Abu Dhabi: Team Abu Dhabi’s Rashed Al Tayer says he will need to be at his best in Sardinia this weekend if he is to build on an impressive start to the 2019 UIM-ABP Aquabike World Championship.

After securing his first Grand Prix victory in the opening round in Portugal earlier this month, Al Tayer has emerged as a serious challenger to Jeremy Perez, defending champion in the flagship Runabout GP1 series.

The Emirati goes into the Grand Prix of Italy in the Roman port city of Olbia on Friday sharing the championship lead with Perez after the two rivals scored one moto victory each during an action-packed weekend in Portimao.

“Italy is very important for me after the win in Portugal,” said Al Tayer. “I’ve set the standard and must keep the momentum going and aim for another win to keep me on course for the world championship.

“Since Portugal we’ve changed a few things on the jetski and I’m confident this will make it run better in Italy and give me a good chance to win again.” Team Abu Dhabi’s reigning world freestyle champion Rashid Al Mulla aims for an eighth Grand Prix victory in a row in Sardinia to extend his championship lead over Italian Roberto Mariani.

The Team Abu Dhabi challenge also sees Salman Al Awadhi back in action in the Ski Division GP1 where he currently holds tenth place.