Friday, 16 December, SHARJAH (UAE): Poland’s Bartek Marszalek will launch into the unknown in today’s UIM F1H2O Grand Prix of Sharjah from P6 after career-best qualifying yesterday.

In this morning’s official practice he posted second quickest and will be hoping to round at the weekend with his best ever race result after three of the best days in his five years on the F1H2O tour. “The equipment is the same, but maybe my approach is different,” said Marszalek. “I take a lot of advice from my father and have also looked at myself and asked questions. We have committed a lot to race and now we need to show some results.

“The result in qualifying shows we have made progress that the work we have done and are doing is heading in the right direction and it is the reward we were waiting for.

“The target in the race is to at least protect my place. This is the first time I start in sixth and I am surrounded by champions, Sami Selio on my left, Alex Carella on my right. I think I deserve this place and it will not be my last shoot-out. It was not luck or coincidence but the result of steady progress and hard work.”