Raceboat International Issue #15

raceboat D E D I C AT E D

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G L O B A L

Issue 15 - APRIL/MAY 2015

P O W E R B O AT

R A C I N G

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FUJAIRAH-DUBAI

AUSTRALIA V8 SUPERBOAT / NEW ZEALAND OFFSHORE 100

UIM QATAR CUP FESTIVAL

F1 Team Changes for the SEASON OPENER in DOHA

F1 ON THE 1971 YESTERYEAR

GRID

Putney-Calais Race

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EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES PO Box No. 4871 Poole, Dorset BH15 1HX Tel: +44 (0) 1202 625048 Mobile: 07896 230630 Email: david@raceboatinternational.com EDITOR David Sewell WEBSITE/NEWS John Moore www.raceboatinternational.com GRAPHIC DESIGN Carolynne Sewell CONTRIBUTORS John Moore Steve Micheal Neil Perkins Roy Mantle Sean Henshelwood Karien Jonckheere PHOTOGRAPHY Tim Tapping Simon Palfrader Raffaello Bastiani Vittorio Obertone Chris Davies Arek Rejs Graham Stevens Paul Kemiel Russel Puckeridge Jeremy Ward SUBSCRIPTIONS (4 issues) £30 per annum (U.K.) £35 per annum (Europe) £40 per annum (ROW) Post cheque made payable to: Raceboat International or pay by Paypal on-line www.raceboatinternational.com FRONT COVER PHOTO BY Raffaello Bastiani - XCAT PRINTED BY - Headley Brothers While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy in the compilation of this publication, the Publishers cannot be held liable for errors and omissions. c Copyright - David Sewell All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior consent in writing to the publisher.

NOTE from the

Editor At this time of year when most race series are just getting underway, we usually struggle for headline news. However, this year is very different with three or four ‘blockbusters’ all arriving within days of each other. Probably the most intriguing is the whole Qatar saga, as within the space of one short year, this tiny oil rich nation, which has been one of the most powerful forces on the offshore and circuit scene, appears to have been forced to make major cut backs.

Sheikh Hassan, who has been the mainstay of powerboat racing in the Qatar Emirate, has subsequently resigned from his post as President of the QMSF and the Federation has been disbanded. Powerboat racing now comes under the authority of the newly founded Qatar Sailing and Water-Sports Federation QSWF along with sail, rowing and Aquabikes. This may or may not be a temporary situation, but Qatar’s track record in the UIM World F1 series is second to none with four gold medals in the last four years, so considering that investment in an F1 team is miniscule compared to Class 1, maybe the F1 will continue as before and hopefully Qatar will remain on the F1 calendar.

Another ‘big story’ that shocked the racing world was the ‘sacking’ of long time F1 Abu Dhabi team manager American Scott Gillman, and replacing him with his racing arch rival Guido Cappellini from Italy. The two guys are chalk and cheese in terms of personalities, but both are very successful drivers in their own right with a shed-full of world championships between them. The ‘big wigs’ in the Abu Dhabi federation are obviously very intent on finding a way to take the world title away from the rival Arab state Qatar who have collected four gold medals with relative ease. Whether Cappellini is the man to achieve this is the million dollar question, but his first course of action has been to head hunt three times world champion Alex Carella from the Qatar team. Obviously this is no guarantee to give them that success as whilst Carella has enjoyed the best equipment as number one driver in the Qatar team, unless he is leading a race it is very rare for him to fight for the lead, whereas team mate Shaun Torrente is ruthless.

Gillman, on the other hand, has retained the loyalty of Abu Dhabi driver Ahmed Al Hameli, one of the best drivers in F1, and given the right equipment Ahmed is more than capable of winning a world championship for the newly formed Emirate Team. There is also every chance that he could be joined by his Emirate team mate Thani Al Qamzi, although at this stage it is just speculation.

Hopefully, by May we will know the fate of the ailing UK offshore scene, as at present it would appear there will not be enough teams to stage a creditable National championship this year. Britain’s OCRDA was kicked off the Offshore Race Committee and banned from running National Championship events for nine months due to an infringement of the ORC rules. However, they are allowed to run a Club race series, and it looks like they will boast considerably larger fleets than the National races. Banning them could seriously backfire on the ORC if the Club championship is a roaring success and the National series falls flat.

The other two UK championships which are thriving both enjoy the backing of wealthy benefactors. Powerboat P1-Aquacross published their calendar weeks ago, likewise the Thundercat Championship. It’s got to take the pressure off organisers knowing that their events are underwritten.

Dave

David Sewell Editor

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contents www.raceboatinternational.com

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NEWS BRIEFING Who’s WHO and what’s WHAT

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2015 RACING CALENDAR Race Series Raceboat International will be covering during 2015

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XCAT FUJAIRAH An unexpected outcome at the first round of the UIM World Championships when engines caught fire

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SPRINT BOAT The UK’s first and only V8 Sprint Boat Team - Fiya

XCAT DUBAI With a new boat defending world champions are nearly pipped to the post by T-Bone Station

2014 UIM WORLD F1 CHAMPIONSHIP

The final 3 rounds of the 2014 F1 Series 30 QATAR 34 ABU DHABI 38 SHARJAH 40

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2015 ON THE GRID

International teams lining up for the start of the 2015 F1 World Championship

2015 F1 SEASON OPENER QATAR

The season kicks off with a win for American Shaun Torrente and Team Qatar

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NATIONS CUP Team Russia snatch victory in Qatar and Team Italy flip

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QATAR CUP FESTIVAL Formula, H1 Unlimited and Jet Ski Racing staged in Doha Bay with teams from USA and Australasia

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AUSTRALIA V8 SUPERBOAT Round 1 of the Dual Unlimited Superboat Championships in Temora NSW

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NEW ZEALAND OFFSHORE 100 Round 4 of the NZ Offshore Championships in Whitianga

68 YESTERYEAR

Revisiting the Putney-Calais Race in 1971 70 TAKING THE PIC More PIT ACTION photos

raceboatinternational 5

hat w s ’ t e wha d scen t n a a o b r whothe powe s ’ o n o Wh

PADDLE TRIMS

Have you got a sports boat?

A fast outboard boat or a sterndrive?

Or a powerful motor yacht with surface drives?

For these models and for all boats, Ultraflex has developed the Paddle Trim, the ideal tool for those who love to drive safely and comfortably. It is a control similar to what is used on the steering wheel of the car with electronic gear to select manually the gears. On board, instead the device is used to control the trim and the trim tabs without removing your hands from the steering wheel, to operate with ease and promptness without being distracted by looking for the switches on the dashboard.

Ultraflex Paddle Trim is a rocker control integrated with Ultraflex hydraulic helms that holding the steering wheel grip is easily operated with your finger tips. As an example, on an outboard boat, it can be used to tune the trim and the jack plates of one or multiple engines, or to control other functions.

Similarly, once installed on a boat with surface drives, the Paddle Trim helps you continually control quickly and to check both the trim angle drives and the tabs.

It is available with two or four controls and it can also be installed outside, where the helm is subject to the marine environment. Its main characteristic is the increased safety while driving since it helps to operate different functions while keeping to your route.

This new device fits any boat equipped with Ultraflex hydraulic steering systems, and gives a sport and technical look to your dashboard, in particular if combined with the beautiful Ultraflex steering wheels.

On work-boats it is possible to adapt its use for multiple operating functions, such as operating onboard equipment (pumps, bow and stern thrusters, underwater lights, etc.), also just for the VHF, or to manage any other apparatus, connection with the appropriate Uflex interface.

Paddle Trims Vista Laterale (top), 4 Comandi (below

CAR TRANSPORTER STRANDED IN shipping channel The beaching of a giant car transport on a sandbank in the solent off the Isle of Wight made uk headline news In early January the 56,000 ton Hoegh Osaka left Southampton bound for Germany with a cargo of luxury cars valued at £60 million. On its way down Southampton Waters, the ship started to develop a list which reached 50 degrees. The master and a pilot were concerned the Singapore registered ship might capsize so it was decided to run it aground on the Bramble Bank.

It was there that the Hoegh Osaka became a tourist attraction

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as it sat on the sand listing alarmingly. Thankfully as the vessel lay away from the main shipping channel it did not affect traffic in and out of the busy port, and there was also relief that there was no oil spillage. After several days during which strong winds and rough water made salvage impossible, it was announced that attempts to refloat Hoegh Osaka would be made when the weather subsided.

However, much to everyone’s surprise, the ship refloated itself on a high tide. Tugs held it in place as salvors patched a split in the hull, and eventually the vessel was towed by four tugs into the berth she had left two weeks earlier. Television cameras captured the valuable cargo of 1600 vehicles being unloaded including a new Rolls Royce, Jaguars, Range Rovers and Mini’s and several showed signs of damage.

The Hoegh Osaka has since departed for Falmouth, Devon where damage to the ship will be assessed before deciding the vessel’s future.

IN BRIEF

VENICE-MONTE CARLO MARATHON RACE/RALLY Just when it looked like the Cowes-Torquay-Cowes race was the only marathon LEFT in the 2015 calender up pops the Venice to Monte Carlo event At 1512 nautical miles compared to CTC’s 180nm, the Mediterranean international endurance race is made up of ten legs starting on 1st July and finishing on 12th July. The longest leg (9) from Civitaveccia to Viareggio in 186nm, and the shortest (3) Pescara to Termoli is only 44nm. There are two rest days during the voyage, and the 2015 Venice-Monte Carlo Rally is made up of 606nm racing, 576nm predicted log and 330nm in transit (whatever that means).

Classes admitted into this UIM Enduro are Touring Sport (TS) 1,2,3, Super Sport 1,2,3, Racing UIM Class 1, UIM V1, UIM Class 3S, Super Yachts between 20 to 24 metres, and Fleet Italy (Special category). Boats have to be capable of maintaining a speed of not less than 30 knots.

Markus Hendricks’ brand new boat will be making its debut in the Venice-Monte Carlo. The 55 footer is powered by twin Ilmors.

HELMET MOUNTED CAMCORDERS BAN GoPro helmet camcorders have been banned from powerboat racing. Following the serious injury to Michael Schumacher whilst skiing, the powers that be have said that the fixing of GoPro camcorders on helmets effect the strength of the composite either by the adhesive or fixing boats.

Camcorders can be fitted to engine cowels and the water deflectors in front of the driver as long as it does not affect his vision. After examination of helmet which have been drilled to fix cameras or adhesive, it has been proven to reduce the overall strength of GRP or composite headgear.

However banning helmet cams does not apply to all motorised sports as we saw a speedway race recently where three of the four riders sported the gizmos and steepchase jockeys have been seen to be wearing one on the headgear.

QATAR OUT It came as quite a shock when it was announced Sheikh Hassan had stood down as President of the QSMF and the federation had been disbanded. Powerboat racing in Qatar is now under the control of the Qatar Sailing & Watersports Federation.

Speculation intensified when only one F1h2o boat lined up at their home event in Doha, but it was never expected that the QSWF would not divulge the reasons behind the major shake-up. In the absence of any kind of official announcement, the most plausible explanation seems to be that Qatar may have been feeling the pinch following the dramatic drop in worldwide oil prices, and it had also been suggested that Sheikh Hassan’s apparent ‘extravagance’ had put a strain on other nautical activity in the country. We will probably never know. In the meantime the future of international powerboat racing in Qatar is on the line, and we wait to see if the newly formed OPGP, which has a four race programme planned for the USA, goes ahead.

ILMORE ACQUIRE SCORPION

In March 2014, Ilmor finalised the purchase of Phil Harper Motorsports along with Scorpion Racing Engines. The new partnership will allow Ilmor to expand its existing racing efforts into short track and offshore racing.

