posted Dec 11th, 2015 - Things have been moving quickly at the World Air Games 2015, as soon as the weather allowed the teams to get back in the air.

Three rounds were completed in 4-way Open and 4-way Women on Friday, and both events are ready for the first cut. The official rules reduce the number of teams to six after Round 8. The World Air Games are over for five of the 11 teams, unless the host decides to include the Qatar Tigers, who compete as a guest team at the World Air Games. Dubai Asaar's Black team would be the next in line to continue with Round 9.

Two more teams will be eliminated after Round 9. The question mark is once again behind the Qatar Tigers who are in 4th place without any threat from another team. Evolution and FLY-IN will be battling for the last slot in the finals, as the Qatar Tigers can continue only as a guest team.

World Air Games 2015			Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	AAA Class		B,C,17,2	N,19,4	13,14,F	6,E,O,L	7,1,A	D,18,P,22	M,H,5,15	16,9,12	21,K,G,Q	11,20,3	Total	Avg
1	NMP PCH Hayabusa	BE	29	26	23	36	28	23(-1)	31(-2)	24(-1)	-	-	220(-4)	27.5
2	Arizona Airspeed	US	29	27	22(-1)	36	28	19(-3)	29(-2)	25	-	-	215(-6)	26.9
3	Black Cat	RU	23	23	21	30	21	21	26	23	-	-	188	23.5
4	Qatar Tigers	QA	22	21	17	28	23	19	27	19	-	-	176	22.0
5	Evolution	CA	21	22	17	28	20	15	24	20	-	-	167	20.9
6	FLY-IN	FR	24	20	18	29	20	17	19	19	-	-	166	20.8
7	Dubai Asaar Black	AE	21	20	17	20	20	17	23	19	-	-	157	19.6
8	Vision 99	UK	18	12	15	23	18	15	18	17	-	-	136	17.0
9	Rotor Out	AU	17	16	14	22	17	15	21	13	-	-	135	16.9
10	Ex3mo	IT	16	16	12	21	16	17	14	15	-	-	127	15.9
11	AtomiX YUU	DE	14	12	14	20	16	13	17	14	-	-	120	15.0

The battle for the world's 4-way top spot seems to be over. The three rounds on Friday created a 5-point lead for the reigning indoor and outdoor world champions from Belgium.

There are two more rounds to go; however, it is hard to imagine that NMP PCH Hayabusa could give up a 5-point lead. Round 9 is a fast sequence that the Belgians usually like. Round 10 has the slowest sequence of the competition, which will not offer an opportunity to make up serious ground. Airspeed has to put all energy into Round 9 and hope for a Belgian meltdown.

Canada's national team Evolution is once again moving quietly toward the higher levels on the leaderboards. The new lineup with Jean Christophe "JC" Oumet is in 1st place of the 4-way VFS competition and has a good chance to make the finals in 4-way Open, where the new member is still in the learning phase.

World Air Games 2015			Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	AAA Class		B,C,17,2	N,19,4	13,14,F	6,E,O,L	7,1,A	D,18,P,22	M,H,5,15	16,9,12	21,K,G,Q	11,20,3	Total	Avg
1	Golden Knights	US	25	21(-1)	22	25(-4)	23	19	29	21	-	-	185(-5)	23.1
2	French FLY-IN Girls	FR	25	22	21	30	21(-2)	20	20(-3)	22	-	-	181(-5)	22.6
3	Para. Montreal Fuzion	CA	16	19	16	26	18	12	21	16	-	-	144	18.0
4	NFTO	UK	18	17	15	20	18	15	17	14	-	-	134	16.8
5	Infra Red Band	RU	17	15	12	20	12	14	17	13	-	-	120	15.0
6	Dubai Asaar Ladies	AE	12	12	9	14	11	11	10	12	-	-	91	9.1

The leaderboard in 4-way Women has only changed on the very top, as well. The new French FLY-IN Girls first extended the 3-point lead in Round 6 and then had their first serious meltdown in Round 7. The Golden Knights took full advantage with a peak performance and won this one round by nine points.

However, the French team recovered well and quickly and followed up on the meltdown with a highscore in Round 8. There are also only two more rounds to go, however, it seems like the chances for changes on the female leaderboard are more realistic than in 4-way Open. Golden Knights and French FLY-IN Girls have a range of winning or losing one single round by 9 or 5 points, and the same fast sequence is coming up next in 4-way Women.

The six teams in 4-way Women are also facing cuts after semifinals and finals. Dubai Asaar Ladies will be done after Round 8 and Infra Red Band after Round 9. The TALBERT WAG CORNER will be next with more details.