Oryx Cup Will Decide 2012 Champion
With the 2012 Air National Guard H1 Unlimited racing season winding down and the fleet secured in the Qatar Marine Sports Federation’s storage facility in Doha in preparation for the Oryx Cup UIM World Championship January 10 – 12, the series high points leader board finds familiar names at the top.
After starting the season with back-to-back wins in the first two races of 2012, defending champion Dave Villwock and his Spirit of Qatar team find themselves in danger of handing the coveted U-1 designation back to three time winner Steve David and the 6 Oh Boy! Oberto.
Villwock and David each won two races in 2012, but David’s wins in Seattle and San Diego to end the US tour helped him build the 652 point cushion he will take to Doha for the season ender. David says, “All of us on team Oberto look forward to Doha and regaining U-1 and winning the Oryx Cup UIM World Championship. We’re cognizant that our competitors have the same goal for their teams as well.”
David added, “I’m thinking this may be the most competitive event of the entire season. Think about it, on the table is the team National Championship, the Driver Championship and the World Championship. That’s a heck of a goal!”
Jimmy Shane, in his first full season in the unlimited ranks, impressed all season – driving the 5 Graham Trucking to a victory in the Columbia Cup in the Tri-Cities and adding several strong finishes to climb to third on the points ladder, just 172 points behind Villwock.
Also impressive was Jon Zimmerman and the Jones Racing team. Zimmerman was fast and consistent in the team’s refurbished unlimited and sits in fourth place in the standings.
J. Michael Kelly used an uncanny ability to secure the inside lane and finished well throughout the season to round out the top five.
Defending Oryx Cup champ Scott Liddycoat will not be in Doha to defend his title. The team is repairing damage to the 88 Degree Men hull and has contracted with GoFastTurnLeft Racing and that team’s driver Brian Perkins, normally the 21, to carry the 88 number in Doha and score points for the USA Racing Partners. Perkins ride will be racing as the 88 Snoqualmie Casino.
For the first time in decades, Leland Unlimited will have a new driver in the 100 Fox Plumbing. Ryan Mallow will be driving the boat he drove in his qualification runs in 2011. The late owner’s team has carried on in his memory and stayed in the top ten throughout the 2012 season.
Tom Thompson, a veteran inboard racer from Cambridge, Maryland, will be making just his second unlimited start as driver of Miss Peters and May. That boat crossed the Atlantic earlier than the rest of the fleet and made a European record run on England’s Coniston Water in early November.
Veterans Kip Brown and Mark Evans round out the Oryx Cup field in the 17 Miss Red Dot and 57 Formulaboats.com. Brown has recovered from a broken leg suffered in the middle of a disappointing season for the Red Dot team and Evans will be making his first trip to Doha after becoming co-owner of the 57 hull with brother Mitch before the season.
The 2012 series high point championship will be decided on Doha Bay at the January event. The ten teams making the trip will stay in the Middle East and race again in Doha in February. That race will mark the start of the 2013 season.
“We are very excited to be heading to Qatar to race for the 4th annual Oryx Cup and crown the 2012 UIM World Champion,” said H1 Unlimited chairman Sam Cole. “Then we will stay in Doha to start the 2013 season and crown the 2013 UIM World Champion. We are also honored that we have been asked to be part of Qatar’s National Sports Day, which is an important event for the country.”
Oryx Cup Will Decide 2012 Champion
With the 2012 Air National Guard H1 Unlimited racing season winding down and the fleet secured in the Qatar Marine Sports Federation’s storage facility in Doha in preparation for the Oryx Cup UIM World Championship January 10 – 12, the series high points leader board finds familiar names at the top.
After starting the season with back-to-back wins in the first two races of 2012, defending champion Dave Villwock and his Spirit of Qatar team find themselves in danger of handing the coveted U-1 designation back to three time winner Steve David and the 6 Oh Boy! Oberto.
Villwock and David each won two races in 2012, but David’s wins in Seattle and San Diego to end the US tour helped him build the 652 point cushion he will take to Doha for the season ender. David says, “All of us on team Oberto look forward to Doha and regaining U-1 and winning the Oryx Cup UIM World Championship. We’re cognizant that our competitors have the same goal for their teams as well.”
David added, “I’m thinking this may be the most competitive event of the entire season. Think about it, on the table is the team National Championship, the Driver Championship and the World Championship. That’s a heck of a goal!”
Jimmy Shane, in his first full season in the unlimited ranks, impressed all season – driving the 5 Graham Trucking to a victory in the Columbia Cup in the Tri-Cities and adding several strong finishes to climb to third on the points ladder, just 172 points behind Villwock.
Also impressive was Jon Zimmerman and the Jones Racing team. Zimmerman was fast and consistent in the team’s refurbished unlimited and sits in fourth place in the standings.
J. Michael Kelly used an uncanny ability to secure the inside lane and finished well throughout the season to round out the top five.
Defending Oryx Cup champ Scott Liddycoat will not be in Doha to defend his title. The team is repairing damage to the 88 Degree Men hull and has contracted with GoFastTurnLeft Racing and that team’s driver Brian Perkins, normally the 21, to carry the 88 number in Doha and score points for the USA Racing Partners. Perkins ride will be racing as the 88 Snoqualmie Casino.
For the first time in decades, Leland Unlimited will have a new driver in the 100 Fox Plumbing. Ryan Mallow will be driving the boat he drove in his qualification runs in 2011. The late owner’s team has carried on in his memory and stayed in the top ten throughout the 2012 season.
Tom Thompson, a veteran inboard racer from Cambridge, Maryland, will be making just his second unlimited start as driver of Miss Peters and May. That boat crossed the Atlantic earlier than the rest of the fleet and made a European record run on England’s Coniston Water in early November.
Veterans Kip Brown and Mark Evans round out the Oryx Cup field in the 17 Miss Red Dot and 57 Formulaboats.com. Brown has recovered from a broken leg suffered in the middle of a disappointing season for the Red Dot team and Evans will be making his first trip to Doha after becoming co-owner of the 57 hull with brother Mitch before the season.
The 2012 series high point championship will be decided on Doha Bay at the January event. The ten teams making the trip will stay in the Middle East and race again in Doha in February. That race will mark the start of the 2013 season.
“We are very excited to be heading to Qatar to race for the 4th annual Oryx Cup and crown the 2012 UIM World Champion,” said H1 Unlimited chairman Sam Cole. “Then we will stay in Doha to start the 2013 season and crown the 2013 UIM World Champion. We are also honored that we have been asked to be part of Qatar’s National Sports Day, which is an important event for the country.”