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Traben-Trarbach, Germany (30th - 31st June)
The World O:350 Championship is a one round event comprising of four races with the best three counting to the overall position. It is open to all drivers from around the world.
For the UIM O:350 World Championship Wayne was unsure of what to expect as he only got the parts to convert his usual 250cc engine into a 350cc engine the day before the event. This meant that he had not been able to test before the event, unlike many of the other competitors. However the race course suited Wayne as it was narrow much like his home circuit of Oulton Broad. He was fastest in practice and qualified in second (out of 17) for the first race, despite lacking some straight line speed, Massimo Rossi qualified on pole with Alex Cremona third. In the first race Wayne got a good start and exited the first turn in second position and went on to take the win when Rossi suffered engine failure. Second place went to James Aderholdt and A. Cremona was third. In the second race Wayne exited the first turn behind Rossi and maintained this position until the race was stopped because of an incident. In the restarted race Wayne again was second behind Rossi when the race was stopped again, with Claudio Fanzini third. Because of the number of laps completed only half points were awarded for this race. Wayne was leading the third race and with this position he would be crowned world champion, but with 2 and half laps to go on the exit of the turn the boat fell into a 'hole' in the water and hooked, stopping suddenly from the amount of water entering the boat and engine. The win went to A. Cremona with Aderholdt second and David Loukotka third. All was not lost as there was still the fourth and final race. With the boat and engine dried out Wayne took to the starting grid for the fourth and final race, albeit at the back because of his DNF in the previous race. Wayne again got a good start and exited the first turn behind Rossi and once again this position would see Wayne become world champion, however the race was red flagged because a boat had stopped in a dangerous place on the course. This meant it was all to do again in the restarted race, however as Wayne was going round the first turn another competitor came across the front of him in an unsporting manoeuvre causing Wayne to stop. The 350 adventure was over. The fourth race was won by A. Cremona with Max Cremona second and Loukotka third. Alex Cremona got the gold medal with James Aderholdt the silver and Max Cremona the bronze. Wayne finished in a disappointing fifth position considering what could have been.
Photos of the event can be found here.
World O:250 Championship
Jedovnice, Czech Republic (5th - 6th September)
The World O:250 Championship is a one round event comprising of four races with the best three counting to the overall position. It is open to all drivers from around the world.
For the UIM O:250 World Championship held in Jedovnice, Czech Republic there were 21 entries from 11 countries. During qualifying Wayne was suffering from a lack of pace so significant setup changes were made before qualifying. This improved his pace but he only managed to set the 10th fastest time; this was not helped by the fuel tank splitting open during qualifying. Pole position went to Peter Bodor, with Massimo Rossi second and Max Cremona third. Wayne managed to borrow a fuel tank from a fellow competitor (Peter Bodor) and this was fitted ready for the first race on Saturday. In the first race Wayne made a good start and moved up to 3rd place before the race was stopped on the first lap when another competitor crashed. For the restarted race Wayne again got away well but on the run to the first turn another boat crashed in front of him and with nowhere to go Wayne crashed heavily into this boat and was ejected from his own craft. He was taken to hospital and he was diagnosed with a broken wrist. He was later released from hospital on Monday to travel home and have the wrist operated on in the UK. The race was not rerun as only one restart per race is allowed, and the event was later called off because the weather deteriorated on the Sunday making it unsafe for the races to go ahead. Wayne and the Team would like to thank everybody for all of the help and support received during the weekend.
European F:250 Championship
The European F:250 Championship is a three round series for the 250cc Outboard Hydroplanes. Round 1 is in Boretto, Italy (16th - 17th May), Round 2 is in Baja, Hungary (4th - 5th July) and Round 3 is in Bitterfeld, Germany (8th - 9th August).
Round 1 - Boretto, Italy (16th - 17th May)
Heavy rain in the days leading up to the event caused the water level in the river Po to rise. This increase in water level resulted in significant amounts of debris entering the river making it unsafe to race, so the event was unfortunately cancelled.
Round 2 - Baja, Hungary (4th - 5th July)
At the first round of the 2015 UIM F:250 European Championship held in Baja, Hungary Wayne qualified in 3rd position. Pole position went to Peter Bodor with Massimo Rossi second. For the first race the start countdown was very quick and nobody got a very good start but Wayne exited the first turn in second behind Rossi, with Bodor third. Wayne was unable to defend against the superior speed of Bodor and finished in third. The win went to Bodor with Rossi second. The result was the same for the second race with Bodor taking the win, Rossi second and Wayne third. In the third race Wayne was lying in third place when he suffered a broken ignition wire causing the engine to stop. The win went to Rossi with Matteo Gandolfi second and Mario Alex third. This DNF meant Wayne was fourth in the final standings, with the win going to Massimo Rossi. Peter Bodor was second and Mario Alex in third. The second and final round will be held in Bitterfeld, Germany on 8th - 9th August.
Round 3 - Bitterfeld, Germany (8th - 9th August)
At the final round of the UIM European F:250 championship held in Bitterfeld, Germany Wayne qualified in 4th position. Pole position went to Peter Bodor with Massimo Rossi second and Michael Kosut third. In the first race Wayne got off to a good start and went on to finish second, Bodor won the race with Kosut third. In the second race Wayne's engine bogged down at the start and he dropped to the back of the field, however he put in a superb drive to recover to third place by the end of the race. The win again went to Bodor with Ilkka Rytkonen secondnd. In the third and final race Wayne made a good start and finished in second place behind Bodor, with Rytkonen third. The overall win went to Peter Bodor with Wayne second and Ilkka Rytkonen third. This result meant Wayne moved up to the silver medal position in the final championship standings, with Peter Bodor taking the gold medal and Mario Alex the bronze.
Photos of the event can be found here.
Overall Standings
(16th - 17th May) |
(4th - 5th July) |
(8th - 9th August) |
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