Aquabike World Championship Rd 2: Report and Results
GP1 Runabout
James Bushell GP1 winner – pic courtesy Aquabike Official
Top 3 for New Zealand #1 Carl Lampe – pic courtesy Aquabike Official
Sunday, 11 June, VIESTE (Italy): James Bushell took overall victory in Runabout GP1 in the UIM-ABP Aquabike Grand Prix of the Mediterranean, despite a big crash after the start forced him back into the pits to repair his damaged Ski.
The British rider went back out and fought his way from last to finish in 11th and salvage five points, to snatch overall victory from Moto2 winner Yousef Al Abdulrazzaq. Third place overall went to Estonia’s Anton Pankratov.
The expected head-to-head between pole sitter and Moto1 winner Bushell and Abdulrazzaq in P2 was short-lived with Bushell’s race compromised on the run to the first turn when he collided violently with Sweden’s Lars Akerblom, the coming together forcing Bushell to pit, Akerblom dropping to 11th his race then coming to a premature end on lap 6.
“What do I have to do,” said Bushell. “It all went wrong just after the start when Lars took off on a wave and landed on me which ripped my seat off. I came in to try to secure it but in such rough conditions the quick fix didn’t really work. It was almost impossible, trying to ride and keep hold of my seat. So I just tried to get round and do enough to get into the points.”
At the front it was France’s Christophe Agostinho who coped with the conditions best, but his race ended on lap 4, with Abdulrazzaq hitting the front and running out a comfortable winner.
After breaking down in Moto1 Jeremy Perez turned things around producing a battling performance fighting his way up from ninth to finish in second place, with New Zealander Carl Lampe enjoying his best outing in only his second Grand Prix on the UIM-ABP tour, coming home in third.
France’s Patrice Pellier finished in fourth ahead of Anton Pankratov, the Estonian riders fifth place earning him a podium place with third place overall, with Johan Johanson completing the top six.
Ski GP1
Victory for Mickael Poret in Ski GP1 – pic courtesy Aquabike Official
Sunday, 11 June, VIESTE (Italy): Mickael Poret celebrated his first Moto win in over a year and a first Grand Prix title since lifting his first world championship in 2010 following the dramatic disqualification of Quinten Bossche in Ski Moto2 at the UIM-ABP Aquabike Grand Prix of the Mediterranean.
Poret and Bossche traded places at the front early on, Poret losing the lead after the opening lap then getting it back before being passed by the young Belgian rider for the second time on lap three and trailing him to the chequered flag.
But the victory that would have given him his first Grand Prix title was short-lived with Bossche penalised and disqualified for cutting the course, handing the win and title to Poret. “I was not happy immediately after the race mainly because I did not ride well. Normally I like these conditions but I was not so good out there today,” said Mickael Poret.
“I had a great fight with Quinten in really bad conditions and he was really flying. But I saw him miss the buoy so I didn’t bother to chase him and was more concentrated on not making a mistake and letting Maurin pass me. My last big win was very far away and to win again on the same day my sister wins to is fantastic.”
Raphael Maurin made it a France one-two with his best result from the opening rounds of the season and was unchallenged in second and secured his first podium, with 2015 world champion Kevin Reiterer ending his run of bad luck moving up from 12th to take third today and finally put some solid points on the board.
Defending champion Jeremy Poret struggled in the rough conditions but fourth place today after finishing in second in Moto1 put him on the podium in third overall.
Fifteen-year-old Estonian rider Marten Manni produced another impressive performance coming home in fifth with Stian Schjetlein in sixth.
After the opening two rounds, Jeremy Poret leads the title race with 78 points, 6 clear of Mickael Poret with Quinten Bossche in third on 66.
Ladies Ski GP1
Overall winner in Ladies Ski Gp1 Estelle Poret – pic courtesy Aquabike Official
Second consecutive top 3 for New Zealander/Aussie Kylie Ellmers – pic courtesy Aquabike Official
Sunday, 11 June, VIESTE (Italy): France’s Estelle Poret capped a memorable 10 days in Italy after winning her second Grand Prix title of the season with victory in Moto2 at the UIM-ABP Aquabike Grand Prix of the Mediterranean.
Second place overall went to defending champion and Moto1 winner Emma-Nellie Ortendahl despite only managing fourth today, with Kylie Ellmers’ second place sealing the remaining podium place.
With the start of Moto2 delayed due to strong winds and large swells it was the 11 riders in Ski Ladies who were first to take on the testing conditions.
Poret made a poor start and was lying in third at the end of lap 1 with New Zealander Ellmers out front and Italy’s Marta Sorrentino in second place.
Ellmers led for five of the eight laps but it was Poret who was on the charge, passing Sorrentino on lap 2 and then Ellmers to hit the front and go on to win comfortably by 15.42s.
“It’s perfect and an amazing two weeks for me in Italy,” said Poret after winning her third career Grand Prix title. “The conditions were very difficult and I got off to a poor start. I was very careful throughout the race and made sure not to make mistakes and I think that is what got me to the front.”
Today’s result keeps Estelle Poret on top of the championship points’ standings with 86, 10 clear of Ortendahl with Ellmers in third with 72.
Ellmers third place today continued her great run of form in 2017 and on her relatively untested new SDC ‘whale’, racking up four top three finishes and two podiums.
If the conditions were too much for champion Ortendahl, Marta Sorrentino relished in them getting her best result for a long time with a fantastic ride to third to take fourth overall and saying at the end ‘I told you. I am from Sardinia. We don’t fear the waves’.
UIM-ABP newcomer Krista Uzare took her best result with fifth, finishing ahead of Jonna Borgstrom.
Next round is 5-7 October 2017 in China
