Malta still out of 2010 powerboat P1 calendar

Malta has been left out of the 2010 powerboat P1 World championship provisional calendar but P1 said negotiations are ongoing with a number of countries for two of the races.

The 2010 championship is scheduled to commence a month earlier than the traditional May start date with the opening Grand Prix of the Sea in Split, Croatia.

The event will be hosted in conjunction with the renowned Split Boat Show.

“This will be one of the finest events on the P1 calendar and the opportunity to partner with the boat show will give us the ideal opportunity to showcase the sport to a captive audience,” Powerboat P1 commercial director, Robert Wicks, during the launch of the provisional calendar today.

He said that P1 management is in the final stages of negotiations with three potential host cities for the second event on the 2010 calendar, scheduled for late May and a decision will be made shortly.

“We had hoped to have these discussions concluded by now but we’re not far away and it’s great to see the enhanced levels of interest in Powerboat P1 from what amounts to a diverse array of potential host cities,” added Mr Wicks.

The third Grand Prix event revisits Istanbul, Turkey in June following the success of the 2009 event which saw the series take to the spectacular setting of the Bosphorus Strait for the first time in its history.

A welcome return to Portugal follows in July with the popular resort of Cascais hosting P1 racing next year. Portugal has previously hosted world championship events and is a firm favourite for many of P1’s celebrated pilots.

“Plans are already well underway for an extended festival on the water with several other disciplines joining P1 to offer even greater levels of entertainment for spectators,” said Powerboat P1 chairman and CEO, Asif Rangoonwala.

The championship will head back to Sweden in early August and Sicily in mid-September. “It’s essential at this point in the championship’s history that we can demonstrate consistency and stability in our calendar – this gives the teams enhanced confidence and shows all our stakeholders that we are making important inroads in a tough market,” added Mr Wicks.

“Advanced negotiations are also underway to explore the possibility of a seventh Grand Prix of the Sea in October and we hope to make an announcement on this before the end of September. We believe the 2010 provisional calendar gives us a stable foundation on which to build the series for all our stakeholders in years to come and this will be boosted next year by the variety and geographical reach of Powerboat P1,” concluded Mr Rangoonwala.