Sharjah: Team Abu Dhabi’s Shaun Torrente said he will pull no punches while chasing his maiden world crown when action gets under way at the Grand Prix of Sharjah — the seventh and final round of the 2018 UIM F1H2O World Championship this weekend.

Going into the final race of the season, the Miami resident has had six starts in Sharjah that have culminated into four podiums as he leads the overall drivers’ standings with 77 points. Last weekend, Torrente ended in sixth at the Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi and those crucial points helped him stay three points clear of teammate Thani Al Qamzi.

“This is the last race of the season for all of us. It has been an awesome year for me personally. There have been ups and downs and luckily I have hung in there and made the most of the opportunities that have come my way. Perhaps, this is the first time-ever that all three drivers targeting the title are from one team. It is a healthy competition and each of us deserve to be where we are,” Torrente told Gulf News.

“We have got a good vibe among us. But once I am in the boat then there is no teammate and I will be going all out to get maximum points and the world title,” he promised.

Team Abu Dhabi has already wrapped up the teams’ championship with an unbeatable total of 131 points making it three from the last four years after Al Qamzi’s amazing start to finish triumph at last weekend’s Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi. And now going into the last race of the season the fight for the drivers’ honours will be down to Torrente (77 points), Al Qamzi (74 points) and Erik Stark (65 points).

“I am happy for Thani [Al Qamzi] as he has gone through tough times in the recent past. His win has in fact thrown open the race for the drivers’ crown. But I have just one goal and that is to win the race and the title and I promise we will do everything possible to compete hard out there,” Torrente promised.

For the first time, two championship titles will be decided in Sharjah during the week as the Khalid Lagoon hosts the final race of the UIM F1H2O World Championship alongside the last round of the UIM-ABP Aquabike Class Pro Circuit World Championship.

Known jointly as the Sharjah World Championship Week, there will be a free one-hour practice session for F1 boats from 10.15am and the BRM qualifying will take place from 3.30pm. The Grand Prix of Sharjah will bring down the curtains on the week on December 15 [Saturday].