February 2009 n.

SPECIAL EDITION

MIAMI INTERNATIONAL BOAT SHOW

CONFIRM TWO-BOAT ENTRY

SPIRIT OF SPAIN
CARRASCO TO RUN NEW SPANISH TEAM

ADVERTORIAL

February 2009 n.2

Composite

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CLASS 1 SET FOR OUTSTANDING SEASON

The 2009 UIM-WPPA Class 1 World Powerboat Championship is set for an outstanding year, with Championship Organiser, IOTA (International Offshore Team Association), confirming one of the strongest line-ups of recent years, two new venues on the calendar - Alicante, Spain and Stresa, Italy - with a possible third new venue to be confirmed in the coming weeks. IOTA General Secretary, Marco Sala has confirmed a 13 boat line-up for the season, which sees the 2007/8 Australian Offshore Champions, Maritimo Offshore Racing, fielding a two-boat line-up, running their new Class 1 design, new pilots coming into the Championship and the likelihood of a new team and 13th boat to be confirmed. The outlook for this season is very positive and the line-up is one of the strongest in recent years, said Sala. The sport continues to grow both geographically and commercially. We have strengthened our position in Europe with the return of Spain and Italy which are very important to the Championship, and we have consolidated our ties with our established venues as we look forward to racing in the Far East in 2010. The prospect of an exciting seasons racing is further fuelled by the introduction of a series of new rules which focus on reducing costs, improving the level of competition amongst the teams and broadening the level of entry of boats into the Championship. The rules include the introduction of a new engine-boat package, 11.5m 13m in length, weighing 4100kgs running 790hp naturally aspirated engines, the appointment of a sole propeller manufacturer for the Championship with teams limited to a maximum of three sets for the season, and the removal of all electronic devices. The season starts in Doha, Qatar on 25 April, with the Championship then heading to Europe for five, possibly six races, opening and closing its European campaign in Alicante and Stresa, before heading back to the Middle East for two races, ending the season with the UAE Grand Prix in Dubai.

AL ZAFEEN BACK TO PARTNER BIN HENDI

Victory Teams general manager, Gianfranco Venturelli, has confirmed that 2007 World and European Champion, Arif Saif Al Zafeen, will make a welcome return to racing this season to partner the newly crowned 2008 World, Middle East and Edox Pole Position Champion, Nadir Bin Hendi, in Victory 1. The decision sees Al Zafeen and Bin Hendi rekindle a formidable partnership that saw them win the season opener in Qatar last year, before an injury - sustained in a Formula 2 race - sidelined Al Zafeen, with the team drafting in the services of 2001 World Champion, Mohammed Al Marri, to replace him. Venturelli also said that at this stage, no decision had been taken on the line-up for their second boat.

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NICOLINI KEEPING HIS OPTIONS OPEN

Qatar 95s Matteo Nicolini is keeping his options open as to which boat he will opt to run in 2009 - their current Michael Peters-designed, Victory-built hull or the new Nicolini Offshore-designed NOC1CAT that raced in Moscow and Arendal - confirming that he will run a series of crucial pre-season tests, with the first in Doha in February. Nicolini and Abdullah Al-Sulaiti ended the season as the top Qatar outfit, taking a sensational race win in the last race of the year to finish above their team-mates and take third overall in the championship standings. The boat with Sterlings is very strong and with some additional development to the modifications we have already done, we can improve the performance, he said. We will test both boats properly in February, running our current boat with V8s to try to find a strong flat water set-up and will also test the new boat with both V12s and V8s.

SERGIO CARRASCO ANNOUNCES TWO-BOAT SPANISH TEAM

Sergio Mora Carrasco has confirmed he will run a new, two-boat Spanish Team this season, which brings a new engine-builder and boat manufacturer into the sport Team Spirit of Spain sees Spaniard, Carrasco and Italian throttleman, Giovanni Carpitella, continue the partnership that they formed in Dubai last season which saw them finish an impressive fourth in the final race of the year. The Spanish-Italian pairing will showcase a Michael Peters-designed, Outerlimits-built hull, powered by twin, Chief V8 supercharged power-plants. The second boat, a Michael Peters-designed Tencara with Mercury-Class 1 V8s, will be crewed by Moroccan, Mohammed Abdelkader Ahmed and Italian, Christian Rivolta, both of whom made their Class 1 debuts last season, also teaming up in Dubai.

