Arand seizes maiden F1H2O pole in Shanghai thriller

Estonia’s Stefan Arand claimed a stunning first ever F1H2O pole position in Shanghai after a drama-filled qualifying session on the Huangpu River where favourites fell by the wayside and newcomers shone.

The young Sharjah Team driver, who became the youngest person ever to take an F1H2O pole, became embroiled in a gripping duel with three-time World Champion Shaun Torrente of the Victory Team for supremacy in Q3, and a last-gasp lap of 40.222sec was enough to earn pole after the two racers traded blows throughout the 10-minute session on the 1.7km course near the Cruise Terminal in Baoshan.

Q1

Eight drivers would be eliminated in the opening 20-minute qualifying session, and the action was immediate. Comparato F1 Team’s Alberto Comparato laid down the gauntlet with an opener of 44.296sec to top the early standings, but that time was quickly surpassed by both championship leader Rusty Wyatt (43.012sec) and Erik Stark (44.048sec).

China CTIC Team rookie Kyle Maskall started strongly on his debut with a lap of 44.407sec, but Grant Trask ground to a halt on the far side of the course on his Team Sweden debut running alongside defending champion Jonas Andersson. The latter was late onto the water to try and avoid the dirty water and missed the opening six minutes of the session, meaning the water conditions were actually more difficult in a strengthening wind.

Engine gremlins had plagued the Victory Team during Thursday’s free practice sessions, and both Alec Weckström and Shaun Torrente were struggling at the rear of the field, running the risk of missing Q2 after qualifying second and third in Indonesia back in August. However, both drivers moved into the safe domain of the top 10 as the session progressed.

Missing out on Q2 were Duarte Benavente, the Maverick Racing duo of Cédric Deguisne and Alexandre Bourgeot, Team Abu Dhabi’s Mansoor Al-Mansoori, China CTIC Team’s Peter Morin, Strømøy Racing’s Bartek Marszalek and Marit Strømøy, and Alberto Comparato. Wyatt topped the times from Trask, Torrente, Arand and Ben Jelf.

Comparato’s team-mate Damon Cohen safely made Q2. The Australian said: “We had a bit of trouble in practice yesterday. The conditions are really tricky. I am comfortable with the Baba hull. I don’t think I had my best lap in Q1. It was quite busy with 20 boats. Hopefully it will be better with 12 out there in Q2.”

Q2: Championship Favourites Hit Trouble

A further six racers would be eliminated in the second 15-minute session. Wyatt was fast out of the blocks, storming to a lap of 42.196sec on his opener to move ahead of Trask and Sami Seliö. Arand then moved into the safety of second place, before Andersson stormed to the top of the standings with a run of 41.729sec.

Drama struck with just over five minutes remaining when Weckström, who had been running fifth-fastest with a 42.600s lap, barrel-rolled out of contention on his 11th tour. Stark moved into the top six after the restart and pushed Torrente into trouble, but the session was yellow-flagged again with just over three minutes on the clock when series leader Wyatt stopped with technical issues on the far side of the race course.

The session swiftly resumed and Torrente managed to squeeze into the top six with a desperate run of 42.262sec to push his Victory Team team-mate out of the final session.

Missing out on Q3 were Sami Seliö, Ferdinand Zandbergen, Cohen, rookie Kyle Maskall, Ben Jelf and Weckström. Arand (41.707sec) topped the times from Andersson (41.729s), Wyatt, the impressive Trask, Torrente and Stark. However, Wyatt’s boat was towed back to the pontoon with engine issues, and Andersson also suffered an electrical problem after Q2 that would prevent both from taking part in the finale.

Rookie Maskall said: “It was the first time ever in a Moore boat yesterday and it’s been a couple of years since I ran a big boat. Over in the US, we run smaller boats with less power. I was just trying to get used to it. Every lap was getting better. I really wanted to be in the top six but eighth place will do.”

Q3 Shootout: Arand vs Torrente

Wyatt and his Sharjah Team technicians carried out frantic work on the Mercury V6 power plant in the short gap between the two qualifying sessions, changing spark plugs and carrying out a last-minute test. The engine fired up but the Canadian missed the start of Q3 with what he thought was an electrical issue.

Conditions had improved markedly from Q2, with the water flattening as the wind dropped, setting the stage for a fierce fight between the remaining four drivers.

Trask laid down the gauntlet with a 41.205sec flier, but Andersson was also struggling on the pontoon with his technical problem and would not make it onto the water. Arand passed the Australian with a run of 40.970sec, and Torrente and Stark settled into third and fourth.

The three-time World Champion then improved with a 41.063sec flier to snatch second behind Arand, before snatching provisional pole with the fastest lap of the weekend – a sensational run of 40.882sec.

As the clock ticked down, there was no time for Wyatt or Andersson to take to the water, but Arand managed to regain pole with a stunning lap of 40.643sec. The topsy-turvy session took yet another stunning twist when Torrente regained pole with a 40.487sec run, and then Arand responded sensationally with a 40.222sec in one of the most exciting finales to qualifying in years.

That lap was sufficient for the young Estonian to grab pole from the American by just 0.039 seconds, despite the Florida racer running a 40.261sec lap in the closing seconds.

Erik Stark produced a strong 40.410s to secure third place on the grid, with Grant Trask an impressive fourth on 41.205s on his Team Sweden debut. With Andersson and Wyatt sidelined, the Q3 order was left thinner than expected, but no less dramatic.

Behind them, the stranded Q2 order saw Weckström classified seventh overall despite his crash, ahead of Kyle Maskall, Ben Jelf and Sami Seliö.

Post-Qualifying Reaction

Arand said after claiming his maiden pole position:

It felt amazing. I haven’t felt this good going into a qualifying session before.

When we got into Q3 and I started battling with Shaun, something inside of me said that I can take him and I ended up taking him. I am over the moon and so happy for the team.

Thanks to Sharjah and Scott (Gillman) and everyone who has made this possible.

I just felt so confident in the boat.

Torrente commented on his second place on the grid:

That was so much fun.

Q1 was a mess with all those boats out there.

I got caught in the middle and, Q2, I got there right at the end.

We had a lot of problems yesterday and I told my crew it was better to have them yesterday.

Arand’s breakthrough pole not only cements his reputation as Estonia’s rising F1H2O star but also adds a new dimension to the 2025 UIM F1H2O World Championship title battle heading into Friday afternoon’s two Sprint Races at 15:10 and 15:40, followed by Saturday’s Grand Prix at 15:00.

Qualifying Results – All Sessions