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Zhik 2024 December

New Venues, New Teams for WPPA Class 1 2008 season

by WPPA CLASS 1 media on 25 Jan 2008
WPPA Class 1 World Powerboats Championship (Round 6 Qatar Grand Prix - Doha 15 to 17 November 2007 race day Photo:Simon Palfrader© ) UIM F1 H2O World Championship http://www.f1boat.com
The 2008 WPPA Class 1 World Powerboat Championship looks set for an enthralling season, with the International Offshore Team Association announcing a ten-race calendar and ten-boat entry, including new teams and driver line-ups.

The Montenegrin City of Budva joins Doha, Arendal, Constanta, Porto Sokhna and Dubai as confirmed venues for 2008, and heads the list of new venues and countries lining up to host a round of the world’s leading powerboat championship, with races in Spain, the Ukraine and Bahrain expected to be confirmed in the coming weeks. Egypt will host its second Class 1 Grand Prix, but the venue moves from the northern Mediterranean coast to the spectacular Red Sea resort of Porto Sokhna.

Ten boats will line up for the season opener in Doha, Qatar on Saturday, 1 March with several significant changes in driver-throttleman partnerships announced at yesterday’s press conference at the Dusseldorf Boat Show. Victory Team Manager, Gianfranco Venturelli, confirmed that the 2007 Class 1 World and European Champions, Arif Saif Al Zafeen and Jean-Marc Sanchez will line up in different boats, but that the new pairings will not be revealed until just before the first race.

Qatar Team Principal, Sheikh Hassan Bin Jabor Al-Thani, revealed that he will line up alongside eight-times World Champion, Steve Curtis, in Qatar 96 with Matteo Nicolini partnering Abdullah Al-Sulaiti in Qatar 95. Nicolini confirmed that both boats will run the Skema V12 powerplants.

Giampaolo Montavoci has confirmed Norwegian, Kolbjorn Selmer as his new wheelman in Foresti & Suardi and Ugland Offshore Racing confirmed that throttleman Jorn Tandberg will be joined in the cockpit by Class 1 newcomer, Inge Brigt Aarbakke and Bjorge Jacobsen who will share driving duties. Nicola Giorgi is yet to announce who will partner him in 2008 but did confirm that the team have replaced their Cougar with a Michael Peters designed-Victory hull. Team One will make their Class 1 debut in 2008 but has yet to confirm their driver partnership; one name being mentioned is Frenchman, Jerome Brarda. A second new Team will be headed by Domenico Cirilli.

The only outfit to field an unchanged line-up in 2008 is Negotiator, with Chris Parsonage and Bard Eker staying with the Sterling V8s and looking to build on their impressive second half season-showing and double podium success last season.

2008 CALENDAR
1 March - QATAR, Doha
25 May – MONTENEGRO, Budva
15 or 22 June – SPAIN, Andalucia (reserve date)
20 July – NORWAY, Arendal
17 August – UKRAINE, Yalta (reserve date)
31 August – ROMANIA, Constanta-Mamaia
18 October – EGYPT, Porto Sokhna
7 November – BAHRAIN (reserve date)
29 November – UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, Dubai
6 December - UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, Dubai
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