The “Dragon” of Doha Bay Next Hurtle For F1 Drivers!, Links and Updates

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Official Qualifying on Friday the 14th is scheduled for 15:30 local, 12:30 GMT and 07:30 EST on the East Coast of North America for the battle for starting positions and pole position.

The Grand Prix of the Middle East will take place on Saturday the 15th of November at the above times and can be followed on the tours official website www.f1h2o.com and viewed "live" via the worldwide television broadcast on the UIM F1 H2O World Championship of power-boating network.

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ABU DHABI - 7 November, 2014 - The race on Doha Bay has been going on for almost ten years.

Its beginnings date back to 2005. The local race organizers have moved the site to three different locations in that time frame searching for that "sweet spot" that will make the Grand Prix a memorable event year after year.

To this day, it has to be one of the roughest, most difficult, technical and puzzling bodies of water on the UIM F1 H2O World Championship calendar year as the world's best drivers prepare for this challenge along the Gulf at the third round of their 2014 series and the Grand Prix of the Middle East next week on the 14th and 15th of November.

At the races first event in '05, American Scott Gillman stole the show with his speed to take pole position but it was another Hall-of-Famer in Italian Guido Cappellini who took the flag triumphal for the first of his four victories in Qatar and his 50th career win.

The following season the course was moved from the East side of the Bay to the South end and there Italian Ivan Brigada out raced Gillman for his only F1 victory of his career thus far. He will be hoping to have that same success this next week while driving for the South African Caudwell Team along with Tomas Cermak looking for their first championship points of the season for this young organization.

This year marks the third time that multiple races will have been run on this popular circuit. The first, being back in 2007, when Thani Al Qamzi of Team Abu Dhabi along with Cappellini, later in the season, would take the top step in victory on the podium.

In 2009, when every event held a unique back-to-back two day Grand Prix weekend, Cappellini would win a rare double, cementing his 10th and final World Title taking his 60th and 61st career victories.

The home-standing QMSF (Qatar Marine Sports Federation) drivers, led by popular American driver Jay Price, would start a domination that carries into this next week, with driver from New Orleans taking both the 2010 and 2011 race events.

In 2013, it was a teammate tussle, featuring defending race winning champion Alex Carella of Italy verses the young American from Florida Shaun Torrente, with Carella leading and heading to victory when it unraveled.

The well respected pilot from Northern Italy looking at only two laps to go in the event saw his dreams fall apart when his engine let him down coming to a stop and handing the victory to Torrente and his first win of his international F1 career.

Four months later in March of this year, at the opening race of the UIM F1 H2O World Championship and the Grand Prix of Qatar, this time it was Torrente who dictated the race only to have his cockpit fill with smoke and his equipment failing him with less than six laps to go. This time it was Carella who took the prize and the first of his two back to back victories, as he leads the championship with 40 points heading into next weeks race.

The Qatar organization, who has won four of the past five events on Doha Bay are determined to keep their winning ways in tact and proved they are indeed serious about winning another Team Championship Trophy by moving their test session all the way to Florida in the USA two weeks ago. They see this as the pivotal event of the season and want to be ready to take the lead in this difficult challenge on the Gulf while keeping their streak alive when the teams arrive early next week.

Six different drivers who are expected in the line-up for the series upcoming third event of the season, have winning memories on Doha Bay and will be hoping to once again take the top-step of the podium.

Swedish driver Jonas Andersson of Team Sweden winner in 2008, will lead a strong Scandinavian connection with rookie countryman Erik Stark coming off a fine second place finish in China a month ago is ready to continue to impress.

Along with the pair of Swede's is Finnish star and two-time World Champion Sami Selio. The driver from Helsinki has a pair of poles in Qatar but has never won and needs to do so this next week if he has any chance at winning a third title for the Mad Croc Baba Race Team.

Young teammate Filip Roms, who has a pair of top ten finishes, is chasing his first podium finish after finishing a career best fifth at the first race on Doha Bay in March.

All in all, drivers from over ten different nations are expected to take up the challenge of the Gulf as the series heads to the Western banks of Doha Bay and the challenging circuit along the cornice sitting in center city Doha.