REBUILT QATAR 96 WILL BE A NEW AND VERY DIFFERENT BOAT

Qatar 96 throttleman, Steve Curtis, says that their rebuilt raceboat will be like having a virtually new boat and will bear little resemblance to the old Spirit of Norway. Following Sheikh Hassan and Curtis crash in qualifying in Doha last year, which all but destroyed the teams number one boat, Qatar 96 has been almost totally rebuilt. The main rebuild of the hull and deck was carried out at Nicolini Offshores facility near Lake Lecco in Italy, before being moved to the teams second European base in Norway, where Curtis has spent the early part of 2009 overseeing the crucial re-rigging before the boat is shipped to Qatar at the end of February to test in March. There was very little left after the crash and it was simply a case of starting from scratch, commented Curtis. The positive side is that we have been able to rebuild to suit not just Sheikh Hassan and myself, but to suit the courses we run these days. We have made extensive modifications to the hull and in other key areas, focusing on acceleration and ultimately a boat that will be quick in all conditions.

MARITIMO CONFIRM TWO-BOAT ENTRY

Australias Maritimo Racing Team has confirmed they will enter two of their new specification Class 1 raceboats in their bid for race and title honours in 2009. The new lighter hull, powered by two Mercury 790 V8s - designed and built by Australias premiere manufacturer of long-range luxury motoryachts, Maritimo was unveiled in Dubai at the end of last year, finishing in fifth place on its race debut. In some ways, it was disappointing that we had no time to test before taking the boat out of the box, but what we saw was very encouraging, said Maritimo team owner, Bill Barry-Cotter. We identified some fundamental issues, the main one being the rudder configuration, but we will put them right and make one or two other minor modifications before Doha. The 2007-8 Australian Offshore Superboat Champions, Tom Barry-Cotter and Pal Virik Nilsen, who competed in three Class 1 races last year, posting two top-six finishes, will head the two-boat assault, with the experienced and straight-talking New Zealand throttleman, Peter Muddy McGrath, joined in the second boat by Italian

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ADVERTORIAL

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ADVERTORIAL

February 2009 n.2

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February 2009 n.2

CLASS 1 SUPPORTS THE QATAR ORPHAN FOUNDATION

At the beginning of 2008 the International Offshore Team Association (IOTA) reached an agreement with the Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF) to launch Class 1 for Dhreima an initiative to support the Qatar Orphan Foundation. Sheikh Hassan Bin Jabor Al-Thani, President of the QMSF and IOTA, was instrumental in encouraging Class 1 a sport in which he has been a leading figure since 2003 to become an active vehicle to raise awareness of the foundation. In presenting this initiative I wanted to emphasise how sport, in whatever form or however extreme, can support the values and the importance of the activities of an organisation such as the Qatar Orphan Foundation. During the course of the year, the association between Class 1 and Dhreima developed a series of activities and events that took place at races, with the purpose of highlighting the activities of Dhreima and finding synergy with similar organisations based in countries that host Class 1 GP events. The Qatar Orphan Foundation - Dhreima was launched on 10 June 2003 under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser Al-Misnad, Chairman of the Supreme Council. We in the Qatari Orphan Foundation believe that our community values of solidarity, compassion and cooperation make us truly capable of providing all the support the children need, said Nabil Ali Bin Ali, Chairman of the Dhreima Board, adding, and we are extremely happy that the Class 1 Championship has elected to support the Foundation.

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VICTORY TAKE THE TRIPLE CROWN JOTUN UPHOLD EUROPEAN PRIDE

2008 provided some tough challenges for the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship, but the sport responded and faced them in a highly professional manner and showed great resilience, highlighted by an eleven-boat line-up at the end of the year in Dubai. It was a year in which the sport set new standards, achieved extraordinary levels of technical excellence and enjoyed great excitement and wonderful entertainment - both on and off the water. The year also saw the Championship continue to reach an ever increasing media audience and grow both commercially, thanks to the valued support of its partners Edox, Nor-Tech, Marinepool, Marinetek and Moving, as well as geographically, with two new venues Budva and Moscow demonstrating the thriving interest from new venues and countries looking to host a round of this prestigious international series.

