Abu Dhabi: Team Abu Dhabi’s new partnership of John Tomlinson and Gary Ballough enjoyed a fruitful two races at the Italian Grand Prix — round two of the 2014 UIM Class One World Power Boat Championship — over the weekend.
After qualifying the repaired Team Abu Dhabi MTi in third place on Saturday morning, the American duo went on to finish the 11-lap opening race in third position behind the Victory 3 crew of Arif Saif Al Zafein and Nadir Bin Hendi and the Italian duo of Giovanni Carpitella and Luca Formilli Fendi in LFF10.
Al Zafein and Bin Hendi also confirmed the UIM Class One European Championship title.
Team Abu Dhabi, run under the auspices of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC), also qualified third for Sunday’s second race. They held third through the opening laps and second for most of the latter part of the 15-lap race until problems on the final tour pushed them down to an eventual fifth. The race win fell to Carpitella and Fendi, who were never troubled once Victory 3 retired.
“We were happy with that result,” Tomlinson said of Saturday’s race. “We’re glad we brought it home and in good shape. It was a good, fair race with Fendi (LFF10). They left us room when we needed it.”
The fifth and sixth races of the 2014 UIM Class One World Power Boat Championship take place at the final round of the series at the ADIMSC in Abu Dhabi on December 3-5.