Scorpion Power clients include several notable offshore racing teams in the rapidly expanding Superboat-class field such as Broadco, STIHL, Instigator, Cleveland Construction and Spirit of Qatar 20. raceboatinternational 7

PREVIEW -

POWERBOAT P1 SUPERSTOCK

THE TURN KEY PACKAGE Asif Rangoonwala’s name hit the offshore powerboat racing headlines when he launched a new concept in competition. Attracting teams from across the world, Powerboat P1 was split into two divisions, Evolution and Super Stock.

The larger Evolution class was introduced to attract new designs and concepts while Super Stock was for craft that were already in production. Powerboat P1 boasted healthy fleets and exciting racing and every meeting was a lavish event. However, after several years it became very clear, this type of competition was financially unviable and Mr Rangoonwala withdrew.

However, rather than walk away from the sport that had cost him millions, he launched a new series on a more modest scale Powerboat P1 Superstock. It would feature a fleet of identical hulls designed and built for Powerboat P1, and they would all use identical engines.

The first series was launched in 2011 and since then the championship has built up a strong following and each meeting is operated on a very professional basis. Up to ten Panther 28 monohulls participate all powered by ‘green’ Evinrude outboards producing speeds of around 70mph. Driver skills play an important part in the results table and the 2014 champion competed in the UK series and commuted across the Atlantic to race in the American SuperStock P1 series which feature the same boats and engines and the team also collected the US gold medal.

At every meeting up to forty Aqua X (Jet Skis) take part in a programme of races and provide wall to wall action throughout the weekend activity as SuperStock P1 have a heat on both days.

Asif Rangoonwala (left) and Vee Ganjavian, promoters of P1 Superstock and Thundercats, Britain’s two most successful offshore championships

PLANS FOR 2015 Powerboat P1 promoters have unveiled its UK race calendar for this year which will see its SuperStock and AquaX series racing at five venues from May to September.

The announcement of a 50race powerboat and jet ski series around the UK coast, together with a similar race programme in the USA, confirms P1’s position as one of the leading promoters of offshore competition.

“The growth of P1, as it develops into becoming a genuine global motorsport, involves delivering high calibre events that generate significant levels of inward economic investment at host venues, together with the commercial platform created for sponsors, partners and the wider marine industry” explains P1 chief operating officer Robert Wicks.

“The coming season will be a great mix of established venues and an exciting new location” says Wicks “with our double bill of fast, furious and free to watch racing making its first visit to North Yorkshire for the opening event.”

A fleet of ten P1 Panther race boats and more than forty jet ski

commemorating 25 years of uk circuit racing A commemorative dinner is to be in held in Bristol on Saturday the 6th June to celebrate International Circuit Powerboat Racing.

The event is open to racers, teams, organisers, sponsors and followers from past and present from the world of circuit racing.

With a reception at the SS Great Britain and dinner at the Bristol Hotel it is sure to be a great evening. Andy Elliot, who started racing in 1969 said, “This will possibly be the only chance that all the old and new drivers will ever be in one place again”.

With a host of big names from the sport already signed up to attend, it is advised to confirm your interest. For ticketing and accommodation enquiries please contact; Roy Cooper +44 7799 673451 8 raceboatinternational

riders will head to Scarborough’s South Bay at the end of May, where the West Pier and harbour areas will be a provide good vantage points for the thousands of spectators who will be able to meet the powerboat teams and AquaX riders over the weekend of family entertainment.

The action moves to the Hampshire coast for the second round at Stokes Bay in Gosport, before returning to Yorkshire for the P1 Hull Grand Prix of the Sea. This will be the fifth successive year that Hull has hosted the P1 series on the challenging waters of the Humber. Wicks said: “The race location at Hull Marina offers some of the best viewing for fans, and with the backdrop of The Deep and the Humber Bridge it’s a venue that all the competitors enjoy visiting each year.”

Last year’s flagship event in Cardiff, which attracted more than 40,000 spectators, moves to the bank holiday weekend at the end of August and the successful Bournemouth Grand Prix becomes the season finale as part of a major beach festival.

FATIMA AL ZAABI

LADY EMIRATI XCAT DRIVER A UNIQUE FIRST IN POWERBOAT RACING HISTORY Bearing in mind females are not permitted to drive cars in Saudi Arabia, it came as quite a surprise when the X Cat promoter announced that an Emirati female, Fatima Al Zaabi, would be driving in the second round of the championship in Dubai. Fatima was behind the wheel of 4 Stroke Future, a brand new 33 foot X Cat built by Victory and powered by two Mercury 4 stroke outboards.

Apparently, Fatima, a keen watersports enthusiast, watched an X Cat race and enquired at Victory HQ if there was a chance she might be able to have a drive in one.

After one or two test sessions with ex. World Class 1 Champion Mohammed Al Marri on throttles it was felt she was ready to take part in a race. Unfortunately, the 4 Stroke Future broke down in Dubai, but Fatima has proved she has what it takes to race powerboats and we hope she will be participating in future races.

RYA British 200 P1 AquaX Champion - Damien Evans RYA PGP F4s British Champion & RYA PGP F4s Sprint Champion - Ben Morse RYA British Zapcat ZCR50X Speed Record at 44.13mph - David Finlayson RYA PGP GT15 British Champion - Thomas Mantripp RYA Anne Robinson Best New Comer - Kayleigh Priestley RYA PGP GT30 Sprint Champion - Jessica Stoneman RYA GPA British Club Champions - Jacques Vermeulen and Pierre Vermeulen UKOBA Sword of Honour - Asif Rangoonwala & Powerboat P1 RYA British Zapcat ZCR50X Champions - David Finlayson and Ashleigh Finlayson RYA PGP O/Hydro British Champion - Wayne Turner RYA British Thundercat P750 Pro-Stock Team Championship - Team 33 UIM World & RYA British Portland-Rockhall-Portland Record - Richard Reddyhoff, Ed Gilliver, Jan Falkowski, Mike Townshend and Sebastian Coulthard RYA PGP T850 British Champion & RYA PGP T850 Sprint Champion - Bill Owen RYA Ian Stirling Memorial Award - Paul Mahy 2014 RYA British 0850 Speed Record at 100.05mph & K7 Gold Star Recipient - Ben Morse RYA V24 British Champion - Dan Priestley 2014 RYA British 3A Speed Record at 70.95mph - John Guille RYA British Thundercat P750 Pro-Stock Driver & Co-Driver Champions - Bligh Julius and

Charlie Hatfield RYA PGP GT30 British Champion & RYA PGP GT15 Sprint Champion - Ben Jelf RYA British Zapcat ZCR50 Speed Record at 43.53 mph - Simon Matthews BJ Noone Award - Ben Morse RYA British 250 P1 AquaX Champion 2014 - Duncan Johnstone 2014 UIM World & RYA British S1000 Speed Record at 70.45mph - Sam Whittle RYA Class 3A British Champions - Kevin Edmondson and Annika Hawthorne RYA Offshore Sponsorship Award - Vee Ganjavian RYA P1 250 British Champions - James Norvil and Christian Parsons-Young RYA Marathon B British Champions 2014 - Peter Dredge, Simon Powell and Mal Crease RYA PGP F2 British Champion & RYA PGP F2 Sprint Champion - Paul Balfour UIM F250 European Champion - Wayne Turner UIM GT30 European Champion - Ben Jelf UIM 3A World Champions - John Guille and Tom William-Hawkes RYA Tony Needell Award - Sally Windsor Sponsors Awards - Powerboat GP, Your Print Partner Ltd and Peters & May Ltd

Charlie Hatfield and Bligh Julius

David and Ashleigh Finlayson

RYA AWARDS presented by Tiff Needell at The Novotel, Southampton

John Guille and Tom Williams-Hawkes

Mal Crease and Peter Dredge

Ben Jelf

Ben Morse

Condor Liberation

Condor’s new state of the art trimaran will provide the perfect link between mainland Britain and the Channel Isles. more comfortable and reliable crossing for passengers. The new ship has also undergone a comprehensive customisation programme and sports the new company brand identity, featuring three new colours - dark blue, pink and gold.

Inside, the fast ferry offers an impressive new Duty Free shop, Adore, children’s play area, plus a range of eating and drinking outlets. Passengers can also choose from three new seating lounges, including two upgrade areas: Ocean Plus seats in the Horizon lounge, where the floor to ceiling windows offer panoramic views; and the Ocean Club lounge with its all-leather reclining seats and first-class at-seat steward service.

Condor’s new ferry will sail daily from Poole to the Channel Island’s throughout the summer, offering more opportunities to travel, For powerboat racers in particular, the new Condor Ferry will enable improved reliability and a much mainland and Guernsey competitors to participate in both championships greater level of comfort with together. With so much more space than the previous Condor cats, smoother journeys.

Condor Liberation has the capacity to carry an entire fleet of OCR outfits Condor Liberation – the first ferry of its kind in Northern Europe – marks a new era in sea travel, and with hundreds of passengers already booked to travel on her inaugural sailing from Poole to the Channel Islands on Friday 27 March, it’s going to be quite an event.

The first sailing of Condor Liberation, Poole-based Condor Ferries is seeing unprecedented demand for travel on board its £50m new state-of-the-art fast ferry. Condor Ferries has already seen a 14% increase in bookings for travel in Spring to Guernsey and Jersey, with passengers keen to be amongst the first to sail on this fabulous new ship.

With a trimaran (three-hull) design, Condor Liberation offers greater stability and better sea-keeping ability, providing a smoother,

and still have room for tourist vehicles.

Above: Liberation high speed ferry 3 (Picture courtesy of Austal Left: Ocean Club Class Island Bar (Artist impressions)

About Condor Ferries Condor Ferries was founded in 1964 and initially operated a passenger service between France and the Channel Islands. In 1987 the first service linking the Channel Islands with the UK was launched and since then Condor Ferries has operated a year-round service connecting the UK through Poole, Weymouth and Portsmouth, the Channel Islands through Guernsey and Jersey and the ports of St Malo and Cherbourg in France.

Condor Ferries operates Condor Vitesse, Condor Express, and Condor Rapide fast cat ferries, and Commodore Goodwill, as a freight only vessel. In 1999 Commodore Clipper, a conventional car, passenger and freight carrying vessel was introduced to the fleet to offer an all weather, year round service. Each year Condor Ferries carries more than 1 million passengers and 200,000 passenger vehicles. raceboatinternational 11

the Tony Needell Award for services to the sport The trophy is dedicated to Tony Needell - to be awarded in rotation between the various powerboat racing disciplines.

The criterion is that it should be presented to anyone who is considered to have given outstanding service to the sport.

Who was Tony Needell?

Sally Windsor The 2015 winner

It is fitting that the 2015 winner of the Tony Needell Award should be Sally Windsor WHO is a proud member of the RMYC (Royal Motor Yacht Club) and her tireless work in the sport of offshore powerboat racing mirrors that of Needell.

It was in the 1970s that Sally got involved in the organising side of powerboat racing working with Hilary Chitty who was responsible for putting on the first Round Britain and London Monte Carlo offshore powerboat races. Sally learned the ropes from Hilary and still describes her as a ‘Mentor’.

From those early days Sally has been a regular fixture in the race controls of UK powerboat racing organising clubs including the RMYC, ORDA (Offshore Racing Drivers Association) and the BPRC (British Powerboat Racing Club), only taking a break in the late 1980’s to have her daughter A.J. Since 2010, Sally has been on the BPRC Cowes Torquay Cowes race organising committee holding the unenviable position of Race Secretary. This job includes a multitude of roles including writing detailed racing instructions, processing entries, making sure competitors have all their paper work in check before arriving at the event, risk assessments, overseeing safety net submissions - the list is endless. All this she does in her usual professional manner, with a smile and a “nothing is too much trouble” attitude, which always results in a smooth running event.

