ABU DHABI - 14 October, 2014 - Defending World Champions, the Qatar Team, based in Doha, head next week to Lakeland, Florida in the USA hoping to put a "slam dunk" on the rest of the field of drivers as they prepare for the third round of the 2014 UIM F1 H2O World Championship on the 13-15 of November at their home circuit on Doha Bay in Doha, Qatar.
Headed by Engine Management Director Brendan Power, who's engineering has given the team four world titles in the last six years, along with his two world renowned drivers, Italian Alex Carella and fellow Floridian Shaun Torrente, will be on hand for intensive test sessions beginning on Saturday, October 25 at a secret location outside Lakeland, Florida.
Joining the testing will be longtime crew chief Atillio Donzelli of Como, Italy and propeller developer David DeWald of Reading, Pennsylvania, who together bring over 60 years of experience to the test as the organization looks to once again win the team and drivers titles in 2014.
"We are in a relentless fight year after year and race after race to defeat all competitors that represent this fantastic worldwide series," said Brendan. "We are constantly raising the bar in making our product better as we live, sleep and eat F1 H2O racing day after day and never loose the desire to continue to win championships for QMSF (Qatar Marine Sports Federation) along with everyone who is a fan and believes in our product."
The teams upcoming testing site is oddly enough surrounded with historic significance as it is less than 20 kilometers (12 miles) away from the old OMC headquarters which in its heyday was the center of the operation of UIM F1 racing center in the 1980's.
This was back in that era when V-8 power plants were the norm and World Champion and future Hall-of-Famers such as Renato Molinari and Cees Van der Velden were common visitors to the area for the all important winter testing before the start of a new season.
Lake Hamilton, which is just southwest and less than an hours drive from Orlando, became the center of F1 racing as testing was intense and sometimes would last for weeks as drivers and crews sorted out both engine management and racing hulls for the upcoming campaign.
The Qatar Team will carry on that tradition in the upcoming week as they bring over their three-time defending World Champion Carella and their runner-up in the championship a year ago in Torrente with both drivers having won the last two events in Doha dating back to last season.
"I'm really excited about the test," said Shaun. "For me, it's an easy drive, less than two hours from my house and I know Alex is excited about coming to Florida to continue to make our package even tougher on the competition as we hit the final stretch of the season."
For the 29 year-old Italian who is fresh off his 10th career victory in his fifth season of F1 H2O racing, "Yeah, it's a long trip to test, but believe me, it's going to be worth every flight hour to get there," stated Alex. "We've got such a professional organization and combined with the history around this place will make it even more worthwhile. I can't wait to get to the States and the weather should be perfect for our test days as well."
Knowing that their home race will be a key event on the 2014 calendar, the Qatar Team is "pulling out all the stops" in order for them to remain dominant in their constant pursuit for another "slam dunk" of winning both the team and drivers championships for this year.
Their competition is intense with Philippe Chiappe of the CTIC China Team still in the hunt and a big surprise on the way along with two-time World Champion Sami Selio and his Mad Croc organization ready for a rebound and the always dangerously talented Team Abu Dhabi camp ready to make a splash at their home races coming up in November and December.
So, it's far from over, but the Qatar Team is looking to take the wind out of the sails of the competition one step at a time and next week in Florida will be their way of saying, "catch us if you can".
We'll soon find out if it is at all possible on the 15th of November when the UIM F1 World Championship heads to Doha, Qatar and the Grand Prix of the Middle East on Doha Bay.
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