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And on the water, it was Dubais Victory Team, who, without question, was the team of the year; Victory 1s Mohammed Al Marri and Nadir Bin Hendi led them to a 64th Grand Prix win, their eighth World Championship, a third Middle East title and their sixth Pole Position Championship in sixteen years. But whilst the statistics give Victory the deserved accolades, 2008 saw Jotun emerge as the leading European challenger who took on and beat the might of the Middle East and lift the European Championship, the V8 break the V12 engine dominance, powering Jotun and Qatar 95 to race wins, three new pilots enter the Championship and two new boat designs, by Nicolini Offshore and Maritimo, take their first tentative racing steps into arguably the most competitive international powerboat series in the world. But the season belongs to Victory 1; Al Marri stepped in to replace the injured Arif Al Zafeen after a winning start to their title defence in Qatar, and alongside Bin Hendi produced an imperious season-long display to take a further four wins in Montenegro, Russia, Egypt and Dubai to complete the title treble and end the year as World, Middle East and Edox Pole Position Champions a second World title for Al Marri and a first for the tenacious Bin Hendi. Victorys strength in depth was highlighted by the performance of teammates, Abdullah Al Mehairbi and outgoing Champion, Jean-Marc Sanchez in Victory 7, who guided his rookie driver to the runners-up slot in both the World and Middle East Championships, taking an impressive seven podium finishes from eight starts. Qatars season hit trouble on day one of competitive action, with Sheikh Hassan and Steve Curtis destroying their number 1 raceboat in qualifying. Despite jumping into their spare boat to finish second in the season opener, they would ultimately be on the back foot all season and record just three podium finishes. Reliability, or rather lack of, proved their Achilles heel and the Qatar 96 crew saw race-winning positions and podium performances end ignominiously on more than one occasion. But Qatari pride was restored in the last race of the season with a sensational win by Abdullah Al-Sulaiti and Matteo Nicolini over their Dubai rivals, and with three previous podiums, Qatar 95 ended the season third overall and put one over their team-mates to finish as the number one boat in the Qatar camp.

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By the mid-season point, the Championship needed a team to remind Victory that there were other boats out there, and it was the marauding Norwegians in the scarlet, Class 1 Mercury V8-powered Jotun who delivered. Inge Brigt Aarbakke and Jorn Tandberg, after just one outing together in Moscow, produced a simply stellar performance on their home waters of Arendal in the BMW Norwegian Grand Prix to pass both Victory outfits and take a sensational win. A race later in Romania, they seized on Victory 1s misfortune to romp home and take a second win and lift the European Championship by one point, ending the year as the top European challenger in fifth place overall and third in the Edox Pole Position Championship. Foresti & Suardi ended the year with the teams highest points tally in Class 1, with Montavoci and Selmer proving to be one of the most consistent teams in the Championship, always in the points and never finishing outside the top six, producing their best result of the season, fourth, in rough seas in the Egyptian Grand Prix in Porto Marina to end their year as top European outfit in the Middle East Championship and sixth in the overall Championship standings.

For Giorgioffshore, 2008 produced a landmark moment for the team. In a season of development, running a new Michael Peters-designed, Victory-built raceboat and trying various engine packages along the way, it all came together for Nicola Giorgi and Giorgio Manuzzi in the Mina Seyahi Grand Prix, taking the teams first Class 1 podium with a well-deserved third place. For Duemme Offshore Team boss, Domenico Cirilli, 2008 was a season to focus on team development and to introduce new Spanish pilots into Class 1. He started the year in Montenegro alongside debutant, Sergio Mora Carrasco, taking points in their next three outings before a planned switch for the allSpanish pairing to a new raceboat later in the season. In Egypt it was the turn for a second Spanish newcomer to make his debut. Mohammed Abdelkader Ahmed survived a baptism of fire to beat the rough seas alongside Ahmed Al Suwaidi to bring the boat home in seventh place, and in the final race of the year was joined by another Class 1 debutant, Christian Rivolta, and added to his tally of points.

