Ganjavian: “Factory backing is key”

Wednesday 01 October 2008

The #07 Microlink PC team scored third place in the SuperSport Sprint in Portugal

#07 Microlink PC team boss and throttleman Vee Ganjavian has said manufacturer engine support was the missing link that could have helped his team challenge for the SuperSport title this year. The British outfit finished second in the standings, but reckon they could have scored more wins with more assistance on the engine front.

Ganjavian and pilot Gareth Williams were the only crew other than the dominant title-winning #44 Conam Yachts boat of Angelo Tedeschi and Aaron Ciantar to win a race in the SuperSport class this year. But their Yanmar diesel-powered Hustler suffered two key engine failures which denied them a chance to challenge for more wins.

“We’re very pleased and very proud to have taken second in the SuperSport class this year,” Vee said. “The team has worked incredibly well together, and we’ve really enjoyed racing this season – Powerboat P1 is a much more professional championship now. I’ve also really enjoyed working with Gareth. We get on fantastically well, and I couldn’t have anyone better sat next to me.

“There are a few offers on the table for boats for 2009. I’d like to stick with Hustler if I can – they’ve been very good to us, and it goes to show that when you have the support of a manufacturer behind you, it really helps with reliability. Everything in our team is factory-supported, apart from the engines. Yanmar dealt with us as a customer.

"#44 Conam Yachts did a fantastic job – all credit to them, they deserve their title. But if we’d had an engine manufacturer behind us, we could have been better placed to challenge them. Having technical support from the factory is invaluable, especially for reliability. And success in Powerboat P1 is a great marketing platform manufacturers. We had so much interest in Hustler in the US as a result of us racing in this series.”

Ganjavian has also hinted he’d like to stick with diesel power if he can. “Three of the boats on the table are all petrol powered, which – in some ways – is a bit of a shame,” he said. “I’m a great believer in diesel. Horsepower sells boats, but torque makes them go. We were probably 80hp down on the competition this year, but we were still one of the top, front-running boats.”

For a definitive team-by-team rundown of how the rest of the SuperSport class performed in 2008, click here.