MAGNIFICENT MEDORI WINS HIS HOME GRAND PRIX IN STYLE

UIM-ABP AQUABIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP Grand Prix of France Ghisonaccia, Corsica, Sunday, 5 June, 2011 MAGNIFICENT MEDORI WINS HIS HOME GRAND PRIX IN STYLE header_jun5.jpg Francois Medori produced a champion's drive in front of his home crowd in Ghisonaccia to take his second win of the weekend in Runabout F1 to win the French Grand Prix title.

Second place in today’s heat in Ski Division F1 gave Jeremy Poret his third Grand Prix title of the year. The race win going to Porto-Vecchio’s Jean-Baptiste Botti. Julie Bulteau extended her overall lead in the World Championship standings, also taking her second win of the weekend and the Grand Prix title in Ski Ladies F1. For the second weekend in a row Frenchman Roland Stampers completed the double, producing a scintillating series of tricks in Freestyle to beat his main rival, Italy’s Valerio Calderoni, taking his fourth straight heat win and second Grand Prix title, closing the gap to Calderoni to just 10-points in the Championship standings. But the weekend belonged to local hero Francois Medori, leading another French rout in all four classes, and brilliantly holding his nerve after a titanic race-long fight with defending World Champion, Cyrille Lemoine. Medori led from the flag and was hounded for 10 of the 16 laps by his fellow-countryman. Lemoine piled on the pressure lap-after-lap, by lap ten cutting Medori’s lead to just two seconds. But Medori responded in the latter stages, moving out to a nine second lead to take the pressure off, and going on to take his third heat win and second Grand Prix title of the year. Italy’s Mattia Fracasso played a somewhat solitary cameo role behind the race leaders, finishing 13-seconds behind Lemoine, but third place put him into second in the Grand Prix standings, ahead of Lemoine. Didier Chabert just held off Lorenzo Benaglia who had scythed his way through the field from tenth to take fifth spot, with Yann Barros completing the top six. Jean-Baptiste Botti led home a trio of French riders in Ski Division F1, controlling the race from the start, with heat 1 winner Jeremy Poret passing Vincent Villat on lap seven to go second and secure the title - Botti taking the runners-up spot. Spaniard Nachete Armillas moved up from sixth place, passing Christopher Courtois on lap five and then overhauling yesterday’s runner-up Mickael Poret on lap nine to take fourth place, Emanuele Poret also passing Courtois in the latter stages to finish in the top six. Ski Ladies F1 saw a repeat of yesterday’s heat - Julie Bulteau leading home Slovenia’s Pija Sumer and Italy’s Stefania Balzer - and puts the defending World Champion 16-points clear of Balzer in the overall standings. A great start saw Sumer in front at the end of the opening lap, but her lead was short-lived, passed by Bulteau a lap later with Sumer unable to stay with the Champion, who managed the choppy conditions better than her rivals. Balzer had no answer in third, going on to finish ahead of Guttierez and Poret - all five riders dropping to their knees at the end of what they described as an exhausting race. Runabout - Heat 2 results 1 4 MEDORI Francois FRA 16 laps 25 pts 2 9 LEMOINE Cyrille FRA + 2.27secs 20 pts 3 8 FRACASSO Mattia ITA + 13.90secs 16 pts 4 22 CHABERT Didier FRA 1 Lap 13 pts 5 44 BENAGLIA Lorenzo ITA 1 Lap 11 pts 6 18 BARROS Yann FRA 1 Lap 10 pts Championship Positions after round 2 1 4 MEDORI Francois FRA 124 pts 2 8 FRACASSO Mattia ITA 103 pts 3 9 LEMOINE Cyrille FRA 73 pts 4 1 ZAPATA Franky FRA 50 pts = 44 BENAGLIA Lorenzo ITA 50 pts 6 86 PEREZ Jeremy FRA 42 pts = 18 BARROS Yann FRA 42 pts 8 2 BIN HENDI Nadir UAE 40 pts = 5 KASZA George HUN 40 pts 10 22 CHABERT Didier FRA 37 pts Ski Division F1 - Heat 2 results 1 85 BOTTI Jean-Baptiste FRA 12 laps 25 pts 2 72 PORET Jeremy FRA + 6.36secs 20 pts 3 55 VILLAT Vincent FRA + 52.40secs 16 pts 4 36 ARMILLAS Nachete SPA + 1:15.46secs 13 pts 5 77 PORET Mickael FRA + 1:35.43secs 11 pts 6 222 BALZER Emanuele POR + 1:38.10secs 10 pts Championship Positions after round 2 1 72 PORET Jeremy FRA 135 pts 2 85 BOTTI Jean-Baptiste FRA 104 pts 3 95 COURTOIS Christopher FRA 88 pts 4 77 PORET Mickael FRA 67 pts 5 36 ARMILLAS Nachette ESP 65 pts 6 222 BALZER Emanuele ITA 62 pts 7 55 VILLAT Vincent FRA 53 pts 8 5 PORET Morgan FRA 48 pts 9 66 POLO Olivier FRA 31 pts 10 19 SZABO Gabor HUN 27 pts Ski Ladies F1 - Heat 2 results 1 33 BULTEAU Julie FRA 8 laps 25 pts 2 25 SUMER Pija SLO + 11.14secs 20 pts 3 81 BALZER Stefania POR + 1:05.65secs 16 pts 4 61 GUTIERREZ Patty SPA + 2:02.14secs 13 pts 5 96 PORET Estelle FRA + 1 Lap 11 pts Championship Positions after round 2 1 33 BULTEAU Julie FRA 133 pts 2 81 BALZER Stefania POR 117 pts 3 25 SUMER Pija SLO 113 pts 4 4 SORRENTINO Marta ITA 65 pts 5 96 PORET Estelle FRA 61 pts 6 61 GUTIERREZ Patty ESP 59 pts 7 94 DARDILLAT Lou FRA 19 pts 8 11 BOGGI Paola ITA 17 pts Freestyle - Heat 2 results 1 20 STAMPERS Romain FRA 25 pts 2 16 CALDERONI Valerio ITA 20 pts 3 56 TCHERNIA Sebastien FRA 16 pts 4 70 MARIANI Roberto ITA 13 pts Championship Positions after round 2 1 16 CALDERONI Valerio ITA 130 pts 2 20 STAMPERS Romain FRA 120 pts 2 70 MARIANI Roberto ITA 84 pts 4 56 TCHERNIA Sebastien FRA 64 pts 5 32 AL QUBAISI Khaled UAE 33 pts