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With Cirilli unable to make the final three races of the season, for the first outing in the teams new Class 1 Mercury V8-powered Tencara in Egypt, Carrasco was joined by the flamboyant and experienced Italian throttleman, Giovanni Carpitella, to see out the season, achieving the teams best result of the year, finishing fourth in the last race. A disrupted season is the best way to describe 2008 for Chris Parsonage Racing. What looked like being a great season opener running comfortably in third and with a podium finish in their sights went wrong with just three laps to go, when Bard Eker and Chris Parsonage crashed out. Parsonage elected to sit out the European rounds, but returned to race in Egypt and Dubai. With Eker, the 2005 World Champion, unavailable, Parsonage switched to take the wheel and brought in American throttle ace, Billy Moore to take the sticks. The Anglo-American pairing gelled immediately to mark an impressive return for Parsonage and Class 1 debut for Moore, finishing third, but they were unable to repeat this performance in Dubai, failing to start the penultimate race and finishing sixth in the final race. There was also a cameo role this year for the much talked-about new Class 1 raceboat, built by Italian boat builder, Nicolini Offshore - the NO C1CAT. The first new design in Class 1 for five years was unveiled at the Russian Grand Prix in the colours of the Qatar Team and given the immediate thumbs-up by the man behind the project, Matteo Nicolini. And two race outings with Mohammed Al Nassr and Luca Nicolini in the cockpit Russia and Norway gave a clear indication of the boats potential and pace, with consistent top-six times in practice and in qualifying. The second new design of the season appeared in Dubai. Given wild card entry status by officials for the races in Norway and Dubai, Class 1s youngest partnership, Tom Barry-Cotter and Pal Virik Nilsen returned to Class 1 action as the 2007/8 Australian Offshore Superboat Champions. In Norway, the Australian-Norwegian pairing jumped back into their old Class 1 Mercury V8-powered Tencara to finish sixth, and in Dubai unveiled their new Class 1 specification raceboat, designed and built by Australias premiere manufacturer of long-range luxury motoryachts, Maritimo. Despite the obvious teething troubles of testing and developing a new raceboat under race conditions and getting acclimatised to its handling characteristics, the Maritimo crew produced a very creditable performance to take fifth place in the Mina Seyahi Grand Prix, but lost out in the last Grand Prix of the year after a big impact spin-out ended their race on lap 14 of 20. But it was Victory 1 who deservedly took all the plaudits and ended the year as the World, Middle East and Edox Pole Position Champions, and who remain the team to beat in 2009.

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At a Class 1 Grand Prix, being a spectator is no longer an option

The introduction of our Supercat 3600 into the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship in 2007 as the official start and pace boat gave us the opportunity to demonstrate our product to a truly international audience, said Nor-Techs President and Owner, Trond Schou. And it was also used very successfully to give IOTAs commercial partners and the media the opportunity to experience the excitement of powerboat racing, with high speed runs in the Nor-Tech around the racecourse and this is something that we wanted to develop. Following the overall success of our first season in Class 1 as a commercial partner, we extended our involvement in the Championship last season with a second Nor-Tech 3600, creating a unique marketing initiative with IOTA the Class 1 Nor-Tech Experience. We are very excited about our ongoing and extended cooperation with IOTA and I would like to thank IOTA general secretary,Marco Sala, and Mercury Racing for their valuable and continued support and involvement with our new projects.

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100MPH CLUB ACADEMY

The days of simply being a spectator are over, with guests given the opportunity to take to the water in one of two Nor-Tech 3600 Supercats to run the Grand Prix race course and become members of the exclusive Class 1 Nor-Tech 100mph Club.

For the more ambitious guest, there is the Class 1 Nor-Tech Academy, a two-day programme divided between theory and practice including operational briefings and driver instruction before the opportunity to take two timed-laps behind the wheel.

MATCH RACE

And for the fearless guest wanting the ultimate experience, there is the Class 1 Nor-Tech Match Race which offers the chance to take a leading role and experience at first hand the adrenaline rush of powerboat racing. A three-day programme dedicated to learning the theory and practice of driving techniques, before getting behind the wheel for two timed elimination laps on the Match Race Course to decide the finalists who will go through to the Class 1 Nor-Tech Match Race head-to-head for the title.

IOTA, the Organisers of the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship and Nor-Tech, Americas leading high performance boat manufacturer have created a series of exciting initiatives offering clients and VIP guests at Grand Prix events an exhilarating experience that only Class 1 can provide.

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2009 sees Class 1 fielding one of its strongest and most competitive fleets for over a decade, with 13 of the Worlds leading state-of-the-art raceboats liningup on the waters of Doha Bay, Qatar for the season opener on 25, April. This year, nine teams will compete for the most coveted prize in World

Powerboat Racing - The Sam Griffith Trophy - with four teams fielding twoboat entries and new engine and boat manufacturers entering the Worlds leading Powerboat Championship.