The race marks the middle event of the season and all drivers will be desperate to catch points leader Carella who searches for his record tying fourth world title in a row for the hometown Qatar Team.

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http://youtu.be/I80LpC8U6ps

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http://youtu.be/WhXg1_lgEuo

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Qatar firm favourite to win Grand Prix of Middle East
November 13, 2014 - 12:00:00 am

DOHA: The Qatar Team has left nothing to chance in its meticulous preparations for this weekend’s Grand Prix of Middle East, the third round of the UIM F1 H2O World Championship, which will be taking place in Doha Bay on Saturday.

After dominating the recent race in China and crushing the opposition in Qatar back in March, the team benefited from recent testing in Florida and both defending champion Alex Carella and team-mate Shaun Torrente arrive in Doha with the bit between their teeth.

The Qatar Team has won four of the last five races to be staged in Doha Bay.

“We have made no real changes to the boat set-up,” said Khalid bin Arhama Al Kuwari, Head of Formula Racing at the Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF).

“We believe we already have the maximum set-up. We saw at the last race that we were able to beat our main rival Sami Selio by almost 1.4 seconds on a lap. There have been some minor changes to the location of the pit area and some of the facilities on Doha Corniche, but the racecourse is perfect for the Qatar boats. I am confident that we can complete the one-two finish.”

Team Abu Dhabi again misses out on a Qatar race, but the host team still faces stiff competition from the likes of Selio in the lead Mad Croc Racing Team BaBa and the impressive Swedish driver Erik Stark, who impressed many people with his rookie performance to finish second behind Carella in the Team Nautica boat in Liuzhou last month.

Both Philippe Chiappe of the China CTIC Team and Team Sweden’s Jonas Andersson suffered disappointing performances in China and know the importance of a podium finish in Doha if they are to stay in touch with runaway leader Carella in the points’ standings.

Carella arrives in Qatar with a 25-point lead in the UIM F1 H2O Drivers’ Championship over a two-way tie for second position involving Stark and Chiappe.

Team Abu Dhabi’s Thani Al Qamzi and Duarte Benavente lie a further three points behind.

Motorglass F1 Team’s Bartek Marszalek finished an impressive fifth in China and he and Italian team-mate Francesco Cantando will also be eyeing podium finishes on Saturday.

Kuwait’s Yousef Al-Rubayan showed an impressive turn of speed to qualify third in China and the F1 GC Atlantic Team racer and colleague Duarte Benavente of Portugal are also capable of reaching the podium.

Impressive Norwegian female racer Marit Stromoy, Selio’s Finnish team-mate Filip Roms, China’s Xiong Ziwei and the Caudwell Racing duo of Ivan Brigada and Tomas Cermak complete the provisional line-up for the F1 H2O field, which will be supported by drivers competing in a pair of UIM F-4S support races.

Mohammed Al Obaidly and Khalid Abdullah Al Kuwari will represent the host nation in the F-4S races. Germany’s Mike Szymura leads Australian Briney Rigby by 25 points after three races.THE PENINSULA

http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/sports/marine-sports/307737/qatar-firm-favourite-to-win-grand-prix-of-middle-east

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2014 UIM F1 H2O World Championship standings

1. Alex Carella (QAT) Qatar Team 40 pts

2. Erik Stark (SWE) Team Nautica 15 pts

2. Philippe Chiappe (FRA) China CTIC Team 15 pts

4. Thani Al-Qamzi (ARE) Team Abu Dhabi 12 pts

4. Duarte Benavente (PRT) F1 GC Atlantic Team 12 pts

6. Filip Roms (FIN) Mad-Croc Baba Racing Team 11 pts

7. Bartek Marszalek (POL) Motorglass F1 Team 10 pts

8. Shaun Torrente (QAT) Qatar Team 9 pts

8. Francesco Cantando (ITA) Motorglass F1 Team 9 pts

10. Marit Stromoy (NOR) Team Nautica 5 pts

10. Yousef Al-Rubayan (KWT) F1 GC Atlantic Team 5 pts

10. Xiong Ziwei (CHN) China CTIC Team 5 pts

13. Sami Selio (FIN) Mad-Croc Baba Racing Team 3 pts

14. Ahmed Al-Hameli (ARE) Team Abu Dhabi 2 pts



Today’s schedule

10.00 - 15.00: Technical scrutineering F1 and F-4S

15.00 - 17.00: Extra free practice

17.30: Drivers’ briefing F1 and F-4S

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Qatar Team ready for Doha round after Florida tests


