ABU DHABI // Arif Al Zafeen and Nadir bin Hendi are set for a “smart race” in a bid to retain their UIM XCAT World Series Championship they have dominated since the race series was established in 2011.
However, for the first time their title defence has come under threat going into Friday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the final leg of the series, on the flat inshore course at the capital’s breakwater.
The XDubai pair hold a five-point lead over their challengers, Rashed Al Tayer and Faleh Al Mansoori, in Team Abu Dhabi’s boat No 5, as the six-race championship series is set to produce an exciting finish.
Al Zafeen, who has won the title four times, and Bin Hendi three times as he had to spend a one-year ban, need to finish ahead of the Abu Dhabi duo to extend their winning streak. “Our objective would be clearly to retain the championship, so we have to ride a calculated race,” said Bin Hendi after posting the third-fastest lap in Thursday’s race for the pole position.
“We don’t want to do anything crazy that would jeopardise our chances. We don’t know what would happen in the race but as long as we put No 5 behind us the title will be ours.”
Al Tayer and Al Mansoori will start next to XDubai after finishing with the fourth-best time.
The leading duo go into the final race after suffering engine problems in practice on Wednesday and in the pole run on Thursday.
“The situation we are in for the race certainly puts a bit pressure on us but that’s not unusual. If something goes wrong, we can’t do anything,” Al Zafeen said.
“We had problems with the left engine on Wednesday and again the same problem occurred during the pole-run. As a result, we were forced to come out of the water with still 10 minutes left.
“The race will be different and it’s going to be a close and exciting race on this flat water.”
The XDubai boat will start third on the grid behind the first-time pole winners, Dubai’s Salem Al Adidi and Eisa Al Ali, and T-Bone Station’s Giovanni Carpitella and Darren Nicholson.
“We are very happy to be in first place, said Al Adidi after claiming the team’s first pole in the XCAT series, clocking two minutes, 27.771 seconds.
“We are so excited about this very flat water; we love these conditions. It’s fantastic, so we knew we had to push and get this pole to show everybody we are good.
“We knew it was very close. The top three were very close but we knew we could improve more and more every time so we waited until five minutes before time before having a final go.”
Al Mansoori remains hopeful of breaking the XDubai boat’s dominance racing on the familiar home waters to finish ahead of them. “It is very clear how the race will turn out to be between the two boats running for the championship title,” he said.
“We are going to watch every move of the XDubai. We would assume they, too, will have similar ideas. We hope we can take advantage racing on the familiar home territory.”
The final round of the championship has drawn the maximum 14 boats.
Also Thursday, the Italian T-Bone Station team edged out XDubai in the Dubai Duty Free Speed Cat Run, a drag-style, straight-line race on water.
apassela@thenational.ae
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