Bonhomme’s win seals Red Bull Title

October 5, 2009—Barcelona, Spain—The third time was the charm for Britain’s Paul Bonhomme. Bonhomme won the 2009 Red Bull Air Race World Championship on Sunday with a victory in the final race of the season in Barcelona. Bonhomme had finished second in both 2007 and 2008 but got the elusive title this year with a sensational performance in front of a record crowd of 800,000 spectators. Bonhomme clinched his first title finishing with 67 points to eclipse defending champion Hans Arch of Austria, who tallied 60 in the series. Australia’s Matt Hall placed third overall - the best result ever for a rookie - with 36 points. It was the first time on the winner’s podium for Britain’s Nigel Lamb, who placed second after a solid performance in the finals. German rookie Matthias Dolderer treated the largest crowd of the season to some fancy flying and placed third, also his first podium appearance. “Fantastic, thank you Barcelona,” Bonhomme said after letting out a loud shout for joy when he heard the news he had won the title on his cockpit radio. He had watched his four-point lead melt to three on Saturday when Arch won 1 point for fastest qualifying time. “I’m very happy. It’s been a lot of hard work but we got there in the end. It’s been a huge amount of pressure. It’s just a question of how you deal with it at the right time. I thought I’d better get my skates on and that worked.” Bonhomme flew consistently throughout the season winning three events and placing second in three others, even though his Edge 540 was not as fast as Arch’s for most of the season. Arch had outclassed Bonhomme in the qualifying sessions this year, winning the 1 point three times compared to just once for Bonhomme. “It was a real good fight all year,” said Arch, who congratulated Bonhomme after the race. “Paul didn’t get anything for free. I was always setting the fastest times and pushing him. I had to go all out in the final. You can’t win if you sit on the brakes. I’m really happy with my performance. There’s nothing to be disappointed about. We’ll see what happens next year.” Two other rookies ended the season on a high note. Japan’s Yoshi Muroya had a career-best sixth place and Canada’s Pete McLeod got 12th, his second-best result. But it was a disappointing race for Americans Kirby Chambliss (5th), Michael Goulian (11th) and Mike Mangold (14th). Spain’s Alejandro Maclean was hoping to give the fans in his home country a strong showing but finished 10th.

Britain’s Paul Bonhomme won the 2009 Red Bull Air Race World Championship, holding off defending champion Hannes Arch of Austria with a thrilling victory in the final race of the season in Barcelona. Photo courtesy Red Bull Air Race 2009 Champion Bonhomme (center), on the podium with second-place winner Hannes Arch from Austria, left, and Australian Matt Hall. (Tom Lovelock/Red Bull Air Race via AP Images). Bonhomme reacts to fans after winning the 2009 Red Bull Air Race World Championship in Barcelona, Spain on October 4. (David Ramos/Red Bull Air Race via AP Images).

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