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Tony Fairey Needell, (father of motor racing driver and television presenter Tiff ), was known as the ‘father of modern day powerboat racing’, and passed away in 1994. His uncle, Richard Fairey the aircraft constructor, owned several famous yachts including ‘Shamrock III’ which Sir Thomas Lipton unsuccessfully challenged in the America’s Cup in the 1920s. Sir Richard was a close associate of fellow aircraft pioneer Sir Thomas Sopwith who was also an international yachtsman, and it was his friend’s ‘Shamrock’ Sopwith chose as a trial horse for his 1934 America’s Cup challenge in ‘Endeavour’. It was in this environment the young ‘Needle’, as he later became affectionately known, grew up.

He was a mere 14 year old when he competed in his first motor boat race on the Welsh Harp in North West London. He drove a 500cc hydroplane at over 35mph and his passion for motor racing grew, alternating between boats and sports cars.

Following a technical apprenticeship with Thornycrofts of Woolston where he later made a name racing boats of his own design, Tony Needell qualified as a Naval Architect and joined Fairmile Company shortly after the outbreak of WW II where he was engaged on the design and trials of their mass produced ML’s and Motor Gun boats. After the war he set up as a consultant and yacht designer and in 1955 the UIM (Union Internationale Motonautique) announced a design competition for a 14’ runabout.

Tony Needell took up the challenge and designed the first cold moulded high speed motorboat to be built by Souter of Cowes.

The UIM did not go ahead with the competition, but the undaunted Needell exhibited the craft at the 1957 London Boat Show.

It was from this he conceived the idea of using racing as a marketing platform for small off the shelf production runabouts. With the help of the Daily Express and the London Motor Boat Racing Club, he held the

first Manufacturers Trials on a lake in Chertsey where his boat set the fastest speed.

By now Tony Needell had established himself as an administrator and in 1959 devised a set of rules for measuring competitive sports boats. It was from these grass roots that today’s F1 H20 catamarans were created.

Perhaps his greatest success was in 1960 when the late John Coote, Managing Director of Beaverbrook Newspapers, knocked at his office door with the idea of running a seagoing motor boat race along the South Coast of England between Cowes and Torquay.

The first in August 1961 was a huge success and the race continues to this day with the Cowes Classic 2015 being run on September the 6th.

The rules for offshore racing which Tony Needell produced following his race still form a large part of the UIM racing rulebook.

In 1962 following the collapse of the Marine Motoring Association two years earlier, he persuaded the Royal Yachting Association to become the British National Authority for competitive powerboat racing: a position it holds today. Tony Needell spent many years as Chairman of its Powerboat Divisional Committee and member of the RYA council. He was also Vice President of the UIM and a permanent commissioner receiving its medal in recognition for his many years working on behalf of the sport. He was also presented with a similar award by HRH Duke of Edinburgh, the then president of the RYA.

Dates for the 2015 RACING CALENDAR FORMULA ONE WORLD

25-27 September

COCOA BEACH USA

14 March

Doha, QATAR

23-25 October

ST PETERSBURG USA

7 June

Evian FRANCE

2 August

Porto PORTUGAL

SUPERBOAT INTERNATIONAL 15 May

COCOA BEACH Florida

1 October

Liuzhou CHINA

3-5 July

MARATHON Florida

7 October

Zhu Hai CHINA

31 July

MICHIGAN CITY

8 Nov

Tba ASIA

21-23 August

PENSACOLA

11 December

Abu Dhabi UAE

25-27 September

CLEARWATER Florida

18 December

Sharjah UAE

8-15 November

KEY WEST Florida

FORMULA 2 WORLD 30-31 May

Ribadouro PORTUGAL (Prov)

XCAT

25-27 February

Fujairah UAE

3-5 July

Brindisi ITALY (Prov)

19-21 March

Dubai UAE

24-26 July

La Spezia ITALY

15-17 May

TBA EUROPE

31July-2 August

Tonsberg NORWAY

12-14 June

Cascais PORTUGAL

4-6 September

Campione d’Italia SWIT

21-23 August

Gold Coast AUSTRALIA

12-13 December

Sasolburg SOUTH AFRICA (Prov)

25-27 September

TBA ASIA

FORMULA 2 EUROPEAN

12-14 November

Dubai UAE

25-27 November

Abu Dhabi UAE

NRC – OCR NATIONAL 5-7 June

LIVERPOOL

AUSTRALIAN V8 SUPERBOAT 7 March

Temora NSW

10-12 July

WEST BAY

23-24 May

Tweed Coast NSW

24-26 July

MALAHIDE (IRE)

8-9 August

Tweed Coast NSW

18-20 September

CARDIFF

26 September

Venue TBC

9-11 October

PLYMOUTH

24 October

Temora NSW

21-22 November

Tweed Coast NSW

18-20 September

UIM OPGP

Como ITALY

TBC June

TBC

3-5 July

SARASOTA Florida

6-8 August 28-31 August 2-4 October

APR SUPERLEAGUE 7 February

Bradenton FL (F2only)

DESTIN Florida

11-12 July

Maretta, CH

DETROIT Michigan

4-5 September

Knoxville, TN

FT MEYERS Florida

26-27 September

New Martinsville, WV

POWERBOAT P1

6 February

Bradenton, FL

29-31 May

SCARBOROUGH Yorkshire

5-7 June

JACKSONVILLE USA

31 January

Karapiro Lake

19-21 June TBC

DUBLIN IRE

14 February

Lake Taupo

NEWZEALAND OFFSHORE

3-5 July

SARASOTA USA

28 February

Beachlands

10-12 July

GOSPORT Hampshire UK

21 March

Whitianga

1-2 August

ST CLOUD USA

11 April

Napier

7-9 August TBC

HULL UK

9 May

Paihia

29-31 August

CARDIFF Wales

TBC

Auckland

11-13 September

BOURNEMOUTH UK

raceboatinternational 13

Round 1

FUJAIRAH

2015 UIM XCat World Championships Article: Karien Jonckheere Photos: Simon Palfrader, Raffaello Bastiani,

14 raceboatinternational

PENULTIMATE LAP WIN FOR ABU DHABI TEAM At the start it seemed the Fujairah crowd would witness the predictable outcome of defending champions once again leading from beginning to end in the Victory championship winning boat Fazza. However, they were stopped in their tracks when an engine blew up and caught fire leaving the way clear for new victors to take the winners podium place - Faleh Al-Mansoor and Rashid Al-Tayer in Team Abu Dhabi.

raceboatinternational 15

Italians Matteo Nicolini and Tomaso Polli - 2nd in Hoorsenbhus

Fazza’s engine fire left the door open for a T-Bone Station victory, but with the finish line in sight to Carpitella and Al Hameli, T-Bone Station suddenly lost transmission on one engine 16 raceboatinternational

WORLD XCAT FUJAIRAH Hollywood could not have scripted a better scenario when the first round of the UIM XCAT World Series finally got underway in Fujairah. Postponed by a day because of high winds and rough seas, there was already an element of drama when the boats took to the water at the Fujairah International Marine Club. And the proceeding 15 laps certainly did not disappoint.

Starting in pole position, reigning World Champions Arif Al Zaffain and Nadi bin Nendi took an early lead and opened a considerable gap on second-place starters T-Bone Station crewed by Giovanni Carpitella and Formula 1 driver Ahmed Al Hameli. Racing through bumpy conditions left over from the previous day’s storm that had forced the race to be be postponed by 24 hours, T-Bone Station kept up the pressure behind Fazza until the unthinkable happened. The hard charging Fazza succumbed to an engine fire leaving the door open for a T-Bone Station victory, ”We don’t know what happened. In the seventh lap we heard an explosion and we were out of the race and obviously very disappointed, but we’re looking forward to the next race,” explained Nadir Bin Hendi.

“We’ll have to go back and analyse and see what the problem was. You never know what’s going to happen.”

However, the XCAT script writing gods hadn’t finished yet, and with the finish line getting ever closer to Carpitella and Al Hameli, T-Bone Station suddenly lost transmission on one engine, and a jubilant Faleh Al-Mansoori and Rashid Al-Tayer racing Abu Dhabi Team powered past them on the penultimate lap to take the win.

Speaking after the race, Abu Dhabi’s Rashid Al-Tayer reflected on a good day’s work, “The plan was to get a good start, and that went very well for us. I saved my engines because it was a very long race, and then I pushed a little bit. I saw Fazza pushed too much and broke an engine or something, and also Giovanni Carpitella. We are very happy to get first place in the first round.”

raceboatinternational 17

18 raceboatinternational

WORLD XCAT FUJAIRAH

A win in Ibiza and 3rd in Terracina puts Nico Bertels and Frank Hernelacer in BERNICO-NEW STAR in third place in the V1 Championship before the final round in Abu Dhabi in December.

It seems only a fire will slow up Victory’s Fazza team.

They were leading when the engine exploded, but still came 8th after the fire was extinguished and they continued on one engine

raceboatinternational 19

WORLD XCAT FUJAIRAH

Matteo Nicolini and Tomaso Polli, who had started the race in ninth place, took the runners up spot in their Hoorsenbuhs sponsored Nicolini Offshore Team with fellow Italian team of Serafino Barlesi and Alessandro Barone in Marine Investimenti Sud rounding off the podium positions. “In these conditions you over-rev so many times, you need to control the throttle really well to reduce the number of revs. Also the structure of the boat, or electrical components can have something happen to them at any moment, and then you have to stop for minor things so everything has to stay together on the boat. To finish the race with the boat in tact is already a big result with conditions like this,” said Matteo Nicolini.

UIM F2 World Champion Erik Stark and Michael Bengtsson in the cockpit of the brand new Victory Team built and designed Swecat, gave the Swedes a worthy 4th place in its first race. All in all, an action packed start to the UIM XCAT World Series in which only 6 of the starting 13 boats finished.

XCAT 2015 CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS - ROUND 1 FUJAIRAH POS

NO. TEAM

CREW

PTS

1

5

ABU DHABI TEAM

Rashed Suhail Al Tayer/Faleh Khalfan Almansoori

35

2

6

HOORSENBUHS

Matteo Nicolini/Tomaso Polli

30

3

20

MARINE INVESTMENTI SUD

Serafino Barlesi/Alessandro Barone

26

4

2

SWECAT RACING

Erik Stark/Michael Bengtsson

22

5

8

TEAM SARACEN AUSTRALIA

Brett Luhrmann/Antony De Fina

18

6

7

DUBAI

Salem Al Adidi/Al Ali Eisa

15

7

10

T - BONE STATION

Giovanni Carpitella/Ahmed A Hameli

12

8

50

MOUAWAD 50

Gary Ballough/Joakim Kumlin

0

9

22

VIDEX

Alfredo Amato/Marco Pennesi

0

10

3

FAZZA

Arif Al Zaffain/Nadir Bin Hendi

0

11

17

RAHEEB

Abdullateef Al Omani/Veronica Olderin

0

12

96

YACHT

Francois Pinelli/Saul Bubacco

0

13

46

GOLD COAST. AUSTRALIA

Tom Barry-Cotter/Pal Virik Nilsen

0

14

28

FUJAIRAH RACING TEAM

Giampaolo Montavoci/Andrea Comello

0

20 raceboatinternational

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Round 2

22 raceboatinternational

DUBAI

2015 UIM XCat World Championships

VICTORY SCHOOL OF EXCELLENCE It seems the dominant duo of Arif Al Zaffain and Nadir bin Hendi, pupils of the Victory school of excellence, are unbeatable, unless of course their engine catches fire. However, in their home waters of Dubai, the almost unthinkable happened, and Victory’s new Cat X Dubai was nearly pipped to the post

by T-Bone Station crewed by Italy’s Giovanni Carpitella and Abu Dhabi’s F1 pilot Ahmed Al Hameli.

Article: David Sewell Photos: Raffaello Bastini, Simon Palfrader

raceboatinternational 23

The T Bone cat made a blistering start to lead X Dubai across the line, but the referee had other ideas as he raised the recall flag when it was deemed Air Team had jumped the start. However, on the restart Carpitella still managed to repeat his first ‘blast off’ to lead X Dubai into the first lap.