1 VICTORY 7 VICTORY 8 FORESTI & SUARDI 10 SPIRIT OF SPAIN

11 MARITIMO 12 MARITIMO 18 GIORGIOFFSHORE 50 NEGOTIATOR

60 ROSCIOLI HOTELS ROMA 88 SPIRIT OF SPAIN 90 JOTUN 95 QATAR 96 QATAR

1 VICTORY
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Managing Director: Team Manager: VICTORY TEAM (DUBAI, UAE) #1 Victory Government of Dubai Khalfan Harib Gianfranco Venturelli

victoryteam.ae

DRIVER
Arif Saif Al Zafeen (UAE) Date of Birth: 1 September, 1974 Place of Birth: Dubai, U.A.E. Lives: Dubai

THROTTLEMAN
Nadir Bin Hendi (UAE) Date of Birth: 15 December, 1969 Place of Birth: Dubai, U.A.E. Lives: Dubai Builder: Boat Construction: Victory Composites

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

12.67m 3.75m

Racing Weight: Engines:

4800kgs Victory V12

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7 VICTORY
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Managing Director: Team Manager: TBC VICTORY TEAM (DUBAI, UAE) #7 Victory Government of Dubai Khalfan Harib Gianfranco Venturelli

victoryteam.ae

DRIVER

THROTTLEMAN
TBC

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

12.67m 3.75m

Racing Weight: Engines:

4800kgs Victory V12

Builder: Boat Construction:

Victory Composites

8 FORESTI & SUARDI

Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Manager: TBC #8 Foresti & Suardi SCAM Per Jrgensen

scam-srl.it

DRIVER
Kolbjorn Selmer (Norway) Date of Birth: 4 December, 1976 Place of Birth: Trondheim, Norway Lives: Trondheim

THROTTLEMAN
Giampaolo Montavoci (Italy) Date of Birth: 10 December, 1959 Place of Birth: Venice, Italy Lives: Venice Victory Carbon Kevlar

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

13.02m 3.60m

Racing Weight: 4800kgs Builder: Engines: Lamborghini-SCAM 8.2litre, V12 Boat Construction:

10 SPIRIT OF SPAIN
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Manager: SPIRIT OF SPAIN (Spain) #10 Spirit of Spain Sergio Mora Carrasco Giuseppe Pippo Cascone

DRIVER

Mohammed Abdelkader Ahmed (Morocco) Date of Birth: 3 May, 1984 Place of Birth: Ceuta, Spain Lives: Marbella

THROTTLEMAN
Christian Rivolta (Italy) Date of Birth: 3 May, 1975 Place of Birth: Lecco, Italy Lives: Lecco Builder: Boat Construction: Tencara Carbon Kevlar

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

13.33m 3.57m

Racing Weight: 4800kgs Engines: Mercury-Class 1, 9.1litre V8

11 MARITIMO
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Manager: MARITIMO OFFSHORE RACING (AUSTRALIA) #11 Maritimo Bill Barry-Cotter Ann-Marie Cook maritimo.com

DRIVER
Tom Barry-Cotter (Australia) Date of Birth: 27 March, 1988 Place of Birth: Sidney, Australia Lives: Gold Coast

THROTTLEMAN
Pal Virik Nilsen (Norway) Date of Birth: 20 December, 1974 Place of Birth: Tonsberg, Norway Lives: Sandefjord Builder: Boat Construction: Maritimo Composites

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

12.90m 3.49m

Racing Weight: Engines:

4100kgs Mercury 790 V8

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12 MARITIMO
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Manager: MARITIMO OFFSHORE RACING (AUSTRALIA) #12 Maritimo Bill Barry-Cotter Ann-Marie Cook

maritimo.com

DRIVER
Giorgio Manuzzi (Italy) Date of Birth: 20 May, 1964 Place of Birth: Cesena, Italy Lives: Cesena

THROTTLEMAN
Peter Muddy McGrath (New Zeland) Date of Birth: 5 January, 1956 Place of Birth: Auckland, New Zeland Lives: Gold Coast, Australia Builder: Maritimo Boat Construction: Composites

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

12.90m 3.49m

Racing Weight: Engines:

4100kgs Mercury 790 V8

18 GIORGIOFFSHORE
Team: GIORGIOFFSHORE (ITALY) Boat: #18 Giorgioffshore Team Owner / Manager: Gianni Giorgi giorgioffshore.com

DRIVER
TBC

THROTTLEMAN
Nicola Giorgi (Italy) Date of Birth: 18 August, 1973 Place of Birth: Florence, Italy Lives: Montecatini Terme 4800kgs Giorgi V12 Builder: Boat Construction: Victory Carbon Kevlar -

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

14.44m 3.69m

Racing Weight: Engines:

