RIO DE JANEIRO – Australia’s Matt Hall had to settle for fourth place in Rio on Sunday when heavy rain and wind forced the cancellation of the third race of the 2010 season and the results were determined based on Saturday’s Qualifying session.
Austria’s Hannes Arch was declared the winner of the Rio race after the Top 12 round was interrupted and then cancelled as the stormy weather swept across Rio. Brits Nigel Lamb and Paul Bonhomme rounded out the top three.
But Hall was nevertheless pleased to come away from the race in Brazil with eight more points in the bag, raising his total to 22 points from three races ahead of the crowded North American leg of the season with two races in June.
“The cancellation is disappointing because I’m here to race aircraft and I was pumped to get out there,” said Hall, a former RAAF fighter pilot who was widely expected to do well on Sunday in Rio in the difficult weather conditions thanks to his long military career.
“I was confident of a great result but I know it was the right decision by the race directors to cancel because it wouldn’t have been safe.”
Matt's hangar in weather lockdown
Hall had been improving steadily through the training sessions on Thursday and Friday as well as into Saturday’s Qualifying, when he was only 1.54 seconds behind the pacesetter, Arch, and even closer to Lamb (2nd) and Bonhomme (3rd).
Hall, who has now been getting high-tech data analysis overnight in Australia on his plane’s performance from motor racing legend Larry Perkins, was poised to make another move up in the rankings in the race on Sunday.
“I was sitting in the grid stand when they postponed it and I was thinking I would be happy with fourth,” Hall said.
“But once it was cancelled for the round and in turn for the day I was disappointed and that shows how much I love racing.
“On the positive side, a fourth place result is the third-best result of my race career and a good building-block for the rest of the season.”
The 38-year-old said he was looking forward to the next two races in Windsor, Canada and then in New York. He was also pleased that his team’s new technician, Jack Moshovis, had been able to step so quickly and efficiently into the new assignment.
“It was the first race for us with Jack and he did a great job,” said Hall. “We’re on the right track.”
The next race in the eight event championships will be held in Windsor, Canada on June 5 and 6.
Story courtesy of Red Bull Australia
