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Honda Powerboats To Close 2009 Season in Douglas Bay 7 September 2009 With only weeks left until the final Grand Prix of the Honda Formula 4-Stroke race season the focus is moving to Douglas Bay, Isle of Man. The World’s largest two class offshore powerboat race series will hold their last race weekend here on 19th and 20th September when they will reveal the 2009 championship winners of the Honda 150hp and 225hp classes. Last weekend the fleet finished the forth leg of the season in Cowes, Isle of Wight, when they entered a slightly different format of racing from the usual multi-lap courses they are used to. The series took part in the Cowes-Poole-Cowes race as part of the Cowes Powerboat Festival which included the famous Cowes-Torquay-Cowes run. The championship standings look likely to remain fairly solid for the remainder of the season; however anything could happen at the final event making the Douglas Bay Grand Prix an event not to be missed. The new 2009 Champions will be crowned on Sunday September 20th from Douglas Bay’s podium on the promenade. Currently leading the 150hp Championship are Premier Cru’s John Wilson and Neil Scarborough; the pair have fought well all season to earn their place at the top ahead of last year’s Champions Jak Cockman and Any Phipps in Hydrex. There are only points separating the two teams from the ultimate victory, John had this to say: “Neil and I have had a great year so far. We learned a great deal in our “Rookie” year in 2008 and have worked really hard to ensure we have kept mistakes to a minimum in 2009. We are really looking forward to the Isle of Man weekend and we know we will face a fantastic challenge from Jak and Andy, who are always hard to beat. As we know with racing, lots of things can go wrong, so we are double checking everythingwe can to minimise the chances of a mechanical or electrical problem but, even so, we know we will have our work cut out.” "Whatever the end result, we both want to say a big thank you to all the other teams for a superb year of racing, great friendship, help and advice and, of course our thanks to the organisers and support teams who work so hard to make the whole series possible. Isle of Man here we come!” This is a big year for Honda racing history in the Isle of Man; not only is this the 10th year of their involvement with the Formula 4-Stroke Association but also the 50th anniversary of Honda’s arrival at the TT in 1959. The Isle of Man are proud to be a part of this racing heritage and the Honda F4SA will be an additional feature to the celebratory year when the powerboats take to the water to show racing in another dimension. Hon Martyn Quayle MHK, Minister for Tourism and Leisure, commented: “I am thrilled to welcome back the Honda Formula 4-Stroke Powerboat Race Series to the Isle of Man for a fifth year, for what promises to be an action-packed weekend of racing in Douglas Bay.” Also commenting on the forth coming event was Geoff Mathews, Head of Honda (UK). "The Isle of Man is an ideal backdrop for the finale of our tenth year of racing, and we really look forward to returning later this month. It's been a great season with some highly competitive racing and all is set for a great final round." More stories >>>
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