posted May 7th, 2024 - There are not many 4-way teams in the history of Formation Skydiving competition that have dominated the event as Arizona Airspeed's current lineup. Niklas Hemlin, Mikhail Markine, Christopher Kuhlmann and Joey Marshall have not allowed any other 4-way team to get close to them since November 2020.

Only NMP PCH HayaBusa's historic signature lineup (Dennis Praet, Jeroen Nollet, David Grauwels, first with Andy Grauwels, then with Michele Silvi) outscored the new Airspeed lineup twice at the beginning of the 2020 season before the Belgian 4-way world champions of 2021 had to rebuild their own team. The new Airspeed lineup sent a message to the 4-way world already in November 2020, with the 29.3 outdoor average at the 4-Way FS Skydiving Championships on home turf in Eloy.

Arizona Airspeed have been undefeated ever since and have allowed other teams only to win or tie a round here and there in the last four years. They are the reigning indoor and outdoor world champions and will most likely add another world championship title to their collection later this year at the FAI Outdoor World Championships 2024. The recent victory at the FAI Indoor World Cup 2024 came with the next ten highscores for each round in China, a 34.3 average and a 24-point lead over the French Aethers in 2nd place. Only the Chinese 4-way Women team, in 3rd place on the combined AAA Class leaderboard, were able to match two of Airspeed's highscores.

4-way Indoor Top 10			1		2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		Total	Avg
Rank	Wind Games 2019		F,21,6		L,H,22,7		C,8,19		9,D,5		16,N,14		13,20,G		4,B,J,M		11,17,Q		3,O,K,E		A,12,2		Total	Avg
1	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	BE	33	-1	37	-1	31	-1	50		31		26	-2	46	-1	34		39	-2	27	-2	354	35.4
Rank	FAI Weembi 2019		M,K,D,14		Q,4,5		P,E,9,15		3,N,G,2		6,1,8		F,12,11		13,22,J		H,L,B,18		O,20,A,17		21,7,19		Total	Avg
2	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	BE	39		36		42		35		27		32		29		42	-1	38		31		351	35.1
Rank	World Challenge 2018		10,H,F,13		20,6,22		12,1,11		4,M,G,J		9,B,P,A		N,C,8,3		K,7,L,D		18,19,14		5,Q,21		15,16,O		Total	Avg
3	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	BE	31		25		25		38		62		32	-1	47	-1	26		31	-2	32	-1	349	34.9
Rank	Wind Games 2020		Q,F,6,14		1,13,4		8,J,15		O,9,D,5		21,A,P,H		N,C,20,12		7,G,K,19		10,16,22		17,E,11		M,B,3,L		Total	Avg
4	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	BE	32	-1	29		28	-1	44	-3	45		29		35		25		34		47		348	34.8
Rank	World Challenge 2017		P,H,Q,5		19,16,E		L,3,2		B,A,22,D		J,14,8		11,M,G,1		15,21,18		7,O,4		C,N,K,13		20,6,F		Total	Avg
5	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	BE	52		32		28		39		29		32		28		34		42		31		347	34.7
Rank	FAI Indoor 2022		O,18,14		L,C,F,9		1,J,H,19		3,E,P,Q		20,7,16		2,13,8		17,D,6		N,22,A,G		12,5,11		M,21,4		Total	Avg
6	Arizona Airspeed	US	29		54	-3	35		41		29		25		39		37		27		30		346	34.6
Rank	FAI Bahrain 2018		K,17,J,21		4,H,F,11		18,L,16		5,M,O,C		N,8,P,19		6,9,10		D,12,15		Q,B,G,22		20,E,14		7,3,2		Total	Avg
7	Weembi High Rollers	FR	34	-3	35		31		57		33	-2	31		30		39		29	-2	26	-2	345	34.5
Rank	World Challenge 2018		10,H,F,13		20,6,22		12,1,11		4,M,G,J		9,B,P,A		N,C,8,3		K,7,L,D		18,19,14		5,Q,21		15,16,O		Total	Avg
7	Weembi High Rollers	FR	29		25		24	-1	40		59	-2	33		45	-1	27		32	-2	31		345	34.5
Rank	FAI Weembi 2019		M,K,D,14		Q,4,5		P,E,9,15		3,N,G,2		6,1,8		F,12,11		13,22,J		H,L,B,18		O,20,A,17		21,7,19		Total	Avg
9	Weembi High Rollers	FR	38	-2	33	-1	44		32	-1	27		29	-1	26	-2	47		37		31		344	34.4
Rank	FAI Indoor 2024		8,C,7		K,G,12,B		6,4,H		20,1,5		15,10,A		F,O,P,21		19,M,9		J,13,E,22		16,3,N		L,Q,D,18		Total	Avg
10	Arizona Airspeed	US	35		36	-2	32		29		29		44		39		29		31		39		343	34.3

NMP PCH HayaBusa won four consecutive outdoor (2014 - 2016 - 2018 - 2021) and three consecutive indoor world championships (2015 - 2017 - 2019) and dominated an even longer time period with their lineups between 2013 and 2021. However, HayaBusa had to work much harder to maintain their top spot, while Airspeed's current lineup have not been facing serious opposition since November 2020.

The best example for the very close proximity between NMP PCH HayaBusa and their toughest opponents was the 2018 season, when Arizona Airspeed challenged the reigning Belgian 4-way world champions all the way throughout the ten rounds of the FAI Outdoor World Championship in Australia, and the Weembi High Rollers waited for HayaBusa for indoor competition ten days later at the FAI Indoor World Cup in Bahrain.

However, the consistent pressure from behind might have contributed to the success and consistency of the Belgians, who had to perform all the time on their top performance level whenever they were facing their strong opponents. Potential result of the pressure were the scores that NMP PCH HayaBusa posted meet after meet. The review of the highest scores and meet averages in the history of indoor competition is showing that NMP PCH HayaBusa occupy the Top 5 positions, including the two only 35-plus-averages at two different indoor meets in 2019.

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NMP PCH HayaBusa at the Wind Games 2019 - Arizona Airspeed at the FAI Indoor World Cup 2024

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As impressive as the recent Airspeed performance in China was, it still ends up only in 10th place of the Top 10 rankings. Airpeed's team captain Niklas Hemlin commented his team's performance during the NSL Live Talk on April 26th and reflected on the potential to break through the 35-average benchmark, as well. He and his current team mates have mentioned regularly how difficult it is to bring out the best without serious pressure from opponents.

The indoor world cup in China was the last opportunity for the current lineup to lift their own performance level to new record heights. Niklas Hemlin and Mikhail Markine continue with Arizona Airspeed until Round 10 of the outdoor world championship in October. Chris Kuhlmann and Joey Marshall are looking for two new team mates to build the next lineup.

Arizona Airspeed will have as little opposition at the outdoor world championship as they had at the indoor events. However, they still have the opportunity to make history with a new record average in October, depending on the competition draw, of course. NMP PCH HayaBusa's 27.9 average in Australia 2018 is still the highest one at an outdoor world championship, even though they lifted it to 28.9 without a Super Sequence at the USPA Nationals 2019. It is also remarkable that the competition draws for the entire Top 10 rankings of the highest indoor averages do not include one single Super Sequence. The fastest sequences for the two highest scores both included Block 9 and three random formations, one for Arizona Airspeed at the FAI Indoor World Cup 2022 (L,C,F,9 - 54), the other one for Weembi High Rollers at the World Challenge 2018 (9,B,P,A - 59).