MEDIA INFORMATION
UIM F2 EDH Grand Prix – Tønsberg
August 5-7, 2016
TEAM ABU DHABI’S RASHED AL-QAMZI FINISHES NINTH IN EDH F2 GRAND PRIX IN TØNSBERG
Lundin holds off Palfreyman to claim unofficial win; Team Abu Dhabi’s Al-Mehairbi misses out on main race
Rashed Al-Qamzi qualifies eighth for Norwegian race; Erik Edin pips Rupert Temper to pole position
TØNSBERG (NORWAY): Sunday, August 7: Rashed Al-Qamzi continued Team Abu Dhabi’s hectic summer of European powerboat racing by finishing ninth in the EDH Grand Prix, the Norwegian fourth round of the UIM F2 World Championship in Tønsberg, on Sunday evening.
Competing against a world class field of 15 other drivers, the Emirati qualified for the race in an impressive eighth place and went on to reach the chequered flag in an excellent ninth overall.
Erik Edin led from pole position and managed to fend off the challenge from Austria’s Rupert Temper, fellow Swede Pierre Lundin and England’s Matthew Palfreyman through the early yellow-flag interrupted laps until he inverted his boat and handed the reins to Lundin and Palfreyman. Lundin passed the chequered flag 3.44 seconds in front of Palfreyman to claim the unofficial win and Ustinov finished third. Mohammed Al-Mehairbi was deprived of a race start after suffering a steering issue and flipping Team Abu Dhabi 36 in the windy conditions.
“Once again this was a vital event in the learning curves and the careers of Rashed and Mohammed against a world class field of F2 racers,” said Salem Al-Romaithi, assistant general manager of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC). “They both acclimatised superbly to the challenge in testing conditions.”
Team Abu Dhabi is sponsored by Etihad Airways and runs under the patronage of His Highness Dr. Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al-Nahyan, advisor to the Head of State and chairman of the board of directors of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC). Both double UIM F1 H2O World Champion Alex Carella and Thani Al-Qamzi of Team Abu Dhabi’s F1 H2O team were also on hand during the weekend to offer support to Al-Mehairbi and Al-Qamzi.
EDH Grand Prix – Tønsberg Båtrace
The start of the race was slightly delayed and Al-Qamzi lined up in eighth position of the 16 boats that made the main event. Edin held the advantage after the opening lap from Temper, Lundin and Palfreyman, but Al-Qamzi slipped back to 14th. There were no changes inside the top four through four laps and Al-Qamzi retained 14th position of the 16 runners before the yellow flag was raised when Lundin reportedly clipped a turn buoy.
Norwegian Christian Carlsen rolled under the yellow flag on lap 13 and his demise promoted Al-Qamzi to 13th, as the laps passed by without any racing action for the large number of spectators lining the course. Racing eventually resumed on lap 20, although Lundin remained in third place pending a potential penalty for his collision with a turn buoy.
Al-Qamzi climbed to 12th at the expense of Edgaras Riabko, as local driver Frode Sundsdal was delayed and a second yellow flag was raised with Edin leading from Palfreyman and Temper and Al-Qamzi holding 12th place, although Lundin regained his second position under the yellow flag before the action resumed again.
Through lap 28, Edin led from Lundin, Palfreyman and Comparato, with Temper falling down the leader board and Al-Qamzi climbing another place to 11th. Two laps later, Al-Qamzi was into the top 10 and Lundin led from Palfreyman, with Edin down in third place after inverting his Molgaard.
Al-Qamzi moved up again to ninth position and looked set for a top finish, as Lundin led from Palfreyman, Edin and Ustinov through 35 laps. Ustinov passed Edin to snatch third heading into the final handful of laps, but there were no last minute dramas and Lundin held on to pip Palfreyman, with Ustinov in third and Al-Qamzi coming home ninth.
Friday and Saturday
Teams took part in Speed Runs and a Match Race on Friday evening and Austrian racer Rupert Temper pipped Sweden’s Pierre Lundin to the bragging rights, with local race organiser Frode Sundsdal in third place in the Speed Runs. Lundin won the Match Race from Erik Edin and Temper. Both Al-Mehairbi and Al-Qamzi were eliminated in the first round of the Match Races, but finished an excellent seventh and eighth in the Speed Runs, with times of 169 and 167 km/h among the 16 starters.
Both Team Abu Dhabi drivers benefited from the free practice sessions and were placed in Group B, where Edin set the quickest time of 44.15 seconds in his Molgaard. Al-Qamzi ran for 38 laps and was an impressive second fastest with a lap of 45.04 seconds. Al-Mehairbi ran for 24 laps with a best tour of the course of 48.23 seconds.
Qualifying for the main race was staged on Saturday evening and was split into three sessions. Edin snatched pole position with a flying lap of 43 seconds in the ‘shoot-out’ that was enough to see off rival Lundin, when the Swede clipped a marker buoy and was demoted to 10th as a result. Temper earned second on the grid, despite the fact that Norwegian offshore racer Pal-Virik Nilsen collided with the Austrian’s DAC earlier in the qualifying session. Young Alberto Comparato pipped Sundsdal to third and England’s Matthew Palfreyman was fifth. Al-Qamzi’s rewarded for making the final ‘shoot-out’ was eighth on the race pontoon in a time of 45.41sec. Al-Mehairbi was not classified.
UIM F2 EDH Grand Prix (Tønsberg Båtrace) – result (unofficial)
1. Pierre Lundin (SWE) Lundin F1 Racing 45 laps
2. Matthew Palfreyman (GBR) F1 Atlantic Team @ 3.44sec
3. Konstantin Ustinov (RUS) New Star @ 17.30sec
4. Erik Edin (SWE) Edin Racing Team @ 32.42sec
5. Ola Pettersson (SWE) Skana Racing Team F2 @ 34.24sec
9. Rashed Al-Qamzi (UAE) Team Abu Dhabi 1 lap behind
– Ends –
For further media information and information about Team Abu Dhabi:
Please contact: Khalid Al Saadi, Media Incharge, Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club, P.O. Box 45656, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Mobile Telephone: + 971 50 768 6761, E-mail: alsaadi@adimsc.ae.
www.adimsc.ae