50 NEGOTIATOR
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Manager: CHRIS PARSONAGE RACING (ENGLAND) #50 Negotiator Chris Parsonage Chris Parsonage

chrisparsonageracing.com

DRIVER
TBC

THROTTLEMAN
TBC

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

13.44m 3.69m

Racing Weight: 4800kgs Engines: STERLING V8 supercharged

Builder: Victory Boat Construction: Carbon Fibre Composites

60 ROSCIOLI HOTELS ROMA

Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Manager: TBC DUEMME OFFSHORE (SPAIN) #60 Roscioli Hotels Roma Domenico Cirilli Domenico Cirilli

duemme-offshore.com

DRIVER

THROTTLEMAN
Domenico Cirilli (Spain) Date of Birth: 8 January, 1960 Place of Birth: Rome, Italy Lives: Alicante, Spain Builder: Victory Boat Construction: Carbon Kevlar Composites

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

13.02m 3.60m

Racing Weight: 4800kgs Engines: Lamborghini-SCAM 8.2litre, V12

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88 SPIRIT OF SPAIN
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Manager: SPIRIT OF SPAIN (Spain) #88 Spirit of Spain Sergio Mora Carrasco Giuseppe Pippo Cascone

DRIVER
Sergio Mora Carrasco (Spain) Date of Birth: 22 November, 1977 Place of Birth: Huelva, Spain Lives: Huelva

THROTTLEMAN
Giovanni Carpitella (Italy) Date of Birth: 22 August, 1968 Place of Birth: Grottammare (AP), Italy Lives: Grottammare Builder: Boat Construction: Outerlimits Carbon Nomex

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

13.10m 3.45m

Racing Weight: 4800kgs Engines: Chief V8 supercharged

90 JOTUN
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Manager: UGLAND OFFSHORE RACING (NORWAY) #90 Jotun Andreas O Ugland, Jorn Tandberg Jorn Tandberg
uglandoffshoreracing.com

DRIVER
Inge Brigt Aarbakke (Norway) Date of Birth: 5 July, 1959 Place of Birth: Bryne, Norway Lives: Naerbo

THROTTLEMAN
Jorn Tandberg (Norway) Date of Birth: 15 March, 1964 Place of Birth: Larvik, Norway Lives: Larvik Builder: Marine Technology Inc Boat Construction: Composites

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

12.25m 3.47m

Racing Weight: 4800kgs Engines: Mercury Class 1, 9.1litre V8

95 QATAR
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Principal: Team Manager: TEAM QATAR (QATAR) #95 Qatar Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF) HE Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al-Thani Matteo Nicolini

qmsf.org

DRIVER
Abdullah Al-Sulaiti (Qatar) Date of Birth: 20 August, 1975 Place of Birth: Doha, Qatar Lives: Doha

THROTTLEMAN
Matteo Nicolini (Italy) Date of Birth: 8 July, 1964 Place of Birth: Fermo, Italy Lives: Dubai, U.A.E. Builder: Boat Construction: Victory Composites

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

12.67m 3.75m

Racing Weight: 4800kgs Engines: STERLING V8 supercharged

96 QATAR
Team: Boat: Team Owner: Team Principal: Team Manager: TEAM QATAR (QATAR) #96 Qatar Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF) HE Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al-Thani Matteo Nicolini

qmsf.org

DRIVER
HE Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al-Thani (Qatar) Date of Birth: 20 July, 1968 Place of Birth: Doha, Qatar Lives: Doha Racing Weight: 4800kgs Engines: Skema V12

THROTTLEMAN
Steve Curtis (England) Date of Birth: 9 June, 1964 Place of Birth: Wimbledon, England Lives: Hythe Builder: Victory Boat Construction: Composites

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overall Length: Beam:

12.67m 3.75m

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TIMING

EDOX OFFICIAL TIMEKEEPER

edox.ch

As the official and exclusive timekeeper of the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship and the EDOX Pole Position Championship, EDOX underlines the sporting values of quest for performance, precision and pushing oneself to the limit. EDOX first became involved in Class 1 at the beginning of 2006 as an official partner of World Champions, Spirit of Norway, and Christian Hotz, EDOX Marketing Director, saw the opportunity to strengthen the companys commitment in 2007 to what he describes as a spectacular and nerve-tingling sport and to increase the synergy between the two brands. EDOX is a young, dynamic, privately-owned company with a product range that reflects excellence, quality, style, reliability and glamour and the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship epitomises these values.

