ABU DHABI - Monday, November 23, 2015 - As expected all eyes will be finely focused on a four driver battle for the coveted honor of being named UIM F1 H2O World Champion with the start of back to back Grand Prix's heading to the Emirates highlighted by first on the calendar at the always challenging Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi on the 10th and 11th of December.

With forty points still up for grabs in the championship season, most experts believe that French pilot Philippe Chiappe of the CTIC China Team, who is the defending race winner and World Champion from a year ago, is the strong odds on favorite to once again take the title with a comfortable 16 point margin 55-39 over American driver Shaun Torrente of the Victory Team.

But here is where the drama comes in:

Young second year racer Erik Stark who's vast racing resume includes a plethora of world titles, including four F2 championships, is arriving hoping to "spoil the party" on the "status quo" in the run for the title, coming off two months of rehabilitation following a massive qualifying crash in Liuzhou, China back in early October.

The driver with the hometown Emirates Team has really put on a show in 2015, running his boat on the raged edge most of the year and earning podiums in each of the two races he's finished this season.

Is he ready to come back and "spoil the party" in Abu Dhabi?

"Yes, it's been the longest two months of my life as my left hand has healed remarkably quickly," stated Erik. "I've been doing a lot of rehab training everyday to get my strength and movement back as much as possible in my fingers."

"I think my strength is maybe 60% while the movement is around almost 80% and my plan is to win my first F1 race in Abu Dhabi since I've come close twice with a pair of second place finishes in the last two seasons."

Erik will be in the Emirates for three weeks before the Abu Dhabi event and run a preliminary event to judge his hand strength before tackling a true full Grand Prix event.

As for the driver from Rouen, Chiappe has had a strong second half of the year winning back to back events in Porto, Portugal and again in Liuzhou, China rocketing to first in the points chase heading into Abu Dhabi. The race will mark his 13th event there in his 13th season as an F1 pilot.

Philippe, has started 12 previous events in Abu Dhabi since joining the circuit back in 2002 and last year marked his first ever pole position of his career in Abu Dhabi. He's hoping for a repeat to lock up the championship with a repeat victory this time around.

Meanwhile, for the Florida driver Torrente, he had been the points leader in the championship for most of the year, despite being forced to change teams after his long time racing organization the Qatar Team disbanded in early April.

This left Shaun without a ride until he approached the very successful racing group from Dubai who have been known chiefly for their offshore success rather than in F1.

Shaun, since his opening season win in Doha, has struggled with an older boat hull he has used finishing fourth, fifth and eighth in his last three events.

Torrente knows he's going to have to win in Abu Dhabi to have even the slightest chance of winning his first world title after finishing second and third in the championship the last two years.

Not far behind the Miami driver, in third, is Kuwaiti star Youssef Al Rubayan of the GC F1 Atlantic Team who has a strong and steady season, winning for the first time in Evian, France in early summer and who is coming off a fourth place finish in China more than a month ago to keep his hopes alive for his dreams of capturing his first crown.

This years event will mark Youssef's fifth start in Abu Dhabi and he has had little success thus far looking for his first top-five finish but knows he also has to win to have any chance for the crown.

Right behind Youssef is Swedish veteran Jonas Andersson with 29 points and fourth in the title chase and also dreaming of winning his first title as he enjoys his 10th season of F1 racing.

The driver from Fruvi, has a second place finish in Evian after just missing the podium at the opening round in Doha back in March. He'll need a little more than a lot of luck as he races at a circuit that isn't his favorite with only one podium and crashing out or having mechanical problems in half of his starts along the corniche.

So, Erik Stark, the 28 year-old driver from Stockholm, in his second season and who sits in fifth place in the championship with 27 points, is going to do his best to "upset the apple cart" as he chases fame and glory along the corniche in the center city of one of the worlds most exciting cities Abu Dhabi, on the 10th and 11th of December at the sixth and final round of the UIM F1 H2O World Championship series.

Let's see if the newly named "Scandinavian Shark" can take a bite out of the title chase from his fifth place position in the drivers championship.

This story believe me is just one of the many sidebar stories at this years 2015 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi.

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