Sharjah Team’s Rusty Wyatt extended his lead in the UIM F1H2O World Championship by winning a shortened Grand Prix of Shanghai on Sunday. Despite the race being red-flagged after 11 laps due to deteriorating weather conditions on the Huangpu River, Wyatt had already established a comfortable lead of 7.236 seconds. This victory expanded his lead in the Drivers’ Championship to 17.5 points.
“We did a rolling start because of the crazy weather. The strong wind made things tricky, but everything worked out,” Wyatt said after the race. “This makes three wins for us now, and the boat is running perfectly. I’m looking forward to the next race in two weeks.”
Behind Wyatt, a fierce battle unfolded between Swedish drivers Erik Stark and Jonas Andersson for second place. The two rivals clashed spectacularly at a turn buoy, with Stark edging ahead after a near barrel-roll while Andersson barely stayed afloat, losing some fragments of his boat in the process. They held their positions when the race was called off.
Elsewhere, Ferdinand Zandbergen of the Red Devil SMC F1 Team moved past Stefan Arand of Team Vietnam to take fourth place, and Peter Morin of CTIC China Team climbed from 16th to finish sixth. Ben Jelf of F1 Atlantic Team secured eighth place, and Wyatt’s teammate Filip Roms came ninth. Veteran Thani Al-Qamzi from Team Abu Dhabi rounded out the top 10 after receiving a penalty.
The unpredictable weather had disrupted the race schedule throughout the weekend, and wet conditions at the start forced officials to opt for a rolling start. Despite the challenges, Wyatt made an impressive beginning, pulling ahead of Andersson and Stark. As the race progressed, Wyatt continued to widen the gap while Stark and Andersson fought fiercely behind him.
The race was ultimately halted when a turn buoy became dislodged, and officials deemed the conditions too dangerous for the drivers to continue. With only 11 laps completed, half points were awarded to the competitors.
The next race in the UIM F1H2O World Championship will take place in Zhengzhou, China, on October 17-19.