MARINEPOOL OFFICIAL CLOTHING SUPPLIER

Marinepool Spirit of the Ocean, founded in 1991, is the biggest life jacket manufacturer in Europe. The company is equally well known for its range of versatile marine and leisure clothing composed of functional fashion, shoes and bags all manufactured to the very highest technical specification. Marinepool has established itself as a global player in the marine and leisure industry with commercial interests in 38 countries. The brand is especially well known for its reliability and top of the range quality and within the world of powerboat racing is the official clothing supplier to the Qatar and Victory teams as well as the World Professional Powerboating Association.

CLASS 1
NOR-TECH OFFICIAL PACE BOAT
Americas leading high-performance boat manufacturer provides the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship with two state-of-the-art, twin-engined, five-seater Nor-Tech 3600 Supercats, powered by the new CE approved Mercury 600 with NXT drives and the latest Nor-Tech stealth exhaust system. We are delighted to have teamed up with the worlds leading powerboat championship, said Trond Schou, President and owner of Nor-Tech. Nor-Tech has the most complete line of custom products of any hi-performance builder in the industry and our partnership with Class 1 allows us to showcase our products on a worldwide stage.

marinepool.com

MARINETEK OFFICIAL PONTOON SUPPLIER

As one of the leading marina developers in the world offering a wide range of pontoons and breakwaters as well as turn-key marina solutions, Marinetek operates through its representatives and partners in over 25 countries and has been the supplier to the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship, providing its floats for the Wet Pits area, since 2003. There is a perfect synergy between Class 1 and our products, said Marinetek CEO, Ilkka Seppala. The safety and advanced technology of our products were evaluated and are highly regarded by Class 1s team of specialists.

nor-techboats.com

marinetek.net

MOVING OFFICIAL PARTNER

moving-italia.com

Moving provides all the services necessary to companies wishing to promote their brand or their products using dynamic advertising. Its flexible structure is made up of professionals who have always worked in this area and therefore act with good knowledge of the environment and its problems. Moving does not limit itself merely to organising promotional events, but is able to assist with design and planning, drawing ideas from its vast range of experience. The studies and investigations which are carried out on a daily basis enable the company to put forward concrete proposals which are tailored for the target audience.

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ADVERTORIAL

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Class 1 is the spiritual heir to offshore powerboat racing of the 1980s, when lightning-fast catamarans started to do battle on open seas around the world. Today, Class 1 sets out to be the ultimate in topflight powerboat racing, with spectacular events on coastal racecourses, and easily seen by ever increasing crowds of spectators.

Class 1 is also the point of reference for the world of powerboat racing in terms of its levels of technology and safety, which have been achieved thanks to its Racing Rules, which enable racing with substantial parity of competition, despite using engines of conceptually diverse designs.

ELIGIBILITY TO COMPETE - racing rules summary

For further information contact: Marco Sala IOTA tel: + 39 02 3651 9780 email: marco@class-1.com class-1.com

HULL DIMENSIONS AND MINIMUM WEIGHTS: Any existing hull built prior to 1st January 2001, measuring 12.0/14.63m (39ft.4in/48ft.0in) and weighing a minimum of 4800kg after race completion, will be grandfathered indefinitely. Any hull built after 1st January 2001, measuring 12.19/13.41m (40/44 feet) and weighing a minimum of 4800kg after race completion. Any hull measuring 11.5/13m using the 790 hp naturally aspirated engines and weighing 4100kg after race completion. Other hull/engine combinations may be permitted to compete in Class 1 through specific dispensation from the World Professional Powerboating Association (WPPA).

ENGINE RESTRICTIONS: V12 naturally aspirated engines max Rpm 8700 All other engines max 7600 Rpm V8 Engines max 7600 Rpm (See WPPA Rules/technical notes for 790 hp/ 495 to 510 cu carbureted engines thewppa.com) Max 4 camshafts per engine OEM camshaft position cannot be changed OEM position of lifter bores cannot be changed Pistons to be produced from automotive piston alloys Heads and blocks to be manufactured in cast Aluminium or Iron only Max 4 valves per cylinder No Titanium components or coatings with the exception of cylinder head valves No Ceramic components or coatings with the exception of spark plugs, seals and bearings Any Diamond or hardened coatings Valves must open and close using conventional mechanical methods No variable length tracts or ducts Original registered quantity of spark plugs to be retained COMPRESSION RATIO MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE: Natural aspirated 10.0:1 Pressure charged 8.5:1 Carbureted 10.5:1

