Duarte Benavente posted the best time of 46.705 with Giacomo Sacchi second and Rashed Al Qemzi third quickest in Q1.

Championship leader Mansoor Al Mansoori struggled early on to set a good time and decided to change props – he then carded the eighth fastest time just in front of Sam Whittle.

That was the first time the British driver had progressed through to Q2 this season. Colin Jelf and Johan Österberg both failed to set fast enough times to see them through to the next session.

Delay
There was a delay for Q2 due to a gusty wind and when the session started it was a challenge for the 15 remaining drivers.

Q2
Stefan Hagin couldn’t take part, he had an engine issue which his engineers were struggling to diagnose.

Giacomo Sacchi was fastest and the other drivers to go through to Q3 were Rashed Al Qemzi, Duarte Benavente, Sami Seliö, Brent Dillard and Bimba Sjöholm.
Al Mansoori had an engine issue with a broken belt which precluded him from a top spot on tomorrow’s grid.

With less than 5 min to go, GiacomoSacchi posted pole.

It feels nice with my first pole position, especially after my DSQ in Lithaunia. I owe it all to my hard working team, and my supporting family, of cause who never stops to belive in me

Less than a month ago they announced that they were withdrawing from all competition in Australia indefinitely, effective immediately, and now comes the news that PRW would like to share.

When Brock spoke to PRW earlier in the week he confirmed that the deal had gone through having purchased the ex-Bisterfeld Racing DAC. It has since been freighted from Germany to Portugal where it is now being stored with Duarte Benavente at the Atlantic F1 Team workshop.

Duarte has been an immense help with allowing me to store my boat with him. If it weren’t for him being so accommodating, none of this would even have been possible. We are planning to arrive in Portugal in time to test the DAC where he tests, which should help getting the set up right for the final round of the championship as it’s the same venue for the race.

Brock continued by saying,

Another life dream of mine is looking to become reality. There is plenty of challenging work to be done still but I am committed to this new journey. Those close to me know how much I have sacrificed and risked making this all happen. There has been a lot of ‘do it now, work it out later’ moments. I am so lucky to have such a supportive group of people around me who put themselves second to allow me to fulfil my passion for powerboat racing.

Previously, Cohen Brothers Racing competed in the Australian AFPGP series with a competitive two boat outfit. Between both Damon and Brock they had won over sixty per cent of the Formula GP races held since 2020, including the most recent race at Rathmines on Lake Macquarie in May with Brock winning the final.

Damon Cohen had this to say,

I’m extremely excited to take our efforts and enthusiasm for the sport onto the world circuit. This will be no easy challenge, but we are excited to take the next step in our racing career.

One of their key sponsors Alan Whittley from Whittley Boats said,

It’s an exciting opportunity for the brothers to highlight their talent at the highest level in the international competition. I wish them well in this new journey of their racing and we at Whittley are proud to be supporters of Cohen Bros Racing and are stoked to be a part of it.

Brock will race both weekends in September while Damon is hoping he can join the tour in 2023 when finance permitting, they both aim to race a full season in the UIM F2 World Championships.

GRAND PRIX OF PORTUGAL I – Ribadouro Baião, Portugal 9 – 11 September 2022

GRAND PRIX OF PORTUGAL II – Vila Velha de Ródão, Portugal 16 – 18 September 2022

You can follow Cohen Bros Racing on their respective social media platforms below:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CohenBrosRacing

Instagram: @CohenBrosRacing

Website: www.cohenbrosracing.com.au

We, Cohen Brothers Racing, are writing to advise that we are withdrawing from all competition here in Australia indefinitely, effective immediately.

All of our race winning equipment is available for purchase from gearboxes, spare parts, boats, trailers, engines, propellers, etc.

The #55 Baba boat will be re-built, re-rigged and tested prior to sale.

We will be making no further comment or discussion regarding this topic.

Thank you.

Brock & Damon Cohen – Cohen Brothers Racing