If you asked Guido Cappellini who his sporting hero is he will tell you that it is in fact Sir Ron Dennis CBE who was the mastermind behind the success of McLaren in Formula 1. From his humble beginnings to his iconic leadership Dennis was the driving force behind the teams rise to prominence in the world of motorsport through brilliant innovations and the relentless pursuit of excellence. Only last month McLaren had both their drivers on the front row of the grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix, their first in twelve years.
Now it’s Cappellini’s turn to celebrate a ‘front row lock-out’ of sorts as for the first time ever Team Abu Dhabi drivers will start from first and second on the grid for tomorrow’s Grand Prix of Norway, Round Two of the UIM F2 World Championship. The Italian maestro was quick to praise his whole team by saying, ‘We have all worked really hard to put that smile back on Rashed Al Qemzi’s face.’
The four times UIM F2 World Champion Al Qemzi is experienced enough to know that the job is only half done but was genuinely pleased to have his team-mate Mansoor Al Mansoori alongside him when the boats line up on Sunday afternoon.
For Al Mansoori, who so narrowly missed the pole position, there was almost a sense of relief about him because he was able to repay the team that had worked seven days a week often through the night for just one month to deliver a brand-new DAC hull which he was able to put to excellent use.
‘Guido and I sat down and together we designed a hull to my exact specifications. I now have a boat that I have one hundred per cent trust in, the previous one I raced was built for Al Qemzi and of course he is smaller and lighter than me. Now we are both ready to fight because the championship is still wide open.’
Not for the first time it will be a DAC one, two, three on the start grid, the only surprise being that its Jarno Vilmunen who occupies that third spot. The 2023 World and European UIM F4 World Champion admitted that he loved this type of course with its sharp turns and mixed water conditions. He described it as a circuit designed to be driven and not one where you need just flat-out speed, to give you an idea of the Finns talent his DAC was built in 2005. ‘I am not sure how much closer I could have got to the UAE racers as just after I set my best lap time the following lap was looking much better but then I ran out of fuel and had to be towed back in.’
Another driver making their Tønsberg debut was Mathilda Wiberg who knew all about Vilmunen having raced against him on many occasions back in her F4 days. ‘He was always the driver to beat’ said Wiberg. ‘Whether it was at the Finnish or Nordic Championships I thoroughly enjoyed my battles with him. That’s where we both developed our race craft in boats that were very well matched, so it’s going to be fun starting alongside him. I have watched races here before and I know that getting a good starting position is so crucial for your race, in fact I woke up this morning feeling extremely nervous about today, now I’m feeling a whole lot better.’
Edgaras Riabko was another relieved racer after he qualified in fifth place. The Lithuanian driver had struggled throughout the mornings Free Practice session with an engine way down on power. The team then swapped it over with his spare Optimax motor and Riabko was all set to go. The only issue was that due to his earlier issues he had been unable to select the correct propeller to use. ‘When I went out to qualify I almost had to guess which one to use. Then during Q3 I had a clearer idea so half way through that session I came back into the pontoon to swop the prop over. In making that call unfortunately I ran out of time to get the best result out of it.’
Also struggling with prop choice was Mette Bjerknæs, she went for better acceleration which sacrificed her top end speed. ‘I gave it my all’ said Bjerknæs ‘it was good enough for sixth place and if the water are as rough as the last time we raced here then I know I have the hull to cope with those type of conditions.’
Sat alongside Bjerknæs in the pits was the current championship leader Matthew Palfreyman, who was quietly seething inside. ‘Nineth place is the best I’ve ever qualified here and yet I’m still annoyed.’ His frustration was a result of having his best lap ruined by another driver. ‘I kept saying to myself he’s going to move over, he’s going to move over, then at the last minute he shut the door on me and I only just missed the rear of his APX engine.’
The Grand Prix of Norway will get under way at 15:00 local time and let’s just hope that with only ten laps to go to the chequered that Cappellini doesn’t have to make a call.
By: Chris Davies, Powerboat Racing World