It then became a game of tactics as Al Zaffain decided to take his long lap immediately and gradually pick of their rivals thanks to their superior speed. T Bone still held the lead ahead of Fujairah winner Abu Dhabi crewed by Rashid Al Tayer and Faleh Al Mansoori who both still had yet to take their long laps. T Bone left it a bit late, but after taking the compulsory long lap they still came out a head of X Dubai - but only just. The defending champions Al Zaffain and bin

24 raceboatinternational

Hendi kept pressing, and eventually passed T Bone on the penultimate lap . However during that lap fuel problems started to occur allowing Abu Dhabi to move into second place and maintain their lead at the top of the table.

The Dubai team of Salem Al Adidi and Eisa Al Ali filled third place making it an all UAE podium. T Bone’s fuel feed problem saw them spluttering across the line in 9th place.

Mouawad crewed by Gary Ballough and Joakin Kumlin filled fourth place ahead of Jay Price and Roberto Lo Piano in Lady Spain. Afterwards Al Tayer of Team Abu Dhabi admitted, “We may have got our strategy a little wrong as we should have taken our long lap much earlier. It seems all the boats are about the same speed, so

WORLD XCAT DUBAI it was very close.”

There is much speculation about Victory’s ‘secret formula’ to success as their Class 1 boats appear to be invincible, their Class II cats were the same, and they won every race last season in X CAT. Do they use propellers produced especially for Victory?

Possibly the answer lies in the Victory facility in Dubai where all the race boats are tested, tested and tested even more until they leave little room for improvement. However, when a client buys a boat from Victory which has been winning, It usually means Victory have got an even quicker boat waiting in the wings.

The next round of the 2015 championship is in Europe, but they have not agreed on the location yet.

Arif Al Zaffain and Nadir bin Hendi raced in their new Victory boat X Dubai after their Fazza was damaged in the engine fire in Fujairah

Alfredo Amato and Marco Pennesi came 7th in 22 Videx Gary Ballough and Joakim Kumlin in Mouawad 50 - 4th in Dubai 28 Air Team - Gian Maria Gabbiani and Francesco Calo raceboatinternational 25

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WORLD XCAT DUBAI

Much interest was focussed on the two ladies XCAT racing in Dubai - Swedish Veronica Olderin racing in Raheeb and Emirati Fatima Al Zaabi who is the first Arab female powerboat racer. She was alongside Mohammed Al Marri in a new 33 foot long cat powered by twin Mercury 4 Stroke engines, but regrettably the team suffered mechanical gremlins early in the race. Bearing in mind nearby Saudi Arabia don’t allow their woman to drive motor cars, Fatima’s appearance behind the wheel of an X Cat is even more remarkable.

After their 3rd place podium finish in Fujairah Erik Stark and Mikael Bengtsson secured 8th place in Dubai with 2008 built Swecat Racing

Fatima Al Zaabi and Mohammed Al Marri

Veronica Olderin (left) and Fatima

Former World F1 champion Jay Price teamed up with Roberto Piano for their first race of the season to race Lady Spain in Dubai

XCAT 2015 CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS - ROUND 2 DUBAI POS

NO. TEAM

CREW

TOTAL

1

3

XDUBAI

Arif Al Zaffain/Nadir Bin Hendi

35

2

5

ABU DHABI TEAM

Rashed Suhail Al Tayer/Faleh Khalfan Amansoori

30

3

7

DUBAI

Salem Al Adidi/Eisa Al Ali

26

4

50

MOUAWAD 50

Gary Ballough/Joakim Kumlin

22

5

46

LADY SPAIN

Jay Price/Roberto Lo Piano

18

6

6

HOORSENBUHS

Matteo Nicolini/Tomaso Polli

15

7

22

VIDEX

Alfredo Amato/Marco Pennesi

12

8

28

AIR TEAM

Gian Maria Gabbiai/Francesco Calo

10

9

10

T-BONE STATION

Giovanni Carpitella/Ahmed Al Hameli

8

10

8

TEAM SARACEN AUSTRALIA

Brett Luhrmann/Antony De Fina

7

11

17

RAHEEB

Abdullateef Al Omani/Veronica Olderin

6

12

2

SWECAT RACING

Erik Stark/Mikael Bengtsson

5

13

20

MARINE INVESTIMENTI SUD

Serafino Barlesi/Alessandro Barone

0

14

96

YACHT

Francois Pinelli/Saul Bubacco

0

15

4

4 STROKES 4 FUTURE

Mohammed Al Marri/Fatima Abdulla Al Zaabi

0 raceboatinternational 27

UK’s First V8 Sprint Boat Team!

Andy Yeo, founder of Fiya Marine, is on a mission to get Jet Sprint racing established in the UK The name Fiya (pronounced fire) is a connotation of the word fire.

Fire is Andy Yeo’s nickname, and he has been in the marine industry for the last 7 years. He started as a welders mate, and progressed to welder then engineer for a company in Exeter, building aluminium work-boats, mainly for the wind farm market and crew vessels for the oil and gas industry. Then as a test engineer for Princess Yachts, based at South-yard Plymouth, testing and sea trialing the Princess M-class range consisting of the new 30 meter, new 35 meter and 40 meter super yachts.

He first got interested in jet boats about 10 years ago when he was working in a small garage in Seaton, Devon. On his journey to work he passed a house with a small boat in the garden with big car engine on the back of it. He thought this was a bit different, so decided to build one himself.

He came across the sport of V8 Jet Sprinting in Australia and New Zealand, and was hooked! So he bought a hull and set about sourcing parts.

As the build progressed and the hunt for parts continued, Andy was getting frustrated with the limited availability of hardware and lack of awareness of the sport in the UK. “My plan originally was to source, repair, then sell small boats to get enough money to import a Jet Sprint boat from Australia, but 8 months ago I came across this boat for sale online, so I bought it.”

It had been imported into Ireland from Australia where it was then sat in a garage in a state of disrepair for 4 years, until the owner decided to sell it.

“After my purchase it quickly became apparent that the boat was in need of some serious work, there was a huge dent in the port side, and the wiring was made out of old bits of household cabling. The engine was missing rockers, the head gaskets were shot, and the oil was like white marmite. So for my dream to become a reality, a complete rebuild was needed.”

28 raceboatinternational

a little over 75mph! This is running a fine pitch power impellor in the jet unit which allows them to hold that speed in the corners! Andy is currently sourcing a coarse pitch impellor, to have a crack at the Jet Boat UK speed record in November 2015, on Coniston in the Lake District.

The whole build has taken over 5 months, and after getting quotes by numerous companies to supply the team graphics, it soon became apparent that cost Andy Yeo’s mission to bring has become a big factor as Andy Sprint Boat Racing to the UK has funded the whole project himself from his wages.

It was at this point it he realised this He decided to take on all this graphic would be quite a heavy workload to underwork himself, and bought a second hand take alone, so Fiya Marine V8 Jet Sprint vinyl-cutting machine and printer to enable Team was born! First job was to strip the him to do all the team graphics in house. boat down and remove all the paint for a Andy is in contact with a number of re-spray in the team colours, orange white teams in Australia who are desperate to and black. The re-spray was done by R.K. come to the UK to race. One team in parAutobodies in Plymouth. ticular is Firm Racing, who have even gone The engine rebuild was carried out by so far as to start an organisation specifically the team and on completion it was sent to for the task. It’s called global V8 jet sprint, Rawspeed Engine Tuning in Plymouth, for a and its main goal is to organise the logistics final tune. The engine is a Chevy 400 block, in Australia, whereas Fiyas task is to sort out bored and stroked to 412 Cubic inches, a track somewhere in Devon or Cornwall.

ARP main studs, dart steel heads, with the As Fiya is the first and only V8 Jet sprint biggest valves that could fit in them. SRP team in the UK, they are starting The United flat top pistons are topped off with a Holley Kingdom Jet Sprint Association (UKJSA).

800 CFM Carb and dune buggy K&N dust This will enable them to run the sport in the and water filters. These filters had to be imUK. They are very keen to promote the ported from the US as there isn’t a stockist sport and get other teams started to enable in the UK. Fiya to face some opposition. “Our experiThey had to weld a fitting in the sump ence now means that we can import race to suck out the oil, as there was no way to boats, source engines, fabricate or import change the oil besides taking the engine out. complete hulls or the full complete turnkey After all the work, it produces approxipackages.” says Andy. mately 600 horsepower, which will push it to They have been invited to Australia and the USA to compete in the World Series, but without sponsorship that is just way out of their budget.

Fiya have been invited to appear at a number of events throughout the year including the Aqua Adrenaline Tour, the Pageant of Power and the Southampton Boat Show to name a few.

Ready for action the renovated Fiya V8 Sprint boat is ready to have a crack at the Jet Boat UK Speed Record on Lake Coniston in November

The engine is a Chevy 400 block, bored and stroked to 412 Cubic inches.

SRP flat top pistons, topped off with a Holley 800 CFM Carb.

After all the work, it produces approximately 600 horsepower, which will push it to a little over 75mph! This is running a fine pitch power impellor in the jet unit. This allows them to hold that speed in the corners!

raceboatinternational 29

Article: Steve Michael Photos: Vittorio Obertone, Arek Rejs

CHIAPPE WINS FIRST F1 WORLD TITLE FOR FRANCE 2014 will go down in World F1 history as the year France won the Championship and a SEASON which took months to get going. at the end it was all over in a flash in QATAR, DOHA and SHARJAH

30 raceboatinternational

WORLD F1 2014

At the beginning of last season the race calendar dates were already clustered toward the latter end of the year, and then Civil war in Ukraine resulted in the popular Kiev GP being cancelled in May. It was impossible to organise a substitute meeting at such short notice so F1 action ground to a halt from the Qatar GP season opener in March until the Chinese GP in October. To complete the required number of meetings for world championship status it was necessary to revisit Qatar in November, so from then on it was none stop activity with Abu Dhabi following in close succession and Sharjah rounding off the season in December.

QATAR REVISITED After China, the boat containers were shipped back to Doha for the third round of the F1 World Championship series where American Shaun Torrente of the Qatar team survived not only a challenge by drivers from 10 different nations, but two boat fires and three yellow flag restarts, and went on to win his first GP of the season and the second of his career in front of thousands of race fans along the Corniche at the Grand Prix of Middle East on Doha Bay. The Miami, Florida racer had won twice in three starts since the beginning of the season, and in Doha had moved into third place in the driver’s championship with 29 points, trailing his team mate Alex Carella by 11 points with two races to go.

Carella, the Italian three-times World Champion, now saw his 25 point cushion that he held entering the event trimmed to 10 after making a mistake while chasing

Torrente in second place. Entering the final turn on the circuit he missed the corner and took out a pair of buoys thus being disqualified by the UIM officials and gaining no points. After the race Torrente said, “I’m sorry my team mate had such bad luck today, but now we can fight all the way to the championship final in Sharjah just like we did a year ago. You can’t ask for much more than that.” Three drivers were locked in a battle for the gold medal last year - Torrente.

Carella and Chiappe.

Just behind Torrente was a another driver on a mission, Frenchman Philippe Chiappe of CTIC China who finished runner-up for the second time in Doha this year and was sitting second in the drivers championship with 30 points just one point ahead of Torrente. “The new boat was excellent today, and I really want to thank David Moore my boat builder for such a nice package,” raceboatinternational 31

said Chiappe who hails from Rouen. “We now feel we can push for the title all the way to the end and the next race in Abu Dhabi, an ideal place for our team.”

