2009 UIM F1 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Grand Prix of Russia – August 9th, round 6 of 16
For immediate release
Monday, August 10th, 2009
QATAR’S JAY PRICE WITHDRAWS FROM SECOND
RUSSIAN RACE BUT MAINTAINS TITLE CHALLENGE
· Russian race victory for Sweden’s Jonas Andersson
· Qatar’s Price extends Pole Position series lead to 25 points
SAINT PETERSBURG (Russia): Defending UIM F1 World Champion, Jay Price, was forced to withdraw from the starting line-up of the second Grand Prix of Russia on the Neva River with engine problems sustained in the time trials, but the DAC driver remained firmly in contention to retain his UIM F1 World Championship title.
The second race of the Russian weekend was won by Sweden’s Jonas Andersson and Team Ajerbaijan, with former World Champion Sami Selio sealing second position and Team Abu Dhabi’s Thani Al-Qamzi taking third place to maintain his title challenge and move back into a 10-point lead in the drivers’ standings.
Andersson, who duly claimed his third F1 race win, had a winning margin of a mere 2.92s over his Finnish rival, although it was a disappointing day for the Qatar Team, with Andy Elliott still recuperating in hospital from his accident on Saturday and Price sidelined before the start with engine problems.
An incident near the end of the time trials cost Price his place on the grid and Khalid Bin Arhama Al-Kuwari, Head of Formula Racing at the Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF), was concerned at the time that there could have been some damage to the engine on the DAC during the incident. The boat was fully checked during the afternoon break and the team decided to withdraw the sole-surviving Qatar Team boat from the race.
“We had a good start to the weekend with the race win, which was marred by Andy’s accident,” said Al-Kuwari. “But it was not our day on Sunday and Jay has lost the lead in the World Championship. But he proved that he has the pace to stay at the front for the rest of the season and this is just a minor set back in our bid to win back-to-back titles.”
Time trials and free practice
Price was the early star of the time trials and the Qatar driver laid down the gauntlet with a lap of 49.48s. Comparato and Al-Hameli were his closest challengers for Pole Position early on. A lap of 49.42s by Team Abu Dhabi’s Al-Hameli pushed Price down to second mid-way through the session, as Comparato, Ugis Gross, Andersson and Cappellini challenged the Qatar driver hard for second.
Cappellini eventually snatched provisional pole position with a tour of 48.13s before the session was yellow-flagged with Price back into second position and Selio storming through to third. The green flag was raised for the closing minutes, but the Italian had done enough to edge Price out of his second Pole Position of the weekend, although the Qatar driver extended his lead in the UIM F1 Pole Position Championship to 25 points.
Price was again in command during the second free practice session on Sunday morning, the F1 Team Qatar driver posting a fastest tour of 47.75s during his 23-lap stint. Andersson set the second fastest lap of 48.88s and Pierre Lundin was third with 49.00s. Only 16 of the 19 entrants took to the water, with Duarte Benavente and Fabio Comparato joining Qatar’s injured Andy Eliott away from the Neva River action.
Grand Prix of Russia – race 2 results (Sunday)
1. Jonas Andersson (S) Team Azerbaijan 52m 38s
2. Sami Selio (FIN) Mad Croc F1 Team Woodstock @ 2.92s
3. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi @ 5.08s
4. Fabio Comparato (I) 800 Doctor Team @ 6.33s
5. Ahmed Al-Hameli (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi @ 7.89s
6. Ugis Gross (LV) Zepter Team @ 9.87s, etc
Time Trials (Sunday)
1. Guido Cappellini (I) Zepter Team 48.13s
2. Jay Price (QA) F1 Team Qatar 48.22s
3. Sami Selio (FIN) Mad Croc F1 Team Woodstock 49.17s
4. Jonas Andersson (S) Team Azerbaijan 49.18s
5. Pierre Lundin (S) Team CTIC China-Charente 49.38s
6. Ahmed Al-Hameli (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi 49.42s
2009 UIM F1 World Championship – positions after 6 of 16 races:
1. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi 65 pts
2. Jay Price (QA) F1 Team Qatar 55 pts
3. Jonas Andersson (S) Team Azerbaijan 52 pts
4. Ahmed Al-Hameli (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi 47 pts
5. Fabio Comparato (I) 800 Doctor Team 37 pts
6. Sami Selio (FIN) Mad Croc F1 Team Woodstock 34 pts
7. Guido Cappellini (I) Zepter Team 30 pts, etc
2009 UIM F1 Pole Position Championship – positions after 6 of 16 rounds:
1. Jay Price (QA) F1 Team Qatar 94 pts
2. Ahmed Al-Hameli (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi 69 pts
3. Guido Cappellini (I) Zepter Team 63 pts
4. Sami Selio (FIN) Mad Croc F1 Team Woodstock 53 pts
5. Jonas Andersson (S) Team Azerbaijan 42 pts
6. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi 26 pts
7. Massimo Roggiero (I) Mad Croc F1 Team Woodstock 20 pts
8. Pierre Lundin (S) Team CTIC China-Charente 19 pts
9. Francesco Cantando (I) Singha F1 Racing Team 15 pts
10. Phillipe Chiappe (F) F1 Atlantic Team 7 pts
Ends
For further information:
Neil Perkins, NDP Publicity Services, Mobile: + 44 7831 123153, E-mail: ndppublicity@googlemail.com. www.ndp-publicity.com (press releases).