(MENAFN - The Peninsula) The current defending UIM F1 H2O World Championship winning Qatar Team tested last month for multiple days ahead of the upcoming Grand Prix of Qatar to be contested on November 14 and 15 on Doha Bay for the third and pivotal round of the 2014 UIM F1 H2O World Championship.

The full complement of personal from the QMSF (Qatar Marine Sports Federation) were on hand outside Orlando consisting of Team Leader Khalid Al Kuwari along with Assistant Team Manager Brendan Power, drivers Alex Carella and Shaun Torrente, Team Adviser Atillio Donzelli and propeller developer David DeWald.

Also on board for the tests were F4S drivers Mohammed Al Obaidly and Khalid Abdulla Al Kuwari.

The test lake, in a secret location in Central Florida, is set up as a perfect platform for tests as the team worked for multiple days in perfect weather with warm sunshine and light winds getting in many hours of testing and preparation for their upcoming Grand Prix.

A year ago in Doha, Shaun Torrente took the checkered flag, the first of his career.

He won after chasing his team-mate Alex Carella for all but the final two laps when the three time World Champion developed engine problems ending his dreams of his first victory on his team's home circuit.

Four months later, in March this year, the tables turned with Shaun leading the way until the final six laps when smoke in the cockpit forced him to pull off the circuit in the lead of the event handing the win his team-mate Alex for his first win of the season and his first victory on the Doha Bay.

After both drivers traded times on the water, the past few days in their 2009 "test mule" boat on their test lake, they turned the boat over to the "youngsters", giving their F4S drivers Al Obaidly and Al Kuwari their first ever F1 experience.

Both drivers ended the session with about 10 laps each behind the controls of an F1 DAC boat with both hoping someday to be representing the Qatar nation team in mega events.

http://www.menafn.com/1094003243/Qatar-Team-ready-for-Doha-round-after-Florida-tests

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Qatar gives final touches to preparations for mega races

DOHA: The Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF) is preparing for one of its most eventful two-week period in the annual calendar.

Doha Bay plays host to this weekend’s Grand Prix of Middle East, round three of the 2014 UIM F1 H2O World Championship, and the Oryx Cup, the final round of the H1 Unlimited series, follows straight afterwards and takes place from November 20 to 22.

Staff at the QMSF are putting the finishing touches to the pit and spectator areas, media and official facilities and the racecourse adjacent to Doha Corniche in preparation for the on-water action, which gets underway with additional free practice for the UIM F1 H2O racers tomorrow.

“The policy of the QMSF has always been to target major events to attract as many fans as we can,” said H E Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al Thani, President of the QMSF.

“We have been building a fan base for the federation at home and have been successful in attracting local Qataris to start competing in various boating disciplines, which all bodes well for a strong future for marine sports in Qatar.”

Sheikh Hassan and the Spirit of Qatar Team did not take part in last weekend’s races at Key West in Florida and have now firmly placed the emphasis on making sure the QMSF hosts the best races ever on Doha Bay over the next two weeks.

The Qatar Team has dominated the UIM F1 H20 World Championship in recent seasons and Alex Carella takes a commanding lead into the Doha Bay race this weekend after winning the opening two rounds of the series in Qatar in March and China last month.

“Alex and Shaun (Torrente) have done a lot this year. They have been racing hard and delivering what they promised for the Qatar Team,” enthused Sheikh Hassan.

“I feel they have a very strong chance of claiming the top two places on the podium after the race on Saturday afternoon. We are also hoping to take delivery of a couple of new boats for Khalid Abdullah Al Kuwari and Mohammed Al Obaidly to use in the F-4S support races on Friday and Saturday.”

