The 2024 UIM F2 World Championship ended this weekend with every Racer fighting for vital positions in their Championship campaign. With five drivers in the campaign capable of securing the World Championship the fight was on.
A huge battle was ahead to see who would secure the World Crown. Securing the pole position would prove a vital part in the World Championship campaign.
Monégasque driver Giacomo Sacchi-Abbate put in a blinding performance during qualifying to secure his first pole position of the season and was hoping to walk away with his first Podium finish in an unlucky season for him.
Championship leader Rashed Al Qemzi would start in second with his closest rival in the championship campaign Edgaras Riabko struggling to find the perfect lap and still suffering from engine problems from the last round would start in seventh on the grid.
As the seventeen drivers lined up for the forty-two lap Grand Prix Race tension mounted. The result of this race stood between five drivers and the thirtieth F2 World Championship crown.
The lights went out and the fleet powered away from the pontoon and into the first turn. Al Qemzi got a flying start from second on the grid and right up there with him was Teammate Mansoor Al Mansoori with Sacchi-Abbate in third and Palfreyman in fourth.
The battle was on to see which of Team Abu Dhabi’s drivers could claim the crown. But as the drivers came round for the second lap Al Mansoori had pulled up with an engine problem forcing him to retire early from the race and watch his medal dreams slip away from the shore.
Riabko had made up three places from the race start and sitting in fourth was ready to battle for a UIM Medal, with the only thing to be determined was which colour.
With Al Mansoori retiring Britain’s Matthew Palfreyman was sitting in a strong third position and looked like he may just steal the bronze medal from the clutches of Abu Dhabi’s driver.
Further back in the fleet Britain’s Mette Bjerknes was attacking the field with valour and had already made up three places by lap five and then went to battle with Nelson Morin and David Del Pin. She put in a blinding performance to finish the race in fourth position overall.
The front runners had settled into positions halfway through the race and were sat comfortably in position each awaiting a wrong move from their rivals so they could capitalise and make their move if the situation arose.
Twenty-five laps in and Rashed Al Qemzi was on track to claim the Race win and with it the World Championship crown, so he settled down and drove the remaining seventeen laps with precision to take the chequered flag.
Meanwhile Matthew Palfreyman came a cropper when pushing to catch Sacchi-Abbate in third he got caught by a rogue gust of wind and flipped out of the race and Championship title race. In the absence of Al Mansoori, Palfreyman and Sweden’s Mathilda Wiberg currently sitting seventh all Riabko had to do was finish the in third to claim the silver UIM Medal.
Al Qemzi took the final win of the season, with Giacomo Sacchi-Abbate securing second and Riabko rolling home in third. With the forty-two-lap race finished the calculations began to find out who would secure the UIM Bronze Medal.
Despite retiring early from the race Abu Dhabi’s Mansoor Al Mansoori had secured enough points to claim UIM World Bronze medal. Thousands of Powerboat fans turned out in force to watch one of the intensely fought finals to the season and joined the celebration podiums of the Grand Prix of Portugal Vila Velha de Ródão and the 2024 UIM F2 World Championship.
In securing the World Championship title Rashed Al Qemzi has cemented his place in Powerboat Racing History becoming the only Driver to secure the F2 World Championship on five occasions.
Al Qemzi had this to say “I was confident at the start of the race that I could take the lead. Once I was in front, I just had to be sensible and not push too hard as that’s when mistakes can happen.”
He continued “I am really happy to have claimed my 5th Title and thank you to my team for always supporting me. It has been an exceedingly difficult season with some particularly good drivers but, as a team Abu Dhabi did it again.”
