PORTIMAO,Portugal – (Friday, May 20, 2011) – Italian Ivan Brigada has joined the Singha F1 organization and will join teammate Francesco Cantando for the first time this season bringing with him the experience of 14 career starts including a victory at the 2006 Qatar Grand Prix along with three podiums in his on again off again career that dates back to 2004.
Another new face on the tour this weekend at the 13th annual Grand Prix of Portugal is Polish pilot Bartek Marszalek. Bartek has been racing recently in the F2 World Championship where he won Rookie-of-the-Year honors in 2008 with an eighth place finish is joining Team Nautica as a third driver running a modified BABA hull along with teammates Rinaldo Osculati and Marit Stromoy who is campaigning her own new BABA boat this weekend.
The 26 year-old from Warsaw got his professional drivers license five years ago and started racing in the 2005 Polish Formula 250 series where he won the championship. From there Bartek went on to race in the Formula 350 series where he finished runner-up in the championship in 2006. A year later Bartek joined the Formula 4 Endurance series before moving on to the F2 tour in 2008.
“I'm really excited about being here finally in F1,” said the Polish star. “My family has had great success in powerboat racing with my father being a six time World Champion in the O-250 and O-350 classes while holding down 27 World and European Championships along the way so I have a lot to live up too.”
Seventeen drivers from 12 different countries are here this weekend with World Championship points leader Jay Price of the Qatar Team missing in the paddock today with illness hoping to be ready to qualify tomorrow afternoon beginning at 14:00 GMT and 15:00 local time in the fight for the pole position.
The Second Round of the 2011 UIM F1 H2O World Championship for powerboating and the 13th Annual Grand Prix of Portugal in beautiful Portimao is set for Sunday afternoon at 14:30 GMT and 15:30 local time and can followed in its entirety by going to the official F1 H2O website www.f1h2o.com for both tomorrows qualifying and Sundays Grand Prix.
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