Meanwhile, the Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF) has also announced that the experienced Canadian racer Jean Theoret has replaced Kip Brown and will occupy the hot seat of 96 Spirit of Qatar at the Oryx Cup, the final round of the H1 Unlimited Championship, from November 20 to 22.

Brown is receiving medical treatment Stateside for a herniated disc in his back and six-time H1 race winner Theoret is an excellent replacement for the QMSF-backed team.

His six wins came between 2005 and 2009 and included a fine victory at the 2006 Detroit APBA Gold Cup.

“The new driver was the selection of both myself and Erick Ellstrom of Ellstrom Racing,” added Sheikh Hassan.

“We both agreed that Jean can deliver what is expected from him at the Oryx Cup.”

Tomorrow is the completion of the set-up on the Doha Corniche, with teams carrying out last minute tuning and modifications to the boats before official administration, scrutineering and additional free practice take place, on the day. THE PENINSULA

http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/sports/marine-sports/307682/qatar-gives-final-touches-to-preparations-for-mega-races

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DOHA (QATAR): The Qatar Team’s Shaun Torrente and Alex Carella claimed pole position and third place for Saturday’s Grand Prix of Middle East, round three of the 2014 UIM F1 H2O World Championship, after a thrilling third qualifying session in Doha Bay on Friday afternoon.

Carella laid down the gauntlet from third place in the Q3 shoot-out with a second lap of 49.56sec, despite later complaining of a minor engine issue. That was surpassed within minutes by a lap of 49.16sec set by Philippe Chiappe, the Frenchman bidding to claim his first ever F1 pole position. But the Qatar Team’s Torrente was not to be denied and, in fading light on Doha Bay, Torrente carded a stunning time of 48.65sec on his first run to claim pole position.

“That was some finish, great to watch and very exciting,” said His Excellency Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al-Thani, president of the Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF).

“Alex maybe had a little issue with his boat, but then Philippe (Chiappe) posted that time of 49.16 and it looked as though that was enough. Then up stepped Shaun and he goes under 49 seconds. Incredible. It was a great spectacle and that sets the scene nicely for the race tomorrow.”

Qatar Team efforts to build two new Molgaard boats for the F-4S races paid off. Khalid Abdullah Al-Kuwari and Mohammed Al-Obaidly qualified in second and fourth places for the first of the races, with Al-Kuwari missing out on pole position by a mere 8/100ths of a second.

After a battle with Australia’s Briney Rigby during the early stages of the 20-lap race, Al-Kuwari found a fast late rhythm and reached the chequered flag in third place after closing on runner-up Jan Andre Landsnes over the last few laps. Germany’s Mike Szymura claimed his third win from four starts and led from start-to-finish to extend his series lead to 36 points.

Qualifying

Five of the 16 entrants from 10 nations would be eliminated from the 20-minute Q1 session on the revised Doha Bay course. Kuwait’s Yousef Al-Rubayan set the early target time of 51.63sec before a yellow flag was raised when Caudwell Racing’s Ivan Brigada stopped on the racing line.

Qatar’s Torrente and Carella had already posted competitive times of 51.70sec and 52.12sec and returned to the pits to prepare for Q2. Action resumed with nine and a half minutes remaining.

Al-Rubayan’s earlier time wasn’t surpassed and Tomas Cermak, Duarte Benavente, Jesper Forss, Brigada and Bartek Marszalak were eliminated after Cantando posted a late time of 53.02sec to stay in the hunt for the shoot-out.

A further five drivers would fall by the wayside in Q2 leaving six boats to take part in a two-lap shoot-out for pole position. Torrente laid down the gauntlet with two stunning laps of 50.49sec and 49.97sec to book his place in Q3. Carella survived with a lap of 50.97sec, but Erik Stark, Xiong Ziwei, Sami Selio, Francesco Cantando and Filip Roms missed out.

Marit Stromoy posted a Q3 target lap of 52.37sec as Jonas Andersson took to the course for the first of his two laps and stopped the clocks on 49.86sec. Al-Rubayan recorded a 50.39sec before Carella entered the course and moved up to second with a first lap of 49.91sec before claiming provisional pole with a stunning time of 49.56sec.

