Victory Team regains UIM Class 1 crown despite defeat to Team Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI: Team Abu Dhabi stunned their arch-rivals from Dubai’s Victory Team to win the third race of the UIM Class 1 World Powerboat Championship at the Abu Dhabi Breakwater on Friday afternoon.
But the Victory Team regained the world title that they had ceded to Team Abu Dhabi last November by a single point. The Dubai crew earned four points for running the same engines throughout the race meeting and Team Abu Dhabi was penalized for lifting a Mercury valve cover to make necessary engine checks and only earned two of the four bonus points on offer.
Trailing the multiple World Champions, Arif Saf Al-Zafeen and Nadir Bin Hendi, by 10 points heading into the third-race showdown, Team Abu Dhabi 6’s John Tomlinson and Gary Ballough led through the opening lap and began to pull away from their rivals, using a quick three short lap strategy to perfection to enhance the gap. When the Victory boat slowed to a crawl with a broken propeller and was unable to finish higher than fourth, it looked as though the host team would retain their title in dramatic circumstances by a single championship point.
“I guess that is why we go racing,” said Team Abu Dhabi’s Class 1 racing manager Randy Scism. “This is what it is all about. The boys worked around the clock to get the second boat back in the water. We got the first boat running right, so this is unbelievable for us. What a great finish for His Highness Sheikh Sultan and everyone at the Abu Dhabi team.”

The gripping race finale brought down the curtain on an exciting week of Class 1 racing hosted by the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club’s (ADIMSC), which saw Team Abu Dhabi 5’s Rashed Al-Tayer and Majed Al-Mansoori hold off a closing Italy’s Giovanni Carpitella and England’s Ian Blacker in Zabo 91 to take second position.
To cap a superb afternoon for the host club, the new XCAT partnership of triple UIM F1 H2O World Champion Alex Carella and Faleh Al-Mansoori dominated their second race together in two days to claim the inaugural Abu Dhabi Cup from Raheeb 17’s Abdullatif Al-Omani and Ahmed Al-Suwaidi. Victory 33’s Salem Al-Adidi and Eisa Al-Ali retired after one lap with engine problems.
Carella’s UIM F1 H2O team manager Guido Cappellini said: “This was an incredible afternoon. To win the Class 1 race was a terrific achievement against a very strong team. The win in the Abu Dhabi Cup is special as well. We have two drivers coming in the same boat for the first time three days ago. They finished in front of the team that won the XCAT Grand Prix here last weekend and finished second in the championship.”

Aquasport 99’s Nico Huybens and Daniel Cramphorn borrowed an alternator off Zabo Racing, but retired after completing one lap of the Class 1 race.

Trophies and prizes were handed out by Dr. Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al-Nahyan, adviser to the Head of State and chairman of the board of directors of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC), in the presence of a number of senior dignitaries and VIPs, including Raffaele Chiulli, the visiting President of the UIM and ARISF.
“All our team has put a lot of effort into hosting this event and I am delighted that it has been a success and the racing was so exciting,” said Salem Al-Romaithi, assistant general manager of the ADIMSC. “We extend our thanks to Sheikh Sultan for his support.”

RESULTS


UIM Class 1 World Championship – Race 3 results (C1):

1. Team Abu Dhabi 6 – John Tomlinson (USA)/Gary Ballough (USA) @ 43min 23.01sec

2. Team Abu Dhabi 5 – Rashed Al-Tayer (UAE)/Majed Al-Mansoori (UAE) @ 2min 48.28sec

3. Zabo 91 – Giovanni Carpitella (ITA)/Ian Blacker (GBR) @ 2min 53.87sec

XCATs

1. Team Abu Dhabi 55 – Alex Carella (UAE)/Faleh Al-Mansoori (UAE) — 3min 02.794sec

2. Victory 33 – Salem Al-Adidi (UAE)/Eisa Al-Ali (UAE) — 3min 04.637sec

3. Raheeb 17 – Abdullatif Al-Omani (KWT)/Ahmed Al-Suwaidi (UAE) — 3min 13.521sec



2016 UIM Class 1 World Championship final positions (unofficial):

1. Victory 3 – Arif Saif Al-Zafeen (UAE)/Nadir Bin Hendi (UAE) — 53pts

2. Team Abu Dhabi 6 – John Tomlinson (USA)/Gary Ballough (USA) — 52pts

3. Zabo 91 – Giovanni Carpitella (ITA)/Ian Blacker (GBR) — 40pts

4. Team Abu Dhabi 5 – Rashed Al-Tayer (UAE)/Majed Al-Mansoori (UAE) — 15pts

5. Aquasport 99 – Nick Huybens (BEL)/Daniel Cramphorn (GBR) — 9pts