Gold Coast, Australia: Current UIM XCAT World Powerboat Series leaders, XDubai are all too aware of the advantage competing in home waters can bring.
The Dubai duo will be keeping an eye on the Gold Coast Australia team of Tom Barry-Cotter and Ross Willaton when the fourth round of the series gets under way at Gold Coast’s Doug Jennings Park this weekend.
The XDubai team of Arif Al Zafein and Nader Bin Hindi took over the series lead after victory in the third round in Cascais, Portugal and will be gunning for the top of the podium once again in their first outing in Australia.
But the Dubai duo know it won’t be easy.
“Obviously the Gold Coast team are a team to beat on their home waters,” admitted multiple powerboat world champion Al Zafein.
“They have been practising for a long time and we know that the team will be all set to give off their best performance before the home fans,” he added.
Just one point separates XDubai from the second-placed Team Abu Dhabi in the overall standings but Bin Hindi is relishing the pressure that the closely contested series brings with it.
“We like challenges, so it is always a motivation to do better. We plan to take it as usual and to stay in front,” he said.
“We feel there are going to be flat conditions. Also we expect some top-end speed on this racecourse,” Bin Hindi added.
Dubbed the greatest motorsport series on water, the XCAT World Series is a spectacle of speed, with teams of two taking each other on in two-engined carbon-fibre boats that tear around the course at speeds close to 200kph. XDubai will take on 13 other international teams in the Gold Coast GP — the fourth round of the seven-round series.
After Australia, the XCAT World Series heads to Nice, France in October before ending the year with races in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, UAE.
“We’ve never raced in Australia. This our first race Down Under, so we are both equally excited and thrilled,” said Al Zafein.
“The fact that the series has expanded to another continent is definitely a positive note for the sport and the teams. We have never seen any other watersport make such a vast advancement in such a short time frame,” he added.
The Gold Coast GP, which will be broadcast to over 400 million homes, will take place at The Spit at Main Beach from August 21 to 23. Entry is free of charge and further information may be obtained at: www.xcatracing.com.
