Alex Carella showed no signs of nerves throughout the race weekend, producing a lights-to-flag victory in the Grand Prix of Sharjah to take his UIM F1H2O World Championship for the fourth time and his Grand Prix win tally to 15.
“Fantastic. It sounds great to be a four-time world champion. I fought really hard this weekend and the work we did yesterday getting pole position really paid off today. It made it easier starting at the front and not having to fight with Philippe or anyone else.
“I managed it from the start and when I was told Philippe was in eighth I decided not to push too much. I felt in complete control but there were some nerves in the final laps and I was crossing everything that we had no problems late in the race.” Alex Carella
Today’s win rounded off a sensational year for the Italian from Piacenza and Team Abu Dhabi, who regained the Teams World Championship. Carella also added the BRM Pole Position Championship and the Fast Lap Trophy to his title collection.
Second place went to Sweden’s Jonas Andersson, his first podium of the season, with Thani Al Qemzi completing a fine day for Team Abu Dhabi in third.
Carella made no mistake from pole, launching off the dock to hold the advantage through the first turns. Ahmed Al Hameli moved immediately to second ahead of Erik Stark and Andersson, who had gained two places, with Bartek Marszalek behind. Carella opened out a comfortable lead, scything through backmarkers to win by 16.03s.
Al Hameli held second for 34 laps before slowing, retiring three laps later. Andersson moved up to second, having already passed Stark on lap 29 when the Swede pulled off with a broken propeller. Stark nonetheless took third overall in the championship standings.
Thani Al Qemzi produced a strong recovery drive from 11th on the dock to take third, ahead of Chiappe, who claimed the runners-up slot in the world championship, and Marszalek. Peter Morin took his best result of his debut year in sixth.
Grant Trask started 18th and worked his way through to seventh, with Marit Stromoy eighth. Rashid Al Qemzi, the youngest member of the Team Abu Dhabi trio, ended his first season with ninth and two deserved championship points. Duarte Benavente rounded out the top ten, with Erik Edin completing the full race distance on his UIM F1H2O debut to finish eleventh.
UIM F1H2O Grand Prix of Sharjah – result
| Pos | Driver | Nationality | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alex Carella | Italy/UAE | – |
| 2 | Jonas Andersson | Sweden | +16.03s |
| 3 | Thani Al Qemzi | UAE | +20.00s |
| 4 | Philippe Chiappe | France | +20.06s |
| 5 | Bartek Marszalek | Poland | +20.68s |
| 6 | Peter Morin | France | +27.36s |
| 7 | Grant Trask | Australia | +1 lap |
| 8 | Marit Stromoy | Norway | +1 lap |
| 9 | Rashid Al Qemzi | UAE | +2 laps |
| 10 | Duarte Benavente | Portugal | +2 laps |
| 11 | Erik Edin | Sweden | +2 laps |
UIM F1H2O World Championship standings
| Pos | Driver | Nationality | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alex Carella | Italy/UAE | 90 |
| 2 | Philippe Chiappe | France | 68 |
| 3 | Erik Stark | Sweden/UAE | 45 |
| 4 | Thani Al Qemzi | UAE | 41 |
| 5 | Jonas Andersson | Sweden | 32 |
| 6 | Sami Selio | Finland | 30 |
| 6 | Ahmed Al Hameli | UAE | 30 |
| 8 | Shaun Torrente | USA/UAE | 28 |
| 9 | Marit Stromoy | Norway | 21 |
| 9 | Bartek Marszalek | Poland | 21 |
| 11 | Duarte Benavente | Portugal | 15 |
| 12 | Peter Morin | France | 10 |
| 13 | Grant Trask | Australia | 9 |
| 14 | Filip Roms | Finland | 8 |
| 15 | Cédric Deguisne | France | 7 |
| 16 | Mike Szymura | Germany | 4 |
| 17 | Rashid Al Qemzi | UAE | 2 |
| 17 | Francesco Cantando | Italy | 2 |
| 19 | Amaury Joussaume | France | 0 |
| 19 | Erik Edin | Sweden | 0 |
| 19 | Matthew Paltheyman | Great Britain | 0 |
| 19 | Béranger Robert | France | 0 |
John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
