Italian Francesco Cantando achieved his first victory season at the second round of the Formula I championship series in Helsinki after seven drivers were penalized for various UIM infringements.
Italian Francesco Cantando achieved his first victory season at the second round of the Formula I championship series in Helsinki after seven drivers were penalized for various UIM infringements. They included defending Italian world champion Guido Cappellini costing him second place.
The trouble began at the start when Cappellini and American Scott Gillman were penalized for jumping the start. Gillman then ran a strong race finishing a little over one second behind Cappellini not knowing he had been placed further down the fleet.
Cantando, who led at the half way after passing Gillman and then Cappellini, then lost power with a broken spark plug before colliding with Cappellini at the north end of the course. He thought he could just hold on to third place not knowing the boats in front had been penalized. Instead, he was declared winner and now ties at the head of the championship points table.
Cantando was joined on the podium by the Emirates Tani Al Qamzy who drove an outstanding race moving up from 15th to eighth at the start. Last years Finnish Grand Prix winner, Frenchman Philippe Dessertenne, thought he had finished third only to have his result changed.
Currently Cappellini, Gillman and Laith Pharaon of Saudi Arabia have all lost one lap for jumping the start. Dessertenne, Al Qamzy, Swedish driver Pierre Lundin and Russian pilot Stanislov Kourtsenovsky have also lost a lap for remaining out of position on the yellow flag restart. At least five protests are being considered before the official results of the Finnish Grand Prix and overall points standings can be declared. The third round of the UIM Formula 1 World Championship, the Grand Prix of the Mediterranean, is due to be held in Cagliari, Sardinia, on July 6.