Third in the points was a more relaxed two-times World Champion, Finland’s Sami Selio as the Mad Croc Baba Team driver charged up from eighth position off the start dock to hold off Swedish driver Jonas Andersson to take fourth place just ahead of Italian veteran Francesco Cantando and rookie Swede Erik Stark who was sixth with another solid performance. “We came back from a long way today,” said Sami. “We used a few of the re-starts in our favour and then didn’t give ground. For me my first podium of the season is a big step forward for our program, and we are still alive in the championship as well.”

With the race only four laps old China’s Ziwei “Leo” Xiong in his CTIC China Moore

Alex Carella demolishes two turn marks - incurring $500 dollars fine 32 raceboatinternational

boat found himself alight at the back of the field as his engine exploded and then caught fire. With the rear of the boat ablaze the young driver from Shenzhen turned off the fuel pump and abandoned ship watching the boat continue to burn freely until rescue arrived on the scene. They eventually put the fire out, but not before a large amount of smoke had filled the paddock area. In the end Leo was not injured and the boat with some work would race another day.

Xiong’s was not the only boat to catch fire that day, and while all eyes were on the extinguishing of Xiong’s boat, rookie Swedish driver Jesper Forss had his racing ended for that day when his engine caught fire at the same time, but it was quickly extinguished after he drove it over to his crew at the launch area.

The second yellow flag of the after-

noon came out when Kuwaiti’s Youssef Al-Rubayan, driving for GC Atlantic, barrel rolled twice on turn number five ending his dreams of a top five finish.

The feel good story of the afternoon came from the South African Caudwell Team as for the first time both their drivers Ivan Brigada and Tomas Cermak came home in the top ten earning them world championship points. Brigada, who won the race here back in 2006, was placed seventh for his best finish with the team from Cape Town. The Slovenian driver Cermak produced his career best with a point for tenth place.

Polish driver Bartek Marszalek with Motorglass earned his third straight top ten performance with an eighth place, while young Finnish driver Filip Roms was ninth with the Mad Croc Baba Team.

WORLD F1 2014 QATAR

Two successive Mercury engine fires - China’s Leo Xiong and new to F1 this year, Team Sweden’s Jesper Forss

The very last appearance of the Caudwell 4 Stroke team and ironically they picked up their first ever point in Qatar raceboatinternational 33

ABU DHABI

Only days separated the Qatar and Abu Dhabi meetings, so as the craft were hauled from the waters of Doha Bay, crews were frantically loading their steeds into containers for logistics experts JAS to transport them to the UAE capital.

34 raceboatinternational

As usual when the championship reaches the final stages speculation intensifies as to who the eventual gold medallist will be, and as the fleet lined up in the Corniche there were three drivers in with a serious chance, Carella, Torrente and Chiappe while Selio had an outside chance if the leading trio suffered problems.

In the event it didn’t matter as China’s adopted Frenchman Philippe Chiappe led from start to finish capturing his first win of the season and the second of his career on the UIM F1 H2O World Championship circuit, and moving him into first place in the driver’s championship in front of thousands of race fans along the picturesque lagoon in

WORLD F1 2014 ABU DHABI

as the fleet lined up in the Corniche there were three drivers in with a serious chance, Carella, Torrente and Chiappe while Selio had an outside chance if the leading trio suffered problems.

Above: The H2o 2 seater hospitality boat gives F1 guests a blast round the circuit.

Sami Selio was in with a slender chance of of the World Championship downtown Abu Dhabi.

The CTIC China pilot held off 17 other drivers including Torrente of the Qatar Team who finished second by a tiny margin 6.57 seconds, and was now leading the driver’s championship by three points 50-47 over Torrente and a very unhappy Alex Carella of the Qatar Team as he saw his chances

of winning his fourth straight world title in jeopardy after finishing 5th with one race to go.

“We had a wild day,” said Philippe.

“We thought this morning that our engine had a real problem since we couldn’t get more than seven thousand rpm’s out of it. We had to do a lot of creative things to

get everything in order for the start, and even then I wasn’t 100 percent sure it was perfect. But in the end, I needn’t have worried. Now we go to the final race with a lead in the championship and we have to stay at the top of our game in order to stop the two Qatar Team boats, otherwise our dreams won’t be fulfilled.” raceboatinternational 35

36 raceboatinternational

WORLD F1 2014 ABU DHABI

“

...It’s rough, we kind of lost our place and now we are looking to get our “mojo” back. I think we will have it back by the time we get to Sharjah....

Shaun Torrente

Since joining Team Qatar at the beginning of last season Florida’s Shaun Torrente has improved his world F1 form Torrente from Miami pointed out, “We are so excited that we are just six points back and will push to the max to make sure we have a say in the title this year. Remember we were 32 points back a week ago and now we are six, so we are coming. For Alex, he’s trying to find his swagger that he held early in the season that marched him to two straight victories in a row in Doha and Liuzhou in China. It’s rough, we kind of lost our place and now we are looking to get our “mojo” back. I think we will have it back by the time we get to Sharjah. The race has happy memories for me so I think we will make our mark there again this season.”

Team Abu Dhabi had a great afternoon with Ahmed Al Hameli reaching the podium in third place and getting most of the attention from the thousands that cheered him both on the water and after the race on the podium. His teammate Thani Al Qamzi was not so successful finishing in ninth place for two championship points.

Fourth and now out of the championship was last year’s race winner Sami Selio who climbed from sixth to fourth position.

He has reached the podium just once this season and is looking for more speed.

Veteran Italian Francesco Cantando came home sixth in his Motorglass spon-

sored Blaze hull after qualifying seventh in his 18th start in Abu Dhabi and a past twotime winner.

Norway’s Marit Stromoy of Team Nautica, who started the race in ninth, finished seventh just ahead of her rookie team mate Swede Erik Stark, who got caught up on the opening corner and was forced back to mid-pack where he ended his day with three championship points.

Polish diver Bartek Marszalek climbed up to tenth taking the final point for team Motorglass F1.

raceboatinternational 37

A triumphant Philippe Chiappe with his team along with his daughter and UIM President Raffael Chuilli (left)

Sweden’s Erik Stark driving for Team Nautica leads Kuwaiti’s Youssef Al Rubayan 38 raceboatinternational

WORLD F1 2014 SHARJAH

2014 DRIVERS POINTS TABLE Final Results

SHARJAH 2014 FINAL

1

7

Philippe Chiappe

FRA

70

2

1

Alex Carella

ITA

62

3

2

Shaun Torrente

QAT

56

4

11

Sami Selio

FIN

33

5

24

Francesco Cantando

ITA

28

6

51

Erik Stark

SWE

23

7

10

Duarte Benavente

POR

16

8

18

Bartek Marszalek

POL

16

9

5

Thani Al Qamzi

UAE

14

10

6

Ahmed Al Hameli

UAE

14

11

12

Filip Roms

FIN

13

12

14

Jonas Andersson

SWE

9

13

50

Marit Stromoy

NOR

9

14

8

Ziwei Xiong

CHN

8

15

15

Jesper Forss

SWE

5

16

9

Youssef Al Rubayan

KUW

5

17

33

Ivan Brigada

ITA

4

18

34

Tomas Cermak

ITA

1

Sharjah pits area

Pulses were racing in the CTIC China tent as the countdown began for the final race of the 2014 F1 World Championships on the magnificent Khalid Lagoon. Philippe Chiappe, although leading the points table, was a relative newcomer to the top spot on the podium, and France had never won a F1 World Championship before. A lot rested on the shoulders of the popular driver from Rouen who has previously excelled in marathon races like the Rouen 24 Hour Race. Although Chiappe was leading the championship chase, he only held a slender 3 point lead over Carella, so victory was crucial as a runner-up place would hand the title to the reigning champion by 1 point.

The omens were good during qualifying when Chiappe clinched pole ahead of his main rival Carella, while Team Sweden’s Jonas Andersson filled 3rd place ahead of Selio with Torrente back in 5th spot. However, it was bitter disappoinment for Norway’s ‘first lady’ Marit Stromoy who failed to start after terminal engine problems.

It was certainly a testing race for engines all round as only nine boats finished from fifteen starters. Chiappe enjoyed a superb start ahead of Carella while Torrente soon charged his way through the pack to take hold of third place. First departure was Mad Croc Filip Roms on lap 9, and his exit brought the yellow flags out as it was deemed he had stopped on the racing line. Both Abu Dhabi boats suffered engine problems along with Erik Stark, Jonas Andersson and Youssef Al Rubayan.

Only the top five completed the full race distance of 37 laps, while Jesper Forss finished 6th for Team Sweden ahead of GC Atlantic’s Duarte Benavente, China’s Leo Xiong and Motorglass Bart Marszalek It was cheers and tears for Team China as Philippe Chiappe swept to a brilliant victory to secure the Gold medal for his Chinese backers, and French boatbuilder David Moore for the first World F1 title for France. raceboatinternational 39

ON THE GRID 2015 International teams lining up for the 2015 Formula 1 World Championship QATAR TEAM

4 Shaun Torrente

Nationality: American Grand Prix Entered: 22 World Championships: 0 Hull: DAC

EMIRATES TEAM

27 Ahmed Al Hameli Nationality: Emirates Grand Prix Entered: 60 World Championships: 0 Hull: BaBa

Since joining the Qatar team, Florida’s Shaun Torrente has been a transformed driver and a serious contender for a world title. Torrente could not have wished for a better start to 2015 when Qatar 4 clinched maximum point in his home waters of Doha.

Ahmed Al Hameli endured a major setback in 2013 when he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. After surgery in the USA, the UAE pilot returned for racing, and following managerial changes at the ADIMSC Ahmed joined Scott Gillman’s new team Emirate Racing.

TEAM ABU DHABI

5 David Del Pin

Nationality: Italian Grand Prix Entered: 0 World Championships: 0 Hull: BaBa 40 raceboatinternational

5 Alex Carella

Nationality: Italian Grand Prix Entered: 32 World Championships: 3 Hull: DAC

After winning three gold medals with Team Qatar, Alex Carella has been poached by Abu Dhabi’s new team manager Italian Guido Cappellini and the once all Emirati driver line-up has become all Italian after rookie David Del Pin joined at the last minute Alex Carella is driving an unfamilar BaBa hull until a new DAC arrives.

raceboatinternational 41

ON THE GRID 2015 International teams lining up for the 2015 Formula 1 World Championship MAD CROC F1 TEAM

12 Filip Roms

Nationality: Finnish Grand Prix Entered: 17 World Championships: 0 Hull: Baba

11 Sami Selio

Nationality: Finnish Grand Prix Entered: 134 World Championships: 2 Hull: Baba

TEAM NAUTICA

50 Marit Stromoy

51 Eric Stark

Nationality: Norwegian Grand Prix Entered: 58 World Championships: 0 Hull: BaBa

Nationality: Swedish Grand Prix Entered: 7 World Championships: 0 Hull: DAC

CTIC CHINA TEAM

1 Philippe Chiappe

Nationality: France Grand Prix Entered: 95 World Championships: 1 Hull: Moore

42 raceboatinternational

2 Xiong Ziwei

Nationality: China Grand Prix Entered: 13 World Championships: 0 Hull: Moore

Erk Stark (51) has twice won the world F2 championship and now enjoys the step up into F1. When he’s not racing circuit, he takes the wheel of an X Cat offshore craft SWECAT RACING. Mad Croc Sami Selio could not have started his new season in worse fashion. After a rogue wave in the rough waters of Doha Bay, he nose-dived his BaBa hull and Emirates Al Hameli crash into Selio’s stricken hull causing serious damage to both boats.

