2011 UIM F1 H2O WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Grand Prix of Ukraine, Vyshgorod – round 4, July 28th-30th
For immediate release
Tuesday, July 26th, 2011
QATAR’S PRICE AND CARELLA AIM TO CONTINUE
RUN OF BRILLIANT WINNING FORM IN UKRAINE
· Qatar’s Khalid Al-Shamlan set to defend F-4S championship lead
VYSHGOROD (Ukraine): The Qatar Team duo of championship leader Jay Price and closest rival Alex Carella will be hoping to continue their recent run of brilliant winning form when they tackle Saturday’s Grand Prix of Ukraine at the city of Vyshgorod in the Kiev region.
The duo have been unbeatable in the first three races of the 2011 UIM F1 H20 World Championship, with Price scoring race wins in Qatar and Portugal and a third in Kazan to push him just two points clear of Carella, who finished runner-up in Qatar and Portugal and won the race in Kazan – his second GP win from just 11 F1 race starts.
“It has been a dream start to the season,” admitted Khalid Bin Arhama Al-Kuwari, head of formula racing at the Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF), which runs under the presidency of His Excellency Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al-Thani.
“The secret is that we managed to solve our engine problems and Jay has a very competitive team mate in Alex. We are pushing hard to win back the title that he had in 2008. The team has worked hard to develop the package and we have put all the new technology into the boats and the engines to give us that little bit extra.
“Jay finished third in Kazan, but I am sure that we would have overtaken Thani (Al-Qamzi) if the race had gone on for another 10 laps, just as he passed Scott Gillman. We know that the competition will be tough this weekend and I’m sure that Shaun Torrente will want to bounce back after his disappointment last time out.”
Al-Qamzi trails Price by 21 points heading to the new Kiev Sea course this weekend and the Emirati is already 10 points ahead of the next nearest challenger, Phillipe Chiappe, such has been the domination of the Qatar Team so far this season.
Several teams have been forced to rebuild their boats over the 12 days since the Kazan race in Tatarstan, but the Qatar Team duo are fighting fit and raring to go and have already built up a massive 62-point lead in the 2011 UIM F1 H20 Teams’ Championship.
The QMSF-backed team has also struck gold in the UIM F-4S Championship for the Eurofin Trophy with Khalid Saleh Al-Shamlan arriving in the Ukraine with an 11-point championship lead over Sweden’s Bimba Sjoholm.
Al-Shamlan continues to improve at each race meeting he attends and the Qatari will be hoping to extend his lead in the two 20-minute races on Friday and Saturday.
The weekend’s timetable gets underway with technical scrutineering and team registration on Thursday (July 28) and the first free practice session for Price and Carella starts at 12.15hrs (Doha time) on Friday.
The F-4S teams follow on to the course for practice at 13.30hrs (Doha time) and 14.00hrs for timed trials. The first F-4S race starts at 18.00hrs (Doha time) and the F1 timed trials get underway at 19.00hrs.
Saturday’s racing timetable includes a further free practice session for the F1 and F-4S teams, before the F-4S timed trials get underway at 14.00hrs (Doha time). The second of Al-Shamlan’s F-4S races begins at 16.00hrs and the Grand Prix of Ukraine fires into life at 19.00hrs (Doha time).
As an added bonus for spectators, there will be a special series of match races for the President’s Cup on Sunday, July 31st, starting at 10.00hrs (Doha time).
The Kiev Sea or Kiev Reservoir is located on the Dnieper River and is named after the Ukraine capital Kiev, which lies to the south. The vast expanse of water cover 922 square kilometres within the Kiev Oblast region and was constructed between 1960-1966 as a result of the Kiev Hydroelectric power plant dam project.
2011 UIM F1 H20 World Championship – standings after round 3
1. Jay Price (QAT) Qatar Team 52 pts
2. Alex Carella (QAT) Qatar Team 50 pts
3. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) Team Abu Dhabi 31 pts
4. Phillipe Chiappe (FRA) CTIC China Team 21 pts
5. Francesco Cantando (ITA) Singha F1 Racing Team 12 pts
6. Davide Padovan (ITA) Team Mad Croc F1 10 pts
7. Shaun Torrente (USA) Team Sweden 9 pts
7. Scott Gillman (UAE) Team Abu Dhabi 9 pts
7. Sami Selio (FIN) Team Mad Croc F1 9 pts
10. Marit Stromoy (NOR) Team Nautica 8 pts
11. Jonas Andersson (SWE) Team Sweden 7 pts
12. Duarte Benavente (POR) F1 Atlantic Team 5 pts
12. Phillipe Tourre (FRA) F1 Atlantic Team 5 pts
14. Stanislav Kurtsenovsky (RUS) Jetech Tool F1 Racing 4 pts
15. Ivan Brigada (ITA) Singha F1 Racing Team 1 pt
15. Rinaldo Osculati (ITA) Team Nautica 1 pt
2011 UIM F1 H20 Pole Position Championship – standings after round 3
1. Jay Price (QAT) Qatar Team 39 pts
2. Alex Carella (QAT) Qatar Team 38 pts
3. Sami Selio (FIN) Team Mad Croc F1 29 pts
4. Shaun Torrente (USA) Team Sweden 20 pts
4. Marit Stromoy (NOR) Team Nautica 20 pts
6. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) Team Abu Dhabi 17 pts
7. Ahmed Al-Hameli (UAE) Team Abu Dhabi 15 pts
8. Phillipe Chiappe (FRA) CTIC China Team 14 pts
9. Davide Padovan (ITA) Team Mad Croc F1 12 pts
2011 UIM F-4S Championship – standings after race 6
1. Khaled Saleh Al-Shamlan (QAT) Qatar Team 86 pts
2. Bimba Sjolholm (SWE) Team Sweden 75 pts
3. Matthew Palfreyman (GBR) Team Atlantic 63 pts
4. Filip Roms (FIN) Team Mad Croc 61 pts
5. Tobias Munthe-Kaas (NOR) Team Nautica 44 pts
6. Xiong Ziwei (CHN) Team China 41 pts
7. Majed Al-Mansoori (UAE) Team Abu Dhabi 33 pts
8. Christian Carlsen (NOR) Team Singha 19 pts
9. Kristoffer Fjelde (NOR) Team Singha 5 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).
www.qmsf.org
www.f1boat.com