Powerboat P1 - France Grand Prix, Fountain Worldwide Conam Yachts Double Again

Another weekend of challenging racing in Marseilles, South of France for the Powerboat P1 circus. The second way point of the 2008 season, was an impressive duel with wind and rough waters showing the typical crazy conditions of the Mediterranean breeze of which this particular harbour has a fame for. The other big challenge which all the competitors are facing is to stop the 2007 champions, which so far seem unstoppable. May be last year we might not have seen the full potential of the winners in the respective classes!

Evolution

The 99 Fountain 1st4boats.com took a dominant win in Saturday Evolution class Sprint race of the Grand Prix de Marseille, heading home the 88 Kiton Outerlimits OSG Racing boat and the 10 Fantastic 1 Cigarette Racing Team in a dramatic event that had thrills and spills aplenty. The race got off to a controversial start before the boats even reached the first turn as the 99 Fountain boat and the 69 Honeyparty.com had a close shave that left the 69 Honeyparty.com boat limping back to harbour with severe hull damage. In the ensuing confusion, the majority of boats managed to miss the first buoy, allowing the 99 Fountain boat to make a clean escape before building a 20-second lead. The 88 Kiton Outerlimits boat emerged at the end of the start lap in second place, gradually easing away from a close battle between the 77 Lucas Oil team and the 10 Fantastic 1 Cigarette boat. That battle turned in the Cigarette team’s favour when the 77 Lucas Oil boat seemed to turn round the first turn buoy too tightly, making a quick course correction that allowed the 10 Fantastic 1 boat to slip ahead. A tough day turned even tougher for the 77 Lucas Oil crew as they slowly dropped back into the clutches of the 57 Centaurian Yachts team and then retired with a technical problem just two laps from the end of the race. Those fortunes contrast starkly with those of the 99 Fountain 1st4boats.com team, who have now scored their third victory on the trot (if you discount their current disqualification from the Italian Grand Prix of the Sea Sprint race). The reigning champions are looking as unbeatable as ever.

Can anyone stop the 99 Fountain 1st4boats.com team? In another spectacular display in incredibly rough conditions, the reigning champion crew won the shortened Endurance race of the Grand Prix de Marseille in southern France, and secured the overall Grand Prix of the Sea victory with a full 200-point score. This wasn’t the Fountain team’s easiest win, though, as they first had to come from behind and then defend their lead from a variety of rival challenges. After a typically chaotic first lap, the 69 Honeyparty.com boat took the early lead from the 53 Pignolo 53 entry, with the 77 Lucas Oil crew, the 10 Fantastic 1 Cigarette Racing Team Europe entry and the 99 Fountain 1st4boats.com duo rounding out the top five. The Fountain crew were very quickly on the move, though, passing the Cigarette boat for fourth by the end of the first full flying lap. On lap four, they moved past the 77 Lucas Oil boat into third, which quickly became second as technical gremlins once again blighted the British-based 69 Honeyparty.com boat, forcing a halt, ending another another frustratingly pointless weekend. 53 Pignolo did well to hold off the challenge from the 99 Fountain boat for the lead, but Sheppard and Wilson lurked perfectly on the 53 boat's wake and moved ahead on lap five before quickly pulling clear. The race came to a thrilling climax as first the 10 Fantastic 1 Cigarette boat ground to a halt from third place with what looked suspiciously like engine problems. That allowed the 60 GFN Gibellato diesel-powered boat to show its rough-weather form by moving into third, before powering past the 53 Pignolo 53 boat to take second on the final lap. The 88 Kiton Outerlimits OSG Racing rounded out the full race finishers in fourth place. There was more heartbreak for the pre-weekend championship leading 77 Lucas Oil team as they slowed from third place in the mid-stages of the race and limped home with only one working engine. They lost their championship lead, while reigning Evolution title winners Fountain Worldwide move into a clear lead that could get even bigger if they recover the 100 points they lost in the Italian Grand Prix of the Sea Sprint race in appeal. Two teams with even bigger post-weekend headaches are the German 66 Cranefields Wine Searex Racing team and the Belgian 57 Centaurian Yachts entry, both of whom ended up limping back to the harbour midway through the race with battle damage from the first lap chaos. The 57 Centaurian Yachts entry was particularly badly damaged, with a huge hole in the right-hand side of the boat. With plenty of battle-scarred boats to repair after a bruising rough Grand Prix de Marseille weekend, and a lot of catching up to do if anyone wants to overhaul the 99 Fountain team, it looks like a busy couple of weeks for the Evolution teams in the gap before the Malta Grand Prix of the Sea. But, for Powerboat P1 fans, if the racing is anything like this weekend, then we can't wait...!

