Team Sweden’s Andersson Extends F1H2O World Championship Lead With Victory In France
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Veteran Team Sweden driver Jonas Andersson took advantage of another solid race to extend his lead in the 2023 Union Internationale Motonautique F1H2O World Championship to 15 points following his victory on Sunday afternoon in the Grand Prix of France on the River Saône in Mâcon.
Jonas Andersson took home the victory for Team Sweden at the Grand Prix of France on Sunday. Photo courtesy Simon Palfrader/F1H2O
Once pole-sitter and defending world champion Shaun Torrente of Team Abu Dhabi had been disqualified for a course infringement after missing a turn buoy while holding an early lead on the third lap, Andersson won the yellow-flag interrupted race on the short course by 2.3 seconds to put him firmly in control of the drivers’ championship in advance of the next round in Sardinia in September. Andersson’s 12th career victory and 29th podium finish also means that Team Sweden leads the Sharjah Team by three points in the teams’ championship.
“I am really happy because the weekend didn’t start so good and I was not so fast,” Andersson said in an F1H2O press release. “In the end we found the speed. I was really disappointed yesterday when I lost the pole position in the last 20 seconds. But Shaun made a mistake today and I didn’t so I am really happy!”
Dutch racer Ferdinand Zandbergen shadowed the Swede to the finish to collect points for second place for the Sharjah Team and in turn moved up to third in the championship, a mere point behind the Victory Team’s Erik Stark, who finished the race in fifth place.
“When I saw Shaun spin I knew second place was mine,” Zandbergen said. “All I had to do was nothing stupid.”
Team Abu Dhabi’s Thani Al-Qemzi claimed the final place on the podium and the CTIC China Team’s Peter Morin finished fourth. The Frenchman’s teammate and American driver, Brent Dillard, guided his new Brendan Power-tuned Moore hull to sixth place and vital championship points. The Australian duo of Grant Trask and Brock Cohen delivered impressive displays to reach the checkered flag in seventh and eighth overall, while the Victory Team’s Ahmed Al-Fahim and Maverick Racing’s Alexandre Bourgeot rounded off the top 10.
Out of the points in 11th and 12th were the F1 Atlantic Team duo of Duarte Benavente and Ben Jelf, while Bartek Marszalek struggled with his boat set-up all weekend and was classified in 13th and last of the finishers.
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