posted Sep 10th, 2015 - Thursday morning at the FAI World Cup 2015 is dedicated to 4-way competition, and the 8-way teams will follow in the afternoon. Event organizer Mike Pennock said that he plans to complete three rounds (6 - 8) and then have the semifinal (9) and final (10) rounds on Friday.

The first 4-way load took off as scheduled at 8 am. The weather was perfect, with blue skies and light winds. The temperatures were on the lower side, as the new NSL-TV video clip shows, and there was still no reason for any delays.

Today's three rounds are important for several teams. There is a cut after Round 8, and some teams will not continue with the remaining two rounds. The rules for the World Cup will allow up to four teams per nation to qualify for the semifinals and finals. This means that all 4-way Open Class teams are in the run for the 10th place and Round 9.

FAI World Cup 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		1,4,D	E,3,L,G	C,16,N,9	13,J,11	Q,2,A,14	K,7,8	P,18,21	15,12,F	B,22,O,10	20,5,M	Total	Avg
1	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	BE	22	32	32	24	23	24	-	-	-	-	157	26.2
2	Black Cat	RU	21	26	27	18	23	24	-	-	-	-	139	23.2
3	VR4 France	FR	20	26	25	19	23	20	-	-	-	-	133	22.2
4	4mula	UK	16	23	23	16	18	15	-	-	-	-	111	18.5
5	Final Fire	AT	15	19	21	15	17	19	-	-	-	-	106	17.7
6	VAF Warriors	DK	16	19	13	15	17	14	-	-	-	-	94	15.7
6	eX3mo	IT	12	19	19	15	15	14	-	-	-	-	94	15.7
8	AtomiX YUU-Skydive	DE	13	17	17	13	16	16	-	-	-	-	92	15.3
9	M4trix	NL	15	17	17	14	14	13	-	-	-	-	90	15.0
10	Sky 4 Four	PL	12	9	13	11	12	11	-	-	-	-	68	11.3

Six teams are in the race for the 10th place after Round 6. VAF Warriors, Ex3mo, AtomiX YUU and M4trix don't have to worry too much, as they are guaranteed a slot for Round 9. The rules for the European Championships allow only one team per nation to qualify for the semifinals and finals. The additional teams from Russia and France within the Top 10 will open up the slots for the four national teams from Denmark, Italy, Germany and Netherlands. Energy (Italy) and Eclipse (UK) can only continue in Round 9 if they place in the Top 10.

The slots for VAF Warriors, Ex3mo, AtomiX YUU and M4trix are in jeopardy when it comes to the final round. Only one of the four teams will make the final European cut and advance to Round 10. They were separated by only four points after Round 6, and everything is possible with two more rounds before the first cut. In fact, even the scores of Round 9 could still change the outcome of this horse race.