France’s Philippe Chiappe is the number one in Endurance races having won the Rouen 24 hour race three times. Last year, the likable resident of Rouen won the UIM World F1 crown for Team China making him the first Frenchman to win this prestigious title

raceboatinternational 43

ON THE GRID 2015 International teams lining up for the 2015 Formula 1 World Championship TEAM SWEDEN

15 Jesper Forss

Nationality: Australian Grand Prix Entered: 4 World Championships: 0 Hull: Molgaard

14 Jonas Andersson Nationality: Swedish Grand Prix Entered: 69 World Championships: 0 Hull: Molgaard

MOTORGLASS F1 TEAM

24 Francesco Cantando 23 Bernd Enzenhofer Nationality: Italian Grand Prix Entered: 155 World Championships: 0 Hull: Blaze

Nationality: Austrian Grand Prix Entered: 0 World Championships: 0 Hull: DAC

F1 ATLANTIC TEAM

9 Youssef Al Rubayan Nationality: Kuwaiti Grand Prix Entered: 19 World Championships: 0 Hull: DAC

44 raceboatinternational

10 Duarte Benavente Nationality: Portuguese Grand Prix Entered: 129 World Championships: 0 Hull: BaBa

Like his fellow countryman Erk Stark, Sweden’s Jonas Andersson has won the World F2 crown three times. Jonas is one of the quickest drivers in F1 but reliability has been his problem and he has lost several races when his engine breaks. This year Andersson’s team mate is Jesper Forss who was the number one F4S driver last year, Veteran Francesco Cantando is still looking for the elusive Gold medal having finished in the top five on numerous occasions.

Youssef Al Rubayan is a high ranking officer in the Kuwaiti military and when he’s not racing powerboats he can be found guarding the Kuwaiti Royal family. Last season was marred by a series of crashes and hopefully 2015 will go a lot smoother. raceboatinternational 45

2015 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

TORRENTE KICKS OFF NEW WORLD F1 SEASON IN STYLE It seems only yesterday we were applauding the success of France’s Philippe Chiappe as he collected his first world crown in December, and now we were witnessing the ‘blast off’ of the 2015 UIM World F1 campaign beginning in DOHA. Having hosted two championship rounds last year it was back to Qatar for the first grand prix of the season, where the circuit is certainly not the easiest on the F1 tour as Doha Bay is the open sea and conditions can be very rough for the flighty F1 hulls.

During the lead up to the new season there had been one or two notable changes since the last race of 2014. Much to everyone’s shock and surprise, Scott Gillman, long time manager of the Abu Dhabi team, had been relieved of his job and replaced

by Italian Guido Cappellini. The two former world champions had been arch rivals on the race courses of the world over the years, and have both retired from racing to take on the roles of Team Managers. Over the past 15 years Scott Gillman has been instrumental in making the Abu Dhabi team a force to be reckoned with and respected.

Guido Cappellini having won 10 World F1 Championships in his time went on to race and manage his hown team in Class 1.

Only time will tell if Cappellini can secure a world title for the ADIMSC, however, he has already made a radical change to the team as one of his first decisions was to recruit three times world champion Alex Carella from Team Qatar making Ahmed Al Hameli redundant. Although fellow Abu Dhabi driver Thani Al Qamzi has made no official comment on the change, it became evident that he was not too happy when he failed to arrive in Qatar giving ‘personal reasons’ as the excuse for his absence. Al Qamzi was replaced by former F2 driver Italian David Del Pin which transformed Team Abu Dhabi from an all UAE driver lineup to an all Italian line-up under an Italian manager.

Scott Gillman was out on a limb but at the last minute he created Emirate Racing 46 raceboatinternational

and had enlisted the services of unemployed driver Ahmed Al Hameli. Because the team had been coordinated at the last minute the only boat they had available was a very short F2 rig painted in a black livery as a temporary measure for the first, but the team intends of have a new boat ready for the next race.

Not a million miles away from the Abu Dhabi HQ, the Qatar Marine Sports Federation was also undergoing major changes with figurehead Sheikh Hassan departing from his post as President and powerboat racing now becoming part of the Sailing & Watersports Federation. This major development has subsequently cast a doubt over the future of international powerboat racing in Qatar, and the first F1 race of 2015 featured just one boat in the Qatar team. Howeve,r Qatar’s ‘one’ boat certainly did the nation proud and American Shaun Torrente collected maximum points.

Qualifying had been cancelled due to rough sea conditions and the UIM Commissioner ordered a rolling start behind the pace boat as he deemed conditions were too rough for the traditional pontoon start.

Torrente stormed into the lead when the green flag dropped, and by lap ten had built up an impressive 11 second lead over reigning World Champion Philippe Chiappe in CTIC China colours and Al Hameli representing Emirate Racing.

Sami Selio had been running in 5th place but managed to squeeze by Team Nautica’s Swedish pilot Erik Stark. The former world champion from Helsinki, Finland appeared determined to finish on the podium, but sadly that was not to be as moments after overhauling Al Hameli to claim third place, Selio’s BaBa hull nose-dived leaving Al Hameli with no-where to go.

Article: Steve Michael Photos: Vittorio Obertone, Arek Rejs

ALL CHANGE

Guido Cappellini - new team manager of Team Abu Dhabi - recruited 3 times World Champion Alex Carella as his No.1 driver

The deposed American Team Manager for Team Abu Dhabi has formed a new team Emirate Racing and recruited Ahmed Al Hamali as his driver

DOHA, QATAR 2015

Shaun Torrente

raceboatinternational 47

48 raceboatinternational

DOHA, QATAR 2015 The two boats endured a high impact collision and both took off skywards. Remarkably neither driver was injured, but the boats had sustained serious damage, and will have to undergo some major structural repair before the next race.

The yellow flag was raised on lap 22 and the race continued until lap 36. However, conditions had deteriorated after the accident with large rollers on the offshore mark of the 1.76 kilo circuit.

With almost 50% of the race run under the yellow flag, it offered no opportunity from those lower down the order to improve their positions. Stark filled the final podium place behind Torrente and Chiappe while Team Sweden’s Jonas Andersson claimed 4th place ahead of Carella. Team Nautic’s Marit Stromoy had started in 14th place and finished in 6th spot aboard her BaBa hull ahead of Team Atlantic’s Kuwaiti pilot Yousef Al Rubayan, Mad Croc’s Filip Roms and Abu Dhabi’s Del Pin with Team Atlantic team owner Duarte Beavente filling 10th place.

By the time the second round of the series reaches the new venue of Evian, France there will almost certainly be more changes in the driver line-up as adjustments are made to the Qatar and Emirate teams. At the time of writing the questions remain - will Qatar have a number two pilot and will Emirate Racing’s Al Hameli have a new partner (could it be Al Qamzi?). Even more compelling is the question of whether there will be any new teams on the grid as we understand at least one new owner is currently discussing joining the series. We will have to wait until June when the second race of the series commences at a new venue - Evian in France.

2015 DRIVERS POINTS TABLE Positions after Round 1 1

4

Shaun Torrente

QAT

20

2

1

Philippe Chiappe

FRA

15

3

51

Erik Stark

SWE

12

4

14

Jonas Andersson

SWE

9

5

6

Alex Carella

ITA

7

6

50

Marit Stromoy

NOR

5

7

9

Youssef Al Rubayan

KUW

4

8

12

Filip Roms

FIN

3

9

5

David Del Pin

ITA

2

10

10

Duarte Benavente

POR

1

11

2

Ziwei Xiong

CHN

0

12

24

Francesco Cantando

ITA

RET

13

15

Jesper Forss

SWE

RET

14

23

Bernd Enzenhofer

AUT

DNS

15

27

Ahmed Al Hameli

UAE

RET

16

11

Sami Selio

FIN

RET

Al Hameli’s totally wrecked the BaBa hull after it ran into Sami Selio’s Mad Croc outfit. This was Ahmed’s first race n Emirates Team colours.

Runner up Philippe Chiappe is joined on the podium by winner Shaun Torrente and third place Erik Stark. raceboatinternational 49

2015 UIM NATIONS CUP WORLD SERIES

TEAM RUSSIA

SNATCH VICTORY IIN QATAR Andrei Panyushkin and Konstantin Ustinov snatched a comfortable victory in the 2015 UIM Nations Cup World Series in Qatar on March 11, after two thrilling sprint races on Doha Bay on Wednesday afternoon. Team Russia’s duo were first and fifth in the opening race and second and third in the second to confirm the victory from Team Belarus and Team Germany.

SPRINT RACES

Team UAE’s Rashed Al-Qemzi was the sole entrant in the Emirati team, and was impressive in both sprint races. In the first, he stormed through from the rear of the field to snatch third, but he was deprived of second overall in the second when he was penalised a lap and slipped to 10th after striking a turn buoy.

A thrilling three-way fight developed to the chequered flag in the first 22-lap sprint race, and long-time leader Andrey Panyushkin of Team Russia managed to fend off a fierce challenge from Team Belarus driver Roman Vandyshev to take a 1.14-second victory even though he had been overtaken by the Belarussian at the start of the yellow flag lap.

Team UAE’s Rashed Al-Remeithi withdrew to enable Rashed Al-Qemzi to fight for the outright victory in the number 14 boat, and the Emirati produced the drive of the race to power his way from 50 raceboatinternational

the rear of the field to third place. After an early yellow flag delay for a start system failure, the race appeared to be incident free until Roberto lo Piano spectacularly flipped his Team Italy boat in front of the timing tents on the penultimate lap. F4S champion Mike Szymura claimed fourth for Team Germany, and the outcome meant that Team Russia headed into the second race with a 23-point lead over Team Belarus.

Panyushkin headed Vandyshev and Al-Qemzi from the start of the second race, and the trio were the class act of the field, with Vandyshev hitting the front from a hard-charging Al-Qemzi. The Emirati survived a scare when he came close to flipping on lap 14, but he remained well clear of Panyushkin in second position until he was penalised for hitting a turn buoy. Vandyshev claimed the win at the chequered flag and Ustinov benefited from Team UAE’s misfortune to snatch third.

GRAND PRIX OF QATAR

Roberto lo Piano spectacularly flipped his Team Italy boat in front of the timing tents on the penultimate lap

raceboatinternational 51

NATIONS CUP match races

Team Russia had gained the early advantage in the 2015 UIM Nations Cup on Tuesday afternoon. Andrei Panyushkin ran for 13 laps in the time trials and posted the quickest lap of 50.94sec on the 1,580-metre, four-pin Doha Bay course. With Team Qatar’s Khalid Abdullah Al-Kuwari non-starting, 13 boats took to the water and Panyushkin was over half a second quicker than Roman Vandyshev of Team Belarus. Team UAE’s Rashed Al-Remeithi ran for seven laps before the Match Races, but Rashed Al-Qemzi only managed one lap of the course in windy conditions, which forced qualifying to be delayed by two hours.

Team Russia controlled proceedings in the Match Races and Konstantin Ustinov beat Panyushkin in an all-Russian final to give the team a lead of 16 points over Team Germany heading into Wednesday’s sprint races. Ustinov managed to beat Team UAE’s Al-Remeithi in their first Match Race heat and edged a tense quarter

final against Vandyshev, before beating Team Saudi Arabia’s Ahmed Saud Abdulaziz in the semi-final.

Panyushkin had beaten Team Qatar’s Mohammed Al-Obaidly and Team Germany’s Mike Szymura on the way to the final, with the German seeing off Ahmed Saudi Abdulaziz to take the win in the third place play-off. Team UAE finished the first day of the UIM Nations Cup World Series in fifth position and Al-Qemzi went on to record the quickest lap in Wednesday morning’s practice session.

Team Saudi Arabia and Team Qatar failed to start.

Team UAE runs under the auspices of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC). Salem Al-Romaithi acts as the team head and works alongside new team manager and 10-time UIM F1 H20 World Champion Guido Cappellini. The team runs under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Khalifa Al-Nahyan, advisor to the Head of State and President of the board of directors of the ADIMSC. Etihad Airways is the official carrier for Team Abu Dhabi.