As the sun set over Doha, Chiappe slotted into third with a time of 50.37sec and stunned Carella with an awesome second lap of 49.16sec. This left Torrente to try and deprive Chiappe of a first ever pole position and the American produced a stunning opening tour of 48.65sec to smash the opposition and claim pole position.

The Qatar Team dominated the first official practice session after Chiappe had set the early pace in his new boat. Torrente topped the one-hour stint with a best lap of 49.70sec, with Chiappe in second on 49.95sec and Carella in third (50.25sec), despite feeling the effects of a ‘flu virus.

Benavente borrowed the spare Francesco Cantando DAC boat to set the 13th quickest time after his original hull had delaminated during Thursday afternoon’s free practice.

Al-Rubayan was running as high as sixth before stopping on the racing line and forcing a yellow flag with just under 18 minutes of the session remaining.

F-4S Trophy – race one

Mike Szymura pipped Qatar’s Khalid Abdullah Al-Kuwari to pole position for the first of the Qatar races in the closing few minutes before the session was yellow flagged when Al-Kuwari stopped on the racing line with no fuel. Jan Andre Landsnes qualified third and Mohammed Al-Obaidly slotted into fourth.

“I was very happy with the time trials, the boat is perfect, much better,” said Al-Kuwari.

Szymura was not to be denied a third win of the season from four starts and, despite being pressured by Landsnes for much of the race, he reached the chequered flag with a winning margin of 17.34 seconds. Al-Kuwari lost second on the opening lap, slipped to fourth and eventually regained third after closing to within 1.31sec of Landsnes over the last few circuits. Al-Obaidly ran a lonely race in fifth position to claim valuable championship points.

Sterling work by the Qatar Team mechanics ensured that the pair of Danish-built Molgaards were ready for the first official practice session. Al-Obaidly and Al-Kuwari ran for nine and 16 laps respectively and set best times of 1min 05.28sec and 1min 06.44sec in a 20-minute session won by Szymura with a lap of 1min 02.28sec.

Tomorrow (Saturday) free practice precedes the second time trials and UIM F-4S race. The 2014 Grand Prix of Middle East takes centre stage on Doha Bay from 15.30hrs.

2014 Grand Prix of Middle East – qualifying results
1. Shaun Torrente (QAT) Qatar Team 48.65sec
2. Philippe Chiappe (FRA) China CTIC Team 49.16sec
3. Alex Carella (QAT) Qatar Team 49.56sec
4. Jonas Andersson (SWE) Team Sweden 49.86sec
5. Yousef Al-Rubayan (KUW) F1 GC Atlantic Team 50.39sec
6. Marit Stromoy (NOR) Team Nautica 52.37sec

2014 UIM F1 H20 Pole Position Championship – positions after round 3:
1. Alex Carella (QAT) Qatar Team 41 pts
2. Jonas Andersson (SWE) Team Sweden 36 pts
3. Shaun Torrente (QAT) Qatar Team 32 pts
4. Sami Selio (FIN) Mad-Croc Baba Racing Team 30 pts
5. Yousef Al-Rubayan (KWT) F1 GC Atlantic Team 24 pts
6. Philippe Chiappe (FRA) China CTIC Team 22 pts
7. Duarte Benavente (PRT) F1 GC Atlantic Team 9 pts
8. Francesco Cantando (ITA) Motorglass F1 Team 5 pts
8. Marit Stromoy (NOR) Team Nautica 5 pts

2014 Grand Prix of Middle East – F-4S Trophy race one results:
1. Mike Szymura (DEU) F1 GC Atlantic Team 20 laps
2. Jan Andre Landsnes (NOR) Motorglass F1 Team @ 17.34sec
3. Khalid Abdullah Al-Kuwari (QAT) Qatar Team @ 19.05sec
4. Briney Rigby (AUS) Team Sweden @ 40.33sec
5. Mohammed Al-Obaidly (QAT) Qatar Team @ 62.66sec
6. Bincheng Wu (CHN) China CTIC Team 1 lap behind
7. Ronny Mathys (SUI) Mad-Croc Baba Racing Team 3 laps behind
8. Mickus Sigitas (LIT) Team Nautica 4 laps behind

