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Team Abu Dhabi’s veteran driver Thani Al Qemzi and teammate Alberto Comparato are gearing up for a challenging Grand Prix of Shanghai after Sharjah Team’s Rusty Wyatt claimed pole position for Round 4 of the 2024 UIM F1H2O World Championship.

Wyatt, a Canadian rookie, outperformed the competition on a rough and unpredictable Huangpu River course, finishing an impressive 1.25 seconds ahead of Sweden’s defending world champion, Jonas Andersson. Victory Team’s Erik Stark rounded out the top three, marking a strong showing from the championship frontrunners.

Al Qemzi, competing in his 156th race, encountered technical difficulties during qualifying, finishing eighth. The Emirati driver will need to leverage his extensive experience—having secured one of his ten Grand Prix wins in China 13 years ago—as he navigates the field from the middle of the pack. Al Qemzi briefly returned to the track after mechanical setbacks, but was unable to improve his time.

Alberto Comparato, Al Qemzi's Abu Dhabi teammate, faces a similar challenge after qualifying ninth on the 2,153-meter circuit. Both drivers are preparing for a weekend of severe weather, with a looming typhoon expected to complicate the race.

Due to worsening conditions, event officials made the decision to move up qualifying by 30 minutes and condense it into a single 40-minute session, cutting the usual three-phase format. The rough waters, stirred by powerful winds, led to the cancellation of two scheduled sprint races and prompted an early 9 AM local time start for tomorrow’s Grand Prix.

Despite Friday’s free practice session being cancelled due to safety concerns, Team Abu Dhabi showed resilience in the second free practice session. Wyatt set the fastest time, followed by Stark, with Al Qemzi clocking the third-best lap and Comparato taking ninth.

With unpredictable weather forecast and stormy waters ahead, tomorrow’s race promises to be a true test of endurance and skill. Al Qemzi, whose F1H2O career began in 2000, is well-equipped to handle the treacherous conditions and will look to extract the most out of Team Abu Dhabi 5 as they battle for points in Shanghai.

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