Grand Prix of Qatar (final positions) 1

Team Russia

130pts

2

Team Belarus

106 pts

3

Team Germany

94 pts

4

Team Saudi Arabia

60 pts

5

Team Italy

55 pts

6

Team UAE

54 pts

7

Team Qatar

45 pts

THe Nations Cup is not so much about drivers and opposed to teams. The openng round of the 2015 series was won by Team Russia

52 raceboatinternational

RACING INTO THE

FUTURE

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QATAR CUP FESTIVAL

Article: Neil Perkins

The concept of an all-class offshore festival was deliberated several months ago by the Qatar International Marine Federation (QMSF) in conjunction with the newly formed International Offshore Grand Prix (IOGP). During December the four day event of Offshore, Formula, H1 Unlimited and Jet Ski racing to be staged in Doha Bay in February started taking shape with some urgency, and several teams from the USA and Australasia were invited to join a very strong local offshore fleet for the UIM Qatar Cup.

The first Qatar Cup Offshore Powerboat Race bore a striking resemblance to the Key West ‘Worlds’ in which there are large numbers of boats spread over several classes. The five offshore classes were all well represented apart from Super Vee which featured just two entries. It would appear to satisfy the demands of the US contingent the Supercat Lite/Super Stock were X Cats in all but name.

The opening day’s activity featured Supercoat Lite/Super Stock and Class 1, and claiming Supercat Lite pole position in near perfect conditions was multiple World Class 1 champions Arif Al Zafeen and Nadir Bin Hendi aboard Victory S3 in a time of 2 min. 56.5 seconds. They were the class act being considerably faster than US runner-up Robert Nunziato and Dan Lawrence aboard The Hulk in a time of 3 mins.23.1 seconds. Team Abu Dhabi’s Faleh Al_Mansoori and Rashid Al Tayer qualified in 3rd place in a fleet of eight.

Ali Neama and Billy Moore topped the Supercat pole in Spirit 54 raceboatinternational

of Qatar 20 ahead of America’s Jay Cooke and Randy Sweers in Racing for Cancer 33. Jay Price, Qatar’s former world F1 champion, made a welcome return to Doha to partner Paul Boudreaux in the Thorndon/Ragin Cajun 57. Price reported, “We only had the chance to carry out a small test whilst in Louisiana before it was shipped to Qatar, and today was the first opportunity to give it a real go, so qualifying 5th was quite respectable.”

Pole Position for the C1,C2 and C225 categories, a class that’s popular in Turkey and powered by single Evinrude 225hp outboard, was determined by a draw organised by officials.

Finally the SuperVee entries were Joe Sgro and Steve Curtis aboard the Outerlimits 43 against Brett Furshman and Billy Glueck in their Twisted Metal.

Thursday was time for serious action and the first day winners for the inaugural Qatar Cup were Victory S-3 in Supercat Lite, Outerlimits in SuperVee and Spirit of Qatar 20 in Supercat.

DOHA QATAR

Spirit of Qatar (an XCAT boat) was entered in the Supercat Lite class

Qatar 20 in Supercat

raceboatinternational 55

Peters & May

Outerlimits in Supervee Arif Al Zafeen and Nadir Bin Hendi, after qualifying on pole for the ten lap race, managed to fend off a strong field to cross the finish line 7 seconds ahead of runners-up Robert Nunziato and Dan Lawrence in The Hulk. Third place went to Team Abu Dhabi ahead of Spirit of Qatar 94, Wicked Performance Marine, and Peters & May Racing. US entries LA Marine and Smart Marine both retired. Supercat winners Ali Al Neama and Billy Moore aboard Spirit of Qatar, claimed pole position and converted that to a superb victory in home waters. They brought their MTI outfit to the chequered flag of the 12 lap race 16 seconds ahead of Curtis and Sgro’s SuperVee Outerlimits, while third across the line and second in Supercat was New Zealand’s Pro Floors Racing. Third place in Supercat went to Racing for Cancer ahead of Motley Crew, Peppers/ 56 raceboatinternational

Peters & May and Ragin Cajun. Twisted Metal failed to finish.

Maximum points in C1 went to Kuwait’s Mohammed Turki Jumaa and Mohammed Saud Airzaihan, and Kuwait collect full marks in C2 thanks to Ahmed Sulaiman Al Fassam and Nasser Bader Al Fassam.

It was rest day for the offshore teams on Friday whilst the Aquabike riders provided the entertainment, and Saturday was the busiest day of the festival to decide the winners in the first running of the Qatar Cup. It was no surprise to see Arif Al Zafeen and Nadir Bin Hendi collect the Supercat Lite spoils in the Victory S7. They romped home in race one to beat American duo Nunziato and Lawrence’s The Hulk by 9.4 seconds with Team Abu Dhabi a further

QATAR CUP FESTIVAL

QATAR CUP ENTRIES SUPERCAT LITE/SUPER STOCK Nadir Bin Hendi (ARE)/Arif Saif Al-Zafeen (ARE)

Victory S-3

Robert Nunziato (USA)/Dan Lawrence (USA)

The Hulk S-1

Faleh Al-Mansoori (ARE)/Rashed Al-Tayer (ARE)

Team Abu Dhabi 5

Mohammed Al-Nasser (QAT)/Nasser Al-Nasser (QAT)

Spirit of Qatar 94

Lynn Wagemann (USA)/Jay Muller (USA)

Wicked Performance Marine S-33

Tanner Lewis (USA)/Ryan Beckley (USA)

Peters & May Racing S-111

Allen Christy (USA)/Lee Austin (USA)

LA Marine S-12

Grant Bruggeman (USA)/Gary Ballough (USA)

Smart Marine/Auto Mart S-110

SUPERVEE Joe Sgro (USA)/Steve Curtis (GBR)

Outerlimits 43

Brett Furshman (USA)/Billy Glueck (USA)

Twisted Metal 30

SUPERCAT Ali Al-Neama (QAT)/Billy Moore (USA)

Spirit of Qatar 20

Wayne Valder (NZL)/Chris Hanley (NZL)

Pro Floors Racing 51

Jay Cooke (USA)/Randy Sweers (USA)

Racing for Cancer/Fast Boats 33

Dan Lawrence (USA)/Ron Roman (USA)

Motley Crew 00

George Stancombe (USA)/Michael Stancombe (USA)

Peppers/Peters & May 2

Paul Boudreaux (USA)/Jay Price (USA)

Thorndon/Ragin Cajun 57

40 seconds drift in 3rd place. Victory S3 edged ahead to lead The Hulk in the second Supercat Lite second race of the day with Abu Dhabi racing in 3rd place. By lap six of the 12 lap race Victory S3 held a constant 5 seconds advantage over their rivals. The leader and The Hulk crossed the finish line well ahead of the chasing pack with Abu Dhabi clinching bronze ahead of Wicked Performance, Spirit of Qatar, and Peppers/Peters & May. Six Supercat and two SuperVee rigs lined up for their final race of the day and Spirit of Qatar made a superb start of the 14 lap race. They held a slender 1 second lead over Racing for Cancer at the end of lap one. However, their luck ran out on the next lap as the Qatar boat dropped to 5th as Motley Crew took up the running from the Kiwi Team. They were overtaken

by Peppers as Motley Crew led the charge in a fascinating contest.

The Kiwi team of Wayne Valder and Chris Hanley looked likely to win the first Supercat race of the day in Pro Floors after ? leading from lap 8 to 11. A fierce battle prevailed between the New Zealand ers and long time leaders Motley Crew and Racing for Cancer. After Motley Crew retired Pro Floors were overtaken by Jay Cooke and Randy Sweers’ Racing for Cancer on the final lap who went on to win by 17 seconds. Spirit of Qatar finished third after dropping down to 5th mid-way through the race.

All the teams, particularly the Americans were impressed with the inaugural Qatar Cup and it will be interesting to see if it returns in 2016. raceboatinternational 57

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Dual Australian Unlimited Superboat - ROUND 1 Article: Sean Henshelwood

Phonsy Mullan

Photos: Russel Puckeridge (Pureart Creative Images

Champion Phonsy Mullan has opened his 2015 Championship account in perfect fashion in front of a record crowd under lights at MAX HIRE Park in Temora, after dominating the opening round from first practice.

Campaigning his twin-turbo 445 cubicinch small block V8 powered RAMJET, the Victorian Phonsy Mullan was the class of the field, holding out until the very last run of the night to set a blistering time of 38.954-seconds, more than a second and a half faster than Ted Sygidus and younger brother Darek who placed second and third in their Unlimited Superboat ‘Frankenstein’.

Whilst the pace of the 1400-horsepower RAMJET had the big Temora crowd on their feet, former 350-Class champion Mark Garlick and reigning AUS#2 Damian O’Leary thrilled the crowd with their battle at the front of the 400-Class field. The duo were rarely separated by more than a few tenths of a second, with the lead swapping all the way through the event until Garlick used his years of experience to take the final by a mere two tenths of a second.

The outstanding start to the 2015 season though came as a result of some serious commitment from the competitors that 60 raceboatinternational

make up the Australian Formula Jet Sprint Association [AFJSA] executive committee.

Ted and Darek Sygidus like Brooke Avenell and Greg Mercier spent the weekend juggling driving duties with the operation and management of the event, a tough task in which they were assisted by former World Champion Slade Stanley and 400-Class regular Justin Roylance, both of whom were instrumental in the preparation of the Temora event.

“There’s a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes away from an event,” AFJSA President Ted Sygidus explained. “So to kick off the year with one of the biggest Temora crowd’s on record is justification to all the effort and hours that those people have put in - we couldn’t be happier with the result.”

Whilst a conservative field of entries by recent standards, no-one could deny the appeal of the V8 Superboats, with big crowds, lots of families and some exceptionally long lines during the dinner break

looking for posters and autographs.

“To be honest, I’ve never seen that before.” Phonsy Mullan admitted with a smile. “It was great to see so many people, but the thing that got me was the kids. Not only were they genuinely interested, they also knew what the sport was about. I was really blown away!”

Whilst the crowds were strong, the action on track too was impressive, although there were some casualties. Reigning world #2 Greg Mercier was forced to retire his primary boat ACOL Racing after the late arrival of the engine from New Zealand saw him run out of time to be ready - a frustration for the team who had driven through the night from Melbourne.

Despite that, he was quickly offered the ‘B’ drive in Brooke Avenell’s ‘Hi-Tec Oils’, but by Q3 both teams were out after a mechanical failure sidelined Mercier in his second run.

Former V8 Superboat President Daniel deVoigt was then forced to join fellow Queenslander Brad Marsden after his primary boat suffered a cracked hull thanks to contact with the bank in qualifying, whilst Superboat rookie Dave Moody from nearby Forbes was one of few boats to leave the water after jumping an island near the completion of his run in qualifying, fortunately without damage.

Ultimately though Mullan was too good for the field, topping the timesheets in every session, although despite being unchallenged at the top of the leaderboard, he didn’t come through the weekend unscathed.

AUSTRALIAN JET SPRINT

CLASSES

Greg Harriman - 3rd in 400

Paul Burgess in Unlimited Daily Transport

Daniel deVoigt in Unlimited Q-BEARS

V8 350 class is the entry level class of Jet Sprinting that is restricted heavily to ensure a fair and affordable level of racing for all competitors. The boats are mainly restricted to engines utilising commonly found manufactured parts that mostly must remain original.

Engine size is restricted to 360 cubic inches utilizing cast iron blocks and cylinder heads with a maximum of eight cylinders. The cylinder heads are restricted to two valves per cylinder. A wet sump lubrication system must be used. Induction is by a restricted carburetor, and fuel must be commercially available petrol or Avgas. A V8 350 class engine is capable of producing in excess of 500 horsepower.

V8 Group A 400 is the class of Jet Sprinting where engines are mildly restricted to ensure a reasonably equitable playing field for all competitors.

