ARCH RIDING HIGH TO AUSTRALIA AFTER PORTO WIN

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Austria's Hannes Arch will be riding on a high into Australia for the finale of the Red Bull Air Race World Championship after jumping into first place with the first two wins of his career in quick succession - in Porto and Budapest. Arch will also be wearing a big smile Down Under to match his significant lead over Paul Bonhomme of Britain in the championship.

But Arch, who has shaken up the race hierarchy with consistently strong performances in only his second year, is not getting out the champagne yet. ‘I'm not relaxing yet because you can see how fast you can mess up the whole thing like Kirby and Paul did," he said, referring to Chambliss's zero points in Budapest and Bonhomme's zero in Porto. "I don't want that to happen to me. So I'll stay focused til the end of the season."

Arch said it would be risky to try to play it safe in Perth. "You have to go for the win otherwise you lose,’ Arch said after beating Chambliss in a thrilling final in Porto on 7th September. ‘You have to go as fast as possible. It helps if you believe in yourself and I believe in myself.’ Arch, who has become a national hero in Austria, has been on the podium in 6 of the 7 races this season. His original goal before the season began was to get on the podium at least once. Halfway through the season he raised that goal to a top 3 finish in the championship and he has won two of the last
three races.

Arch opened up a 9-point lead over Bonhomme with his impressive victory in Porto. But the Brit, who led the championship all season before Arch knocked him off the top in Porto, knows anything is possible in this wild season. After seeing his 6-point lead evaporate after Rotterdam, Bonhomme knows he can still win the championship if he wins Perth -- and Arch has an off-day and ends up out of the points. Bonhomme won three of the first four races this year before stumbling in London (7th) and Porto (10th). If he wins Perth and Arch finishes no higher than 10th, both would be even with 54 points but Bonhomme would take the championship with more victories. He knows it's a long shot ‘I'll be there. It's not over yet.’ Bonhomme will never forget the way his 2-point lead over Mangold going to Perth last year melted away, giving Mangold the championship.

Aside from the battle for first, there will be intriguing contests for the podium in the 2008 championship. If Arch scores just one point and wins the title, it will turn Perth into a three-way battle for second and third. Bonhomme (45), Chambliss (44) or Mangold (43) could end up in second or third. The competition will also be fierce for fifth between Peter Besenyei (31), Steve Jones (29) and Nigel Lamb (22). "I've been
trying to get past Peter for ages," said Jones, who was 4th in Porto. Michael Goulian (16), Alejandro Maclean (15) and Nicolas Ivanoff (14) are going to duke it out for spots in the top 8.

The season finale takes place in Perth, Australia on 1st and 2nd November.