Torrente and Andersson victorious as title battle cut to one point

Shaun Torrente and Jonas Andersson claimed sprint race victories in Jeddah to set up a thrilling Grand Prix showdown with the world championship separated by just one point.

Torrente dominated Sprint Race 1 from pole position whilst Andersson recovered from his qualifying crash to win Sprint Race 2. The results leave Alec Weckström clinging to a one-point championship lead over his Victory Team colleague heading into Saturday’s decisive Grand Prix.

Sprint Race 1: Torrente controls from the front

Torrente led from lights to flag to record a comfortable 4.282-second victory on the 1.794-kilometre circuit. The three-time world champion made a strong start from pole and pulled away from China CTIC Team’s Peter Morin to secure 10 valuable championship points.

It was awesome. I was also trying to save it for the race (Grand Prix). The guys have been busting their butts on the engines and we have been clean all weekend. The starts are so much better. I am just the dummy hitting the button. It’s the Victory Team – nothing less than victory!

Morin finished second ahead of Strømøy Racing’s Bartek Marszalek, who delivered another strong performance after resolving mid-season electrical issues. The Pole passed Rusty Wyatt early in the race to claim the final podium position.

Wyatt brought his Sharjah Team boat home fourth ahead of double world champion Sami Seliö. Marit Strømøy finished sixth in the four-stroke V8-engined DAC with Grant Trask seventh after an engine change dropped him to the rear of the grid.

Three retirements reduced the finishing field. Cédric Deguisne withdrew after one lap, Alexandre Bourgeot fell by the wayside after five laps and Damon Cohen was sidelined on lap nine.

Sprint Race 1 results

Sprint Race 2: Andersson extends remarkable record

The defending champion dominated the yellow flag-interrupted second sprint race to finish 2.804 seconds ahead of Stefan Arand. The result marked Andersson’s eighth sprint race win from nine starts this season and kept his title hopes alive despite sitting 10 points off the championship lead.

It’s the team. They did a fantastic job. I fixed the engine and here we are. It could have been a lot worse but we are still fighting for the championship. I found the problem with the engine from China and I fixed it when we were home and it is still in one piece after the crash this morning. I should be really happy. It’s going to be tough tomorrow. Shaun (Torrente) is super-fast but we can still win the championship and that is the goal.

Arand delivered his best result of the season to claim second for Sharjah Team. The Estonian fought through the field after losing a position at the start and engaged in battles with both Weckström and Alberto Comparato.

I got off the line quite well and the acceleration was not there and I lost one place to Alberto. It was a big fight with Alec. Before the restart I had to pass him again. Then, a big fight with Alberto, his tank was leaking and I could not see so well because of the fumes. I think this new boat suited the right-hander really well. There were some big waves there but I felt confident. We have to look at the data and see what happened to the mid-line acceleration before tomorrow.

China CTIC Team’s Stefan Hagin impressed on his F1H2O sprint race debut to secure third and eight points. Comparato initially finished third but received a two-position penalty for not maintaining his lane until completion of the first turn, dropping him to fifth behind Mansoor Al-Mansoori.

Duarte Benavente finished sixth whilst Weckström’s championship lead was severely dented. The Finn initially crossed the line fourth but was docked one lap for destroying a turn buoy, dropping him to seventh and reducing his championship advantage to a single point.

Ferdinand Zandbergen, Ben Jelf and Erik Stark all retired from the race. Jelf’s retirement came due to faulty power trim.

Sprint Race 2 results

*Two-position penalty for not maintaining lane until completion of first turn
**One-lap penalty for destroying first buoy

Championship standings after sprint races

Championship Odds Analysis

Probabilities calculated based on remaining points and current form

With 20 points available in Saturday’s Grand Prix and a further 30 points at the Sharjah finale, the championship remains wide open heading into the final two races.

Alec Weckström (Evens) – The championship leader’s one-point advantage is the smallest possible margin. His penalty in Sprint Race 2 has transformed what should have been a comfortable lead into a knife-edge battle. Weckström needs to match or better Torrente’s result tomorrow to maintain control heading to Sharjah.

Shaun Torrente (Evens) – The American’s dominant Sprint Race 1 victory demonstrated the pace to win the title. Starting the Grand Prix from pole position, Torrente holds the tactical advantage. A victory tomorrow combined with Weckström finishing outside the points would give him an 11-point lead heading to the finale.

Rusty Wyatt (7/1) – Five points off the lead with 50 points remaining keeps the Canadian’s title hopes alive. Wyatt needs victories in the final races and must hope the Victory Team drivers take points off each other. His consistency this season means he cannot be discounted.

Jonas Andersson (20/1) – The defending champion sits 10 points behind with his remarkable sprint race record intact. However, he faces an uphill battle starting the Grand Prix from second on the grid behind Torrente. Andersson needs near-perfection in the final two races plus significant misfortune for those ahead.

Action continues with the Grand Prix on Saturday afternoon at 16:05 local time.