases).
www.f1boat.com
www.qmsf.org