CLASS 1
201 saw Arif Al =affain and Mohammed Al
Marri extend the teams’ remarkable record of
wins to 98 from 175 starts in 21 years to wrap
up a 13th World title and a ninth Pole Position
Championship. But despite a 31-point winning
margin over =abo-Isiklar the duo that came
together in 2011 and have won 14 times did not
have it all their own way.
They kicked off in style in Sanya in China to
complete the win-treble and take an early
lead in the title race but were pushed hard
throughout qualifying and in race 1 by =abo-
Isiklar. In Turkey the rails seemed to come off
– albeit momentarily – the usually tight turning
9ictory hull, Al =affain and Al Marri spinning
out twice in race 1 and retiring before resuming
normal service to take the win in race 2.
Their troubles continued in Italy and despite
closing out the Pole Position Championship
and winning race 1, a broken propeller in
race 2 ended their hopes of lifting an eighth
European title, limping across the line in sixth.
In Abu Dhabi they eased to a fourth pole in
qualifying but another broken propeller in
race 1 gifted the win to their teammates, but Al
=affain and Al Marri wrapped up the season
with a Championship winning drive to seal a
13th crown.
Victory remains the team to beat in 2014
but they are likely to face an increasingly
strengthening challenge from =abo-Isiklar
and LFF10.
201 was the year that =abo Racing’s Christian
=aborowski and 8gur Isik staked their claim
as potential race and title winners and but for
a rather large slice of misfortune would have
picked up their long overdue race win.
They gave Victory a run for their money in race
1 in China, leading for over half race distance,
finishing second, and were set to do it again
when they barrel-rolled out of race 2. Repaired
and ready to go again in Turkey, =aborowski
and Isik clawed their way from the back of
the pack to take a brilliant second but failed
to start race 2. They completed a hat-trick of
second-placed finishes in the opener in Italy
and were in front with less than half a lap to
the chequered ïag when they ran out of fuel,
limping home in third. Another second place
in Abu Dhabi and a herculean and spirited
effort by =aborowski and Isik to just finish
secured them their best ever result in the
Championship, the runners-up slot.
Looking to unseat them and Victory will
be Fendi Racing’s Luca Formilli Fendi and
Giovanni Carpitella whose season was a
mix of great performances and technical
woes, and on several occasions they were in
winning positions when their races came to a
premature halt.
They settled for the third step of the podium
twice in China and were on course for a win
in Turkey when a torque sensor let go and
curtailed their race, but they bounced back to
finish second in race 2. An over]ealous first
corner in Italy taking out a turn buoy, resulting
in a 25-second penalty, cost them second
place and another broken torque sensor in
race 2 robbed them of a win. They rounded
out there year with a fourth and a second in
Abu Dhabi to take third overall in the title race.
If, as they have indicated, they start in 2014 the
Australian duo of Darren Nicholson and Ross
Willatonwillsurelybeupatthefrontchallenging
for race wins, and if they had completed a full
season together and not missed the Italian
GP, the overall Championship standings may
well have looked somewhat different.
They gave a good account of themselves in
their first Class 1 outing together with fourth
and second in the season opener in China. In
Turkey they became the first Aussies to take
the chequered ïag and climb the top step of
the podium since 2002 and momentarily led
the points table, and followed that up with
third in race 2. After missing Italy Nicholson
was seconded to run with the returning Nadir
Bin Hendi and grabbed his second win of the
year, but ended the year with a DNF and in
fourth spot in the points tally.
A must have entry and a must see duo for
2014 are Italy’s Alfredo Amato and Brit Miles
Jennings who, at times, produced some
thrilling performances and became the
unlikeliest of European Champions.
Their Class 1 debut and first race of the year
was a washout with a zero points haul, but
they found some pace in Turkey to take their
first podium and backed it with a fourth place.
In Italy they must have written the script,
grabbing fourth in race 1 and in race 2 watched
as one-by-one three race leaders’ dropped off
the radar, the cool Italian and the ïamboyant
Brit hitting the front on the last lap to take the
chequered ïag, the win and lift the (uropean
Championship.
FA.RO ACCIAI was by far the most consistent
and the only outfit in 201 to pick up points
in every race, what they lacked to put them
higher up the order was race pace. Gian Maria
Gabbiani and Luca Nicolini extended their
points run to ten races before a driver switch
in Abu Dhabi, with Robert Lo Piano joining
Nicolini to extend the run further, ending the
year with five top-five finishes and a best
fourth.
30 | H20 MAGAZINE - MARCH 2014
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