ABU DHABI - 7 November, 2014 - The race on Doha Bay has been going on for almost ten years.
Its beginnings date back to 2005. The local race organizers have moved the site to three different locations in that time frame searching for that "sweet spot" that will make the Grand Prix a memorable event year after year.
To this day, it has to be one of the roughest, most difficult, technical and puzzling bodies of water on the UIM F1 H2O World Championship calendar year as the world's best drivers prepare for this challenge along the Gulf at the third round of their 2014 series and the Grand Prix of the Middle East next week on the 14th and 15th of November.
At the races first event in '05, American Scott Gillman stole the show with his speed to take pole position but it was another Hall-of-Famer in Italian Guido Cappellini who took the flag triumphal for the first of his four victories in Qatar and his 50th career win.
The following season the course was moved from the East side of the Bay to the South end and there Italian Ivan Brigada out raced Gillman for his only F1 victory of his career thus far. He will be hoping to have that same success this next week while driving for the South African Caudwell Team along with Tomas Cermak looking for their first championship points of the season for this young organization.
This year marks the third time that multiple races will have been run on this popular circuit. The first, being back in 2007, when Thani Al Qamzi of Team Abu Dhabi along with Cappellini, later in the season, would take the top step in victory on the podium.
In 2009, when every event held a unique back-to-back two day Grand Prix weekend, Cappellini would win a rare double, cementing his 10th and final World Title taking his 60th and 61st career victories.
The home-standing QMSF (Qatar Marine Sports Federation) drivers, led by popular American driver Jay Price, would start a domination that carries into this next week, with driver from New Orleans taking both the 2010 and 2011 race events.
In 2013, it was a teammate tussle, featuring defending race winning champion Alex Carella of Italy verses the young American from Florida Shaun Torrente, with Carella leading and heading to victory when it unraveled.
The well respected pilot from Northern Italy looking at only two laps to go in the event saw his dreams fall apart when his engine let him down coming to a stop and handing the victory to Torrente and his first win of his international F1 career.
Four months later in March of this year, at the opening race of the UIM F1 H2O World Championship and the Grand Prix of Qatar, this time it was Torrente who dictated the race only to have his cockpit fill with smoke and his equipment failing him with less than six laps to go. This time it was Carella who took the prize and the first of his two back to back victories, as he leads the championship with 40 points heading into next weeks race.
The Qatar organization, who has won four of the past five events on Doha Bay are determined to keep their winning ways in tact and proved they are indeed serious about winning another Team Championship Trophy by moving their test session all the way to Florida in the USA two weeks ago. They see this as the pivotal event of the season and want to be ready to take the lead in this difficult challenge on the Gulf while keeping their streak alive when the teams arrive early next week.
Six different drivers who are expected in the line-up for the series upcoming third event of the season, have winning memories on Doha Bay and will be hoping to once again take the top-step of the podium.
Swedish driver Jonas Andersson of Team Sweden winner in 2008, will lead a strong Scandinavian connection with rookie countryman Erik Stark coming off a fine second place finish in China a month ago is ready to continue to impress.
Along with the pair of Swede's is Finnish star and two-time World Champion Sami Selio. The driver from Helsinki has a pair of poles in Qatar but has never won and needs to do so this next week if he has any chance at winning a third title for the Mad Croc Baba Race Team.
Young teammate Filip Roms, who has a pair of top ten finishes, is chasing his first podium finish after finishing a career best fifth at the first race on Doha Bay in March.
All in all, drivers from over ten different nations are expected to take up the challenge of the Gulf as the series heads to the Western banks of Doha Bay and the challenging circuit along the cornice sitting in center city Doha.
The race marks the middle event of the season and all drivers will be desperate to catch points leader Carella who searches for his record tying fourth world title in a row for the hometown Qatar Team.
Official Qualifying on Friday the 14th is scheduled for 15:30 local, 12:30 GMT and 07:30 EST on the East Coast of North America for the battle for starting positions and pole position.
The Grand Prix of the Middle East will take place on Saturday the 15th of November at the above times and can be followed on the tours official website www.f1h2o.com and viewed "live" via the worldwide television broadcast on the UIM F1 H2O World Championship of power-boating network.
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