David & Zimmerman Win Friday Prelims
Jon Zimmerman, Kip Brown and J Michael Kelly exit turn 2 of lap 1. Photo by Lisa Courneya - H1
The 2013 Oryx Cup UIM World Championship got underway Friday on Doha Bay with testing, qualifying and the running of the first two preliminary heats.
Kip Brown and the newly recolored 95 Spirit of Qatar was the first boat out for qualifying and set a high mark of 142.177. Only the final qualifier, Steve David in the 1 Oh Boy! Oberto was able to to top that mark with a speed of 146.424.
Brown’s boat, normally the 17 Miss Red Dot, is substituting for the 96 Spirit of Qatar which was badly damaged in the 2012 Oryx Cup.
Heat 1A produced a rematch of the final heat of the 2012 Oryx Cup, held on the same course In January. Jimmy Shane in the 5 Graham Trucking, secured lane 1 just as he did then. But this time, David, the newly crowned 2012 Season High Points Champion, was able to take the lead in lane two and hold off the challenge from Shane on the inside.
Heat 1B produced a tremendous race as J Michael Kelly in the 37 Miss Beacon Plumbing won the battle for the inside with Brown in the 95 Spirit of Qatar to his right and John Zimmerman in the 9 Jones Racing on the outside at the start.
The three white boats came out of the first turn in perfect formation, with Zimmerman having a slight advantage in lane 3. Zimmerman’s superior speed produced a rare win from lane three, with Kelly and Brown in the hunt for all three laps. Brown was forced to change lanes entering turn two on lap three and got in front of Kelly who drove up his roostertail. Kelly nearly blew over but managed to save it, moving up into second place after Brown was penalized.
Racing will continue with Heats 2A, 2B, 3A and 3B on Saturday. Heats 4A, 4B and the Championship Final will be held on Tuesday as the centerpiece of Qatar’s National Sports Day.
David & Zimmerman Win Friday Prelims
Jon Zimmerman, Kip Brown and J Michael Kelly exit turn 2 of lap 1. Photo by Lisa Courneya - H1
The 2013 Oryx Cup UIM World Championship got underway Friday on Doha Bay with testing, qualifying and the running of the first two preliminary heats.
Kip Brown and the newly recolored 95 Spirit of Qatar was the first boat out for qualifying and set a high mark of 142.177. Only the final qualifier, Steve David in the 1 Oh Boy! Oberto was able to to top that mark with a speed of 146.424.
Brown’s boat, normally the 17 Miss Red Dot, is substituting for the 96 Spirit of Qatar which was badly damaged in the 2012 Oryx Cup.
Heat 1A produced a rematch of the final heat of the 2012 Oryx Cup, held on the same course In January. Jimmy Shane in the 5 Graham Trucking, secured lane 1 just as he did then. But this time, David, the newly crowned 2012 Season High Points Champion, was able to take the lead in lane two and hold off the challenge from Shane on the inside.
Heat 1B produced a tremendous race as J Michael Kelly in the 37 Miss Beacon Plumbing won the battle for the inside with Brown in the 95 Spirit of Qatar to his right and John Zimmerman in the 9 Jones Racing on the outside at the start.
The three white boats came out of the first turn in perfect formation, with Zimmerman having a slight advantage in lane 3. Zimmerman’s superior speed produced a rare win from lane three, with Kelly and Brown in the hunt for all three laps. Brown was forced to change lanes entering turn two on lap three and got in front of Kelly who drove up his roostertail. Kelly nearly blew over but managed to save it, moving up into second place after Brown was penalized.
Racing will continue with Heats 2A, 2B, 3A and 3B on Saturday. Heats 4A, 4B and the Championship Final will be held on Tuesday as the centerpiece of Qatar’s National Sports Day.