12:31 AM Sun 11 Apr 2010 GMT
There was a 1-2-3 for the UAE in the second round of the UIM X-Cats Middle East Powerboat Championship yesterday (Saturday) as Rashid Al Marri and Salam Fadel Al Hamli clinched a second straight win in Extreme Marine 11 narrowly ahead of world champions Nader Bin Hendi and Arif Al Zafeen in Fazza 3.
Despite starting in Pole Position, the Extreme Marine crew had a monumental fight on their hands as Bin Hendi and Al Zafeen shrugged off having to start in 19th place in the 21-boat field by pushing Al Marri and Al Hamli all the way to the finish.
But with the advantage of the clear start and open water ahead of them for much of the race, Al Marri and Al Hamli held off the Fazza challenge to win with Ahmed and Rashid Al Hamli in third place in Abu Dhabi Racing Team 1.
Although the Extreme Marine crew were denied the honour of raising a second consecutive chequered flag in the championship - the race was red flagged with less than one lap remaining - they were on their way to victory when race officials called a halt to the race following a crash involving Nicolini Offshore 6.
With both Matteo and Luca Nicolini escaping unhurt and Extreme Marine winning a thrilling duel with Fazza by just five seconds, it was a fitting end to an enthralling contest that saw bow-to-bow powerboat racing played out off the coast of Mina Seyahi.
"It was a fantastic race - I really enjoyed it and congratulations go to Rashid and Salam who deserved to win," said Bin Hendi. "We got off to a fantastic start from way back and got past most of the field before the end of the first lap. But you have to pay attention all the time as there is so much going on around you.
"This is a brand new boat and we're still working hard to get it just how we would like it. We also had some problem with the right hand side trim, which meant we couldn't quite catch them in the turns. They were closing the door a lot but that's racing - it was a lot of fun."
Extreme Marine's win means they maintain a 100% record in the UIM X-Cats Middle East Powerboat Championship with two of four races remaining. They lead the standings on 40 points with Abu Dhabi Racing Team 1 in joint second place on 24 points with Mike Seebold and Michel Karsenti who claimed fourth place yesterday in Lux Medie Offshore 96.
Bin Hendi and Al Zafeen's first points of the campaign see them move into fourth place in the standings although their day was slightly marred with yet another disappointing showing for Fazza 33 - last year's worid championship winning boat - which again limped out with engine failure less than a lap into the 52.38Nm race.
"It's frustrating but the crew did everything to have the boat ready and were working on the motors late into the night," said Fazza 33's Abdullah Al Mehairbi. "Taleb (Al Sayed) and I would have loved to have been involved right to the finish but it wasn't to be and we'll now focus on the next two races in Abu Dhabi."
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by Middleeast Events
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