2014 F-4S Trophy – latest positions:
1. Mike Szymura (DEU) F1 GC Atlantic Team 75 pts
2. Briney Rigby (AUS) Team Sweden 39 pts
3. Jan Andre Landsnes (NOR) Motorglass F1 Team 36 pts
4. Khalid Abdullah Al-Kuwari (QAT) Qatar Team 26 pts
5. Joakim Halvorsen (NOR) Team Nautica 21 pts
6. Jesper Forss (SWE) Team Sweden 20 pts
6. Mohammed Al-Obaidly (QAT) Qatar Team 20 pts
8. Nikita Lijcs (LVA) Mad-Croc Baba Racing Team 12 pts
8. Bincheng Wu (CHN) China CTIC Team 12 pts
10. Morgan Jernfast (SWE) Team Nautica 7 pts
10. Mohamed Al-Mehairbi (ARE) Team Abu Dhabi 7 pts
12. Rashed Al-Remeithi (ARE) Team Abu Dhabi 4 pts
12. Ronny Mathys (SUI) Mad-Croc Baba Racing Team 4 pts
14. Mickus Sigitas (LIT) Team Nautica 3 pts

2014 Grand Prix of Middle East - timetable of events

Saturday, November 15
09.15-10.15 F1 free practice
10.30-10.50 F-4S free practice
11.00-11.20 F-4S time trial
13.30-13.50 F-4S race two – 20mins
15.30-16.15 Grand Prix of Middle East
16.30 F1 and F-4S awards ceremony

For further information:
Neil Perkins, NDP Publicity Services, Mobile: + 44 7831 123153, E-mail: ndppublicity@googlemail.com,
www.ndp-publicity.com (press releases). Twitter: @LordPerkins
www.qmsf.org
www.f1h20.com

http://www.qmsf.org/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=843:qatar-teams-shaun-torrente-claims-thrilling-last-gasp-pole-position-for-grand-prix-of-middle-east&catid=13:flashnews

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http://youtu.be/7cbmjICtWfE

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F-4S Szymura Cruises To Overall Victory In Qatar

Saturday, 15 November: Germany's Mike Szymura took overall honours in round 3 of the F4S Trophy in Qatar with a comfortable start-to-finish win in race 2 to complete the win-double on Doha Bay.

The Team F1 GC Atlantic driver got the jump on a slightly overzealous pole-sitter Khalid Al Kuwari to lead into turn one and was unchallenged and well clear on lap 13 when backmarker Ronny Mathys tipped his boat over bringing out the yellow flag allowing the field to bunch up.

Szymura was unfazed and after being held for three laps under yellow raced away at the restart to take the chequered flag and his fourth win of the year by 3.92seconds.

Sixteen-year-old Briney Rigby trailed Qatar's Al Kuwari for nine of the 20 laps before finding her way passed, her move immediately mirrored by Jan Andre Landsnes who followed the young Australian home to the chequered flag to take second overall ahead of Rigby, taking her second podium in two events.

Mohammed Al-Obaidly was elevated to fourth place ahead of teammate Al Kuwari who was given a post-race one lap penalty for a jump start, with F4S debutant Mickus Sigitas finishing in sixth, Wu Bingchen retiring on lap 18 after an eventful couple of final laps of his race hooking twice at the same turn.

With two events to go in Abu Dhabi [20-21 November]and Sharjah [18-19 December] Mike Szymura is closing in on his second Championship and heads the points table on 95, with Briney Rigby in second on 54, six points ahead of Jan Andre Landsnes.

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F1S - Shaun Torrente Wins Grand Prix of Middle East

Victory of Shaun Torrente , Team Qatar , in the Grand prix of Middle East in Doha this November 15th, 2014. Second is Philippe Chiappe, Team CTIC China and the third is Sami Selio, Mad Croc Baba Racing Team .

http://i730.photobucket.com/albums/ww310/ptrose/Advertisements%20and%20Event%20Notices/DohaF12014.jpg (http://s730.photobucket.com/user/ptrose/media/Advertisements%20and%20Event%20Notices/DohaF12014.jpg.html)