ITALIAN CANTANDO LOOKS TO MAKE IT 3 STRAIGHT IN EMIRATES!
CAPPELLINI STILL CONFIDENT OF TAKING 6TH TITLE!

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND: Sunday, 7th of October – Many a sports philosopher has stated that "It's not what you are doing at the start of the season but how you are doing at the end of the season", that determines many championships. If this was a 1500 metre sprint race, Francesco Cantando last year's championship runner-up would be leading on the bell lap primed and ready to take home his first ever U.I.M. F1 World Championship for power boating title. However, the full race has not been run and his greatest challenge comes from a 5-time World Champion who is looking for his 6th Guido Cappellini.

The 26 year old from Milan, Italy is coming off two back to back wins in Stralsund, Germany and Vienna, Austria and has moved in front of the slumping fellow Italian Guido Cappellini who has lost his way to the victory column while taking a lowly 3rd and then being disqualified out of the lead of the last event on the Danube in Vienna. Cantando, lead driver of the Singha Beer Waircom Team has lots of confidence and why not, with back to back victories and at the same time knowing he won back to back events in the United Arab Emirates to end the 2000 season.

Cantando, who how has 5 wins in his career, has been red hot in the last half of this season with 3 podiums in the last four races and 5 in the last 6 starts. On the other hand, Cappellini, in his 16th season of racing F1, hasn't won a race since June and is looking for his first win since Campione in Italy at the season's 5th event.

In 2000 Cantando ended the season just two points behind eventual World Champion Scott Gillman of Englewood Springs, Colorado and pushed the 2-time titleholder to the maximum forcing Gillman to take a pair of 2nds in Sharjah and Abu Dhabi giving his Emirates Team their very first title.

Sharjah, ready to entertain the U.I.M. F1 tour for the 2nd time saw Cantando take the pole and win coming from behind last year to beat Gillman who lead early. The young Italian then came from the back of the field to overpower everyone and pass Gillman and then Cappellini to take his 7th straight podium of the season and his 3rd victory of 2000.

Cappellini, on the other hand, has had 5 weeks to prepare for these next back to back events and like Cantando has won twice in the Emirates, both in Abu Dhabi in 1996 and 1999 both years he won the World title. Cappellini only trials by 4 points 96 to 92 to Cantando but feels that he is ready to “stop the bleeding” and get back on the championship track.

With the Italian duo battling for the crown, others are looking to make late season statements beginning with Frenchman Philippe Dessertenne in his Fuchs machine sitting in 3rd in the title chase and not out of it yet with 77 points on 8 straight finishes this season and 7 top 5 results in 2001. His luck in the Emirates needs to change however with a best 9th being his best in 7 starts.

Vivid Team driver Victor Kunitch has been red hot of late with his first ever win in Sardinia in August and then a 2nd in Vienna in the last round. The driver from Moscow, Russia has picked up 35 points in his last 3 events of the total 56 he has gathered this year.

A driver who has more success in the Emirates than any other driver in the history of the sport is Italian Massimo Roggiero who despite never winning an event has been on the podium 4 times with a pair of 2nds and 3rds. His 4th in Sharjah last year only brings more determination to the driver from northern Italy who is looking for his 3rd pole of the season along with his 2nd career victory.

Defending World Champion Scott Gillman and lead driver of the Emirates Team is coming back for the 5th year with a win in 1997 and two podiums last year with a pair of 2nds in Sharjah and Abu Dhabi to seal his 2nd world title. Gillman has 30 points and has had the worst luck of his career still looking for his first victory after four straight seasons on the U.I.M. F1 tour with at least 2 victories in a season.

Gillman's teammates Awad Al Qubaisi comes into the event with 12 points for the year and tied for 15th in the championship hunt. 2001 has been a bit of a disappointment for the native of Abu Dhabi who was 9th in the title in 2000. Al Qubaisi was running his best race of the season early in the Sharjah event behind his teammate Gillman in 2nd when he hurt his hand and was forced to drop out of the event.

The third member of the Emirates squad is newcomer Thani Al Qamzi who in only 6 starts has picked up 3 points this season starting his F1 career a year ago and did well in the Emirates races with a 7th in Abu Dhabi at days end. Al Qamzi is the Emirates driver of the future and is getting stronger and more confident with each event under his belt.

Fabrizio Bocca of Italy is sitting 12th in the title hunt coming off a 4th in the last event in Vienna and has made the top 5 three times in the Emirates. Swedish driver Jari Honkala had a great race in Vienna and wants to continue his new surge with a 3rd and his first podium in Austria with 2.5 litre Mercury power.

Argentina driver Carlos Maidana, who made his F1 debut in the 1995 event in Abu Dhabi brings his Texaco Team to Sharjah with new teammate Tiste Orozco Spain's first F1 pilot in the history of the sport. Maidana, who now makes his home in England, has had great success in the Emirates with a podium in Abu Dhabi and a 3rd in 1998.

The "Emirates Tour"begins with the 2nd Annual Grand Prix of the Emirates on Friday, October 12th as the 9th round of the season. Round 10 will be the following week on the Cornieche of Abu Dhabi and the Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi on the 19th of October.

The races in the Middle East will mark a turning point in the 10 month quest for the battle of the championship for the U.I.M. F1 World Championship for power boating.