PROPELLERS: From 1st January 2009 there will be 1 supplier of propellers for Class 1. The Propeller thickness cannot be altered, and will be specified by the manufacturer and/or the WPPA. Propeller cup may be altered; however, this will void any warranty claim that may arise. The manufacturer will specify the areas that can be modified. Three sets of propellers which were used in the 2008 season can be registered and used for the 2009 season and can only be replaced with the official suppliers Class 1 2009 specification propellers. All Propellers must adhere to the Minimum thickness. Three different pairs of propellers per boat will be allowed. Propellers can only be changed for the identical type as those initially registered, due to damage or wear. Propellers will be allocated to a boat, for use on that boat only. For instance a two-boat team may not swap registered propellers from one boat to the other. However a twoboat team with fewer than 4 sets of registered propellers may use them on either boat. For 2009 Season only, 1x set of propellers can be changed for a different diameter or pitch during the racing season.

CREW CONTROL: The system must be homologated and fully inspected before installation, including all drawings and details of components. The system must meet the rule and the spirit of the rules in all aspects. The scrutineers decision not to allow any or all components in the system is entirely at his discretion and cannot be appealed. The system cannot be improved, changed or modified in any way without prior written approval. Rule All control inputs affecting trimming and steering of the boat must be directly provided by the crew. It is not permitted to interface the operation of the control surfaces, drives, ballast tanks, fuel tanks or throttles with any devices that provide additional control input, whether electronic, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, or any other source. Any additional sensing devices, such as, but not exclusively, those used in a data acquisition system, must be demonstrably physically independent of any individual control system. For 790 HP naturally aspirated 4100kg boats; Steering must be by either drives or rudders, not both. Rudders must only be allowed to move on one axis (no retractable rudders). Drives must not steer independently of each other (no toe in or out underway). If an electronic tie bar is used, a data logger must be fitted at the teams cost.

MAXIMUM LEVELS:

PERMITTED

NOISE

The maximum permitted noise levels from any individual competing boat in a WPPA Class 1 race is 100 Decibels +5%. Readings are taken at 50 metres distance, at max RPM+/- 2% with no other race boat in the vicinity. Readings are only accepted as official when taken with the official WPPA calibrated sound meter. 106 DBA and above after the first 2 races 2009 season, non eligibility to race

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Generating worldwide media coverage across six continents.

2008 MEDIA STATISTICS

For information contact: Nigel Quilter tel: + 44 (0) 1252 713223 mob: + 44 (0) 7785 325346 email: q@class-1.com class-1.com

5 live event broadcasts 67 international and national broadcast and news crews on event 376 international and national media on event 43 countries 255 media accredited on class-1.com 8,416,375 page views class-1.com

Class 1 official highlights programme 203hrs 43minutes of broadcast exposure 443 million households 445 territories

2008 TV REPORT

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QATAR / Doha SPAIN / Alicante RUSSIA / Moscow NORWAY / Arendal ROMANIA / Constanta UKRAINE / (tbc) ITALY / Stresa MIDDLE EAST / (tbc) U.A.E. / Dubai

25 April 7 June 5 July 19 July 30 August 6 September 4 October 20 November 12 December

UNION INTERNATIONALE MOTONAUTIQUE - UIM

The Union Internationale Motonautique (U.I.M.), was formed in 1922 and is the world governing body for marine motorsport and is recognised as such by both the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC). President: Raffaele Chiulli General Secretary: Rgine Vandekerckhove

WORLD PROFESSIONAL POWERBOATING ASSOCIATION - WPPA

thewppa.com

The WPPA was founded on 2 December 2006, based on an agreement between Saeed Hareb and the International Offshore Team Association (IOTA) and is located in Dubai. The WPPA has reached an agreement with the UIM, under the terms of which the Association has the exclusive right to manage Class 1 powerboat racing. The WPPA is responsible for the development of this Class, for setting the Rules and for providing the Race Officials. General Secretary: Sid Bensalah

INTERNATIONAL OFFSHORE TEAM ASSOCIATION - IOTA

class-1.com

Founded in 1987, the International Offshore Team Association (IOTA) is the organiser and the officially-sanctioned promoter and worldwide television and commercial rights holder of the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship. It represents the collective interests of all teams competing in the championship. President: HE Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al-Thani General Secretary: Marco Sala

FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:

TIMING

Nigel Quilter tel:+44(0)1252 713223 / mob:+44(0)7785 325346 q@class-1.com / q@q4media.com / class-1.com

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