X-Cat Series title is wide open

Teams set for two more race meetings in April to crown winner

Dubai: The top contenders for the X-Cat Series title believe this year's fight for the world crown is still wide open with another two races to go.

"Anything can happen in the next two races. We can win them in our new boat or we can have some other boat come and take the wins. The world champion will be decided on the water in April," Arif Al Zafein told Gulf News after a dominant win in the third round of the 2012 UIM X-Cat World Series in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.

"We have been fortunate due to the generosity of Shaikh Hamdan [Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum], Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman, Dubai Sports Council, who presented us with a brand-new boat earlier this week. No doubt our new boat is fast, but then we have to consider that there are other competitors who are also eager to win the title."

Al Zafein's Fazza team have won two of the three races this season, leaving them in second overall with 817 points, just eight behind the leaders Qatar Team.

"We are happy to just walk away from this race with some points after the problems we had with the boat last weekend," said Qatar Team driver Mohammad Al Nasser.

"We will now change the entire electricals of the boat and ensure we are competitive once again in the last two races of the season. Luckily, we have time on our hands and that is a huge bonus."

The X-Cat Series will now take a break until the penultimate heat at the Dubai International Marine Club on April 6-7, followed by the fifth and final race on April 12-13 at Fujairah.