Paul Rivett, one of Britains premier racing drivers, will combine the defence of his unprecedented third AirAsia Renault UK Clio Cup saloon car title with a motorsport challenge of an altogether different kind this year after today confirming his participation in the P1 AquaX jet-ski championship. Thanks to the combined efforts of P1 Aqua X Championship Manager Lisa Barsby and renowned ski manufacturer Sea-Doo, Rivett is poised to make his competitive racing debut on the sea leass than three weeks from now when the 2012 season gets underway in Plymouth Sound on 19/20 May. Although quite literally dipping his toe into the water for the first time racing on the sea, the 33-year-old from Banstead in Surrey is a long-standing jet-ski enthusiast and has experience riding off-shore. Paul is thought to be the only British driver ever to attempt winning both car racing and jet-ski titles in the same season. By adding a racing driver of Pauls stature to our championship we have considerably upped the game and at the same time broadened the appeal of AquaX to a mainstream motorsport audience used to seeing him regularly winning races on ITV, commented Lisa. The AquaX riders will welcome the competition and it will be intriguing to see how Paul copes with the physical demands of racing jet-skis on the sea. While car racing continues to be Rivetts career priority, the golden opportunity to compete in P1 AquaX on a 260hp Rotax-engined Sea-Doo was simply too good a chance to miss for the three-time Renault Clio Cup title winner. Rivett will have the very best equipment at his disposal as the re-designed Sea-Doo RXP-X is already a world beater and thanks to its new T3 hull shape is said to be the best handling race ski on the market. It is also known to be more fuel efficient than the title-winning Kawasaki Ultra 300s ridden by Rivetts main rivals. This is a fantastic opportunity to do something Ive never had the chance to do before now, commented Rivett, Ive always loved jet-skis, I had my own stand-up craft for five or six years but this is the first time Ill ever have actually raced one on the sea. Hopefully I can be competitive Im absolutely determined to be near the front. The Sea-Doo looks absolutely awesome and capable of racing at the sharp end. Driving for the Per Hire/Stancombe Vehicle Engineering team in the AirAsia Renault UK Clio Cup this year, Rivett is committed to claiming what would be a record-breaking fourth main season championship success in the British Touring Car Championship support category. Now set to dovetail his circuit racing commitments with P1 AquaX, which thankfully doesnt clash at any point of the season with the Renault Clio Cup calendar, Rivett will form part of an expected 20 plus rider entry split across three new-for-2012 classes. I have to say a big thank you to Lisa and everyone at P1 and Sea-Doo for making this a reality, he added, I also need to say a massive thank you to Colin [Stancombe] and my Clio Cup sponsor Matthew Munson and Per Hire theyve given their blessing for me to do this, for which Im very grateful. The incredibly high level of fitness is going to be a killer and I dont have much time to prepare ahead of the first round; jet-ski racing is incredibly tough and very physically demanding. Its one thing pootling around on the water but to be racing flat-out on the sea for half-an-hour at a time is intense. You have to grab opportunities like this with both hands though; I really cant wait to get started! Following the opening round of the P1 Aqua X season in Plymouth on 19/20 May, Hull in East Yorkshire will host round two of the campaign on 16/17 June ahead of a return to the south coast on 14/15 July for round three in Eastbourne. Cowes on the Isle of Wight will be the venue for the penultimate event of the year on 25/26 August with Southampton scheduled to host the championship finale on 15/16 September.
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