Paul Bonhomme described Abu Dhabi as being like a second home after he won for the fourth time in the UAE to start the 2015 Red Bull Air Race World Championship with a bang.
The Briton added to his 2008, 2010 and 2014 triumphs by edging out Australian Matt Hall by just 0.084 of a second in the skies over the Corniche yesterday.
Bonhomme (0:57.787) was the last pilot to race in the final and snatched victory from Hall (0:57.871) to dash the 43-year-old’s hopes of a first ever race win.
In contrast, Bonhomme is the most successful man in the series, now with 16 overall victories on his CV. He hopes this one is the first of many in 2015.
The two-time series winner beat fellow Brit and reigning champion Nigel Lamb in the quarter-finals and is now determined to regain his crown.
Bonhomme said: “This is the perfect start to wrestle back my title.
“You can’t beat being first in the first race but it’s going to be hard work. We won the first race last year and looked what happened in the end, so there’s no point getting too excited just yet.”
He added: “I do feel like Abu Dhabi is a second home. When we came back here last year after the break, it did feel like a home from home.”
Bonhomme had to overcome rival Lamb twice yesterday, once in the round of 14 and then in the round of eight again when Lamb qualified for the quarter-finals as fastest loser.
He felt being pitted against his fellow Brit was not a reward for topping qualifying.
“I qualified first so I thought that was going to give me an easy day but it actually did completely the reverse as Nigel’s bad luck became my bad luck. It’s hard work competing against Nigel, especially when you hear that he’s done a 57.1 in front of you. That could easily spook you.”
Despite missing out on a maiden win, runner-up Hall was taking the positives.
“It actually feels like it’s getting closer than ever,” he said.
“To get that close and come second, at some stage I’m going to win. It actually makes me more confident that I can win races because I was so close.”
On a day of drama in the UAE capital, American Kirby Chambliss, champion in 2004 and 2006, didn’t even make his last 14 heat against Hungarian Peter Besenyei.
Part of Chambliss’ cockpit canopy flew off in practice prior to the race and hit him in the face at high speed, leaving visible marks and putting him out of contention.