Engine size is restricted to 412 cubic inches utilizing cast iron blocks and cylinder heads with a maximum of eight cylinders. The cylinder heads are restricted to two valves per cylinder. A wet sump lubrication system must be used. Induction is by a single 4-barrel carburetor of restricted size, and fuel must be commercially available petrol or Avgas. A V8 Group A specification engine is capable of producing in excess of 630 horsepower.

V8 Superboats are the top class of racing with the boats being unrestricted except for a minimum engine size and controlled methanol fuel.

Engines are unrestricted and vary depending on the design concept behind them. With the key to successful racing being maximum manoeuvrability and speed some believe in the use of heavy-weight big-block engines with capacities up to 676 cubic inches which can produce in excess of 1400 horsepower. The alternative is a new generation of all-alloy lightweight V8 small-block engines with a capacity of 500 cubic inches, weighing only 150 kgs and producing in excess of 900 horsepower. V8 Superboat engines use methanol fuel and have an incredible fuel-burn rate of 20 litres per average run lasting around 50 seconds.

Jamie Welch 4th in Unlimited raceboatinternational 61

3rd in Unlimited - Darek Sygidus in Frankenstein

Mark Garlick - 1st in 400 62 raceboatinternational

AUSTRALIAN V8 SUPERBOAT “We suffered a broken jet unit in qualifying and whilst the boys tried their best to fix it, we battled through in the end. Fortunately we weren’t pushed too hard, so I didn’t have to lean on it, but I did want to end the night on a high and give the crowd something to scream about, so we pushed extra hard in the final run despite the fast that Frankenstein was unable to make a start.”

“There was an engine issue just prior to the final,” runner-up Ted Sygidus admitted.

“The engine may have made a run, but it could also have done some seriously terminal damage, so we elected to sit out the final. In the end Phonsy was just too good, and sadly we lost Brooke and Greg Mercier which would really have spiced up the top three, but we’re starting to get on top of our ‘little’ 750-horsepower 410 cubic-inch V8 and look forward to getting our ‘big’ engine back in time for Cabarita in late May.” In 400-Class the battle between Mark Garlick and Damian O’Leary intensified across the night. O’Leary held the early advantage in his ‘borrowed’ ride, whilst Garlick was looking to keep ‘Grumpy’s’ leaderboard challenge alive whilst reigning national champion - son Jake - was absent with work commitments. Despite leading into the finals, it was Garlick who grabbed the top

spot in the Top 12, before O’Leary struck back in the Top 6, Garlick though using his years of experience in the sport to dig deep and grab the top honours in the final despite a nasty moment mid lap.

“The old Tuff-Tak hull is perfectly suited to smooth water and we were up by a full second at the first spilt. Then I got crossed up as I came back across the wash and had to come out of the throttle, but we held on and made it by two tenths of a second,” Garlick recalled. “It was one of the toughest battles I’ve had, but I really enjoyed it. Damian drove brilliantly, even in a borrowed boat, I just hope we see him back for the next event, although that said, I wouldn’t mind a crack at the title, so I’m okay if he stays at home with the family..!”

Third overall in 400-Class was Greg Harriman in the Pangaea Floors supported Mackraft, with long-time competitor Kevin Laugesen (spanet) a close fourth.

Round two of the 2015 season now moves to the Tweed Coast circuit at Cabarita on the north coast of New South Wales in late May (23-24) after the cancellation of the Easter event at Griffith.

MAX HIRE Park is proudly supported by MAX HIRE, Intersales Temora, Temora Fuel Distributors and Temora Shire Council.

2015 Australian V8 Superboat Championships Series points Unlimited Superboat (after round one of six) 1

Phonsy Mullan

RAMJET

36

2

Ted Sygidus

Frankenstein

33

3

Darek Sygidus

Frankenstein

30

4

Jamie Welch

Natwel Racing

28

5

Paul Burgess

Daly Transport

26

6

Cheryl Welch

Natwel Racing

24

7

Daniel deVoigt

Q-BEARS

22

8

Brooke Avenell

Hi-Tec Oils

20

9

Greg Mercier

ACOL Racing

18

400-Class (Group A) (after round one of six) 1

Mark Garlick

Grumpy

36

2

Damian O’Leary

Kryptonite

33

3

Greg Harriman

Pangaea Floors

30

2015 Australian Superboat Championships

4

Dave Moody

Jackhammer

28

March 7

5

Kevin Laugesen

spanet

26

6

Brad Marsden

Allcott Transformer

24

Cheryl Welch in Natwel Racing

Round 1

Temora (NSW)

23-24 May

Round 2

Tweed Coast (NSW)

8-9 August

Round 3

Tweed Coast (NSW)

26 September

Round 4

(venue TBC)

24 October

Round 5

Temora (NSW)

21-22 November

Round 6

Tweed Coast (NSW) raceboatinternational 63

Whitianga Ice Supplies Offshore 100 Warren Lewis and Andrew Koolen, in the Fairview Windows and Doors Skater 34 took out the Whitianga Ice Supplies Offshore 100 on the Coromandal Peninsula in the weekend.

Often appearing deceptively calm from a packed Buffalo Beach, Whitianga’s east coast ocean rolling swells make for spectacular racing and big air, truly testing crews and equipment no matter the weather conditions.

Gordon Robinson and Allan Branch in Superboat Lite “Fuel Doctor” took second place overall, ahead of Steve Bone and Karl Wall in “Global Security’. Wayne Valder and Chris Hanley in Superboat “Profloors” withdrew from the days racing with a reoccurrence of the gimbal bearing failure that put paid to their racing at Round two in Taupo.

Gordon Robinson and Allan Branch in the AB Marine prepared Superboat Lite “Fuel Doctor”, powered with a pair of Mercury 300X outboards, won the Superboat Lite Class title, with Steve Bone and Karl Wall in “Global Security’ taking second place. Michael Fletcher and Jason Way in “Total Home Developments 1” and John Shand and Steve Jellick in ”Barely Legal” 17 withdrew from the day’s racing with mechanical issues.

64 raceboatinternational

NZ1 ProFloors Racing MAKE: Phantom TOP SPEED: 125 mph ENGINES: 525 Mercruisers HP: 1050 LENGTH: 34 ft DRIVER: Wayne Valder CO DRIVER: Chris Hanley

2015 NZ OFFSHORE POWERBOAT CHAMPIONSHIPS

ABOUT NZOPA RACING The NZ Offshore Championship season typically starts late January and is a seven race series held throughout the North Island.

Since racing began venues have included Taupo, Gulf Harbour(Auckland), Maraetai, Beachlands, Wellington, Tauranga, Napier, Whitianga, Marsden Point, Paihia and Auckland Harbour, all of which offer exciting and challenging courses for the teams competing and an easily accessible spectacle to the public with excellent viewing points.

The NZ Offshore Racing competition is made up of two championships – the 100 mile championship and the 60 mile championship. Each championship has different classes within depending on the type and size of the boats and size of the motors.

The 100 mile boats are high precision raceboats, capable of speeds up to 200 Km/h on the water.

In the 60 mile class the boats are typically trailer boats that often double as the family ski and pleasure boat during non-race weekends making this a relatively easy entry level to the sport.

Racing and race days are a great family event, with many of the teams consisting of father and son, father and daughter and husband and wife.

Photographs: Jeremy Ward

91 FMI Fairview MAKE: Skater TOP SPEED: 125 mph ENGINES: 525 Mercruisers HP: 1050 LENGTH: 34 ft DRIVER: Flea Koolen

raceboatinternational 65

98 Gull Force 10 MAKE: Phantom Classic Sportster 1999 TOP SPEED: 80 mph ENGINES: Chevy 502 Merlin HP: 550 LENGTH: 34ft DRIVER: Gavin McGrath CO DRIVER: Haaka Le Sueur Gavin McGrath, Haaka Le Seuer and Emma Wellwood in “Gull Force 10” won the Classic class from Terry Fletcher, Shane Fletcher, Shannon Martin and Paul Greenfield in “Total Home Developments” 103 who came home in second place ahead of Grant Valder, Sarah Valder, Don Brock, Paul Carter and Darien Walker in “Outlaw” C44.

Husband and wife team, Haydon and Delia Spiers from Whangarei, again won Sports 300 in their Ocke Mannerfelt 23 monohull “Outboard Pro”. Sports 200 was taken out by Alex and Josh Smith in their Sonic 1900SS “Triple Trouble”, with Mike Urquhart and James Downs in “NZ Home Loans” 9, Sonic 1900SS in second and Colin and Corey Dunn in their Sonic 1900SS “CRD Automotive” in third place.

Chris Haeger and Nick Campbell in “New Zealand Home Loans” 16 won Sports 150, with father and daughter Tony and Charlotte Carson in “Red Steel” second, and “D & H Steel”, this time driven

by Jono Hanley with crew Jamie and Shara Carson, in third.

Racing heads to Napier on Saturday the 11th of April for the Redsteel 100 Round five of the 2015 NZ Offshore Powerboat Championships, a change in date from that originally advised.

66 raceboatinternational

2015 NZ OFFSHORE POWERBOAT CHAMPIONSHIPS

1 D & H Steel MAKE: Sonic 1900SS TOP SPEED: 60 mph ENGINES: Mercury Optimax HP: 150 LENGTH: 19 ft DRIVER: Max Carson CO DRIVER: Shara Carson

S1 Total Home Developments MAKE: Skater TOP SPEED: 110 mph ENGINES: Mercury 300X HP: 300 LENGTH: 32 ft DRIVER: Mike Fletcher CO DRIVER: Jason Way

16 New Zealand Home Loans MAKE: Sonic 1900SS TOP SPEED: 65 mph ENGINES: Mercury EFI HP: 150 LENGTH: 19 ft DRIVER: Chris Haeger CO DRIVER: Nick Campbell

103 Total Home Developments MAKE: Linder Cat TOP SPEED: 80 mph ENGINES: Mercury 350 Verardo HP: 700 LENGTH: 32ft DRIVER: Shannon Martin CO DRIVER: Terry Fletcher/Aaron Fletcher raceboatinternational 67

YESTERYEAR

1971

1971 Rough and Ready Days

Sadly the Putney-Calais race has long gone, but during its illustrious history it proved to be an ideal testing ground for engines and new designs of production speed and ski boats which were still in their infancy in the late 60s early 70s. Today, a race of this nature would be bogged down by rules and regulations and it’s unlikely that a cross channel race would be allowed on one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.

68 raceboatinternational

In terms of distance, although it was the longest offshore powerboat race at that time, 8 miles more than the Cowes-TorquayCowes race, the race was not really a marathon as there were stop overs on the way for refueling. The early part of the course was in the sheltered waters of the Thames before entering the estuary and crossing the channel where conditions were rough.

Looking back over the years races like the Putney-Calais, London-Brighton, Needles Trophy, and many more famous races, have vanished from the calender and it seems the Cowes-Torquay-Cowes is the only survivor.

What does seems strange is that our Yesteryear feature in each issue of Raceboat International is one of the most popular, yet apart from the Classic Rally organised by OPRA which runs alongside the CTC event, very few other races/rallys are held in the UK. Some might say these veterans are unsuitable for racing, but HTS has proven that they can be more than capable of the odd race, but obviously not in adverse conditions as the plywood becomes brittle after a while. Nevertheless, most of us are interested in these golden oldies and full marks to those owners who have lovingly restored these classics from yesteryear.

raceboatinternational 69

PIT ACTION SHOTS

!

E L I M S

we’re taking the

Francesco Cantando

Marit Stromoy and Team Manager Jean-Claude Goy

Philippe Chiappe

70 raceboatinternational

Hugs for XCAT winners in Fujairah

F4s Briney Rigby

Steve Michael and CTIC Engine Tunder Alex Hledin

Leo Xiong XCAT Veronica Olderin and Aboullateeef Al Omani

Former F1 driver Pelle Larson (right)

Jay Price, Alex Hledin and boat builder David Moore

Tomaso Polli

raceboatinternational 71

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