SuperSport

The reigning champion 44 Conam Yachts crew continued their dominance of the SuperSport class in the Sprint race of the Grand Prix de Marseille. The Italian-based led home the 59 Saho Offshore Rana’s boat and the 08 Phoenix TV team, with an almost three-minute lead at the chequered flag. The battle for second place was initially an incredibly close-fought scrap between the 47 Silverline Buzzi Bullet and 07 VoomVoom.com crews, but both boats ground to a halt midway through the race with technical problems, severely hampering their bid to stay ahead of the 44 Conam Yachts crew at the top of the points table.

The 44 Conam Yachts team continued their impressive start to their SuperSport title defence in France, dominating the shortened Endurance race of the Grand Prix de Marseille to complete a weekend double victory and secure overall Grand Prix of the Sea victory, leading the way from the start to win by a comfortable 26-second margin from the 07 VoomVoom.com and 08 Phoenix TV boats. That puts the reigning champions back in the lead of the SuperSport class, with an 80-point advantage over the 08 Phoenix TV crew. The 38 Baia High Performance crew got the better of the 47 Silverline Buzzi Bullet boat in the scrap for fourth place, while the 59 Saho crew did a solid job to recover to sixth place after missing the first turn buoy and dropping to the tail end of the field. The 46 Spirit of Portomaso boat rounded out the race finishers, with the 22 Big Sergio retiring from the race and the 11 Sunseeker team failing to start after yesterday Saturday’s practice incident that resulted in the team’s entry sinking.

Evolution Class Sprint Results

1 99 Fountain Worldwide 1st4boats.com 48m32.25s
2 88 Kiton Outerlimits 49m20.55s
3 10 The Fantastic 1 49m21.93s
4 57 Centaurian Yachts 58m41.67s
5 53 Pignolo 53 48m39.26s - 1 lap
6 60 GFN Gibellato 50m23.49s - 1 lap
7 66 Cranefields Wine 51m31.11s - 1 lap
8 77 Lucas Oil 53m31.51s - 1 lap
9 69 honeyparty.com RET
10 76 Italcraft DNS
Evolution Class Endurance Results
1 99 Fountain Worldwide 1st4boats.com 45m00.13s
2 60 GFN Gibellato 45m06.17s
3 53 Pignolo 53 45m06.17s
4 88 Kiton Outerlimits 45m25.71s
5 77 Lucas Oil 47m42.67s - 1 lap
6 10 The Fantastic 1 48m07.03s - 1 lap
7 69 honeyparty.com RET
8 57 Centaurian Yachts RET
9 66 Cranefields Wine RET
10 76 Italcraft DNS
SuperSport Class Sprint Results
1 44 Conam Yachts 49m59.64s
2 59 Saho 52m45.37s
3 08 Phoenix TV 52m45.37s
4 38 Baia High Performance 54m14.55s
5 46 The Spirit of Portomaso 51m14.70s - 1 lap
6 22 The Big Sergio 50m47.16s - 2 laps
7 47 Silverline Buzzi Bullet RET
8 07 VoomVoom.com RET
9 11 Sunseeker Challenger DNS
SuperSport Class Endurance Results
1 44 Conam Yachts 44m09.81s
2 07 VoomVoom.com 44m09.81s
3 08 Phoenix TV 44m35.10s
4 38 Baia High Performance 45m19.26s
5 47 Silverline Buzzi Bullet 45m39.67s
6 59 Saho 47m09.22s
7 46 The Spirit of Portomaso 48m06.85s
8 11 Sunseeker Challenger DNS
9 22 The Big Sergio RET

www.powerboatp1.com