Powerboat P1 2005
On Sunday 2nd October 2005, Wettpunkt.com became the Powerboat P1 Endurance World Champions. It was a story of never say never as the team, soundly beaten in the first four races, clawed their way back into contention to win the world crown in the final race of the season. The victory was sealed by a great racing thoroughbred, expertly piloted by skilled and experienced racers whose grit, determination, occasional good fortune and seamanship would demonstrate to all, the classic qualities required to win at the highest level of world endurance racing.
The Admiral-Casino Tivoli had already become a powerboating legend, having won many of the great classic events over the previous decade.
Designed by Fabio Buzzi, the beautifully crafted Admiral-Casino Tivoli had an unrivalled pedigree as a racing machine but would now, ten years after taking Hannes Bohinc to victory in the 202 mile Martini Marathon, face one of the toughest tests of its illustrious life.
Re-named Wettpunkt.com, its main competition for the Evolution world crown in one of the world’s most competitive race series would be the brand new FB boat, Sony, piloted by owner Mario Invernizzi alongside Giovanni Carpitella and Christian Rivolta, and the Donzi OSG of owner and throttleman Giancarlo Cangiano. These rival Italian teams were well funded and keenly supported by engine manufacturers Isotta Fraschini and Mercruiser respectively. By the start of the 2005 season,Wettpunkt.com had undergone a major transformation.
An immediate decision had been made in Spring 2004 to replace the four 9-litre twin turbo 800hp Seatek diesel engines with a pair of 10.3-litre bi-turbo Seateks, giving 1000hp each.The hull weight was reduced to 7-tonne and with 2000hp to play with, the twin diesels could comfortably produce over 80-knots without too much stress on them. 2004 was a valuable learning curve for Hannes and his team and a P1 race win on the South-coast of England in Brighton in very rough weather proved that, when the engines ran and the turbochargers were reliable, the boat was very competitive. Bohinc realised that for the boat to win races in 2005 against strong opposition some radical thinking was necessary, and he decided to completely modify the boat using a working concept by Fabio Buzzi.
Work was carried out on ‘The Big Beast’, Wettpunkt.com, to move its centre of gravity. The whole boat was stripped-out, the engines moved, and the cockpit altered to allow the new shock absorber seats to be installed and make the rough events more comfortable for the crew. The stern was modified, trim tabs checked, and the propeller shafts with their trims re-sited to improve the balance of the boat. The pilot line-up for the season would comprise throttleman/owner Hannes Bohinc and Britons, Miles Jennings (driver) and Ed Williams-Hawkes (navigator), a hardened crew of experienced racers and proven winners and the well-drilled team arrived in Malta for the first of five Grand Prix events, hungry for action. After two events the omens were not good for the Anglo-Austrian Wettpunkt.com, Sony was dominant with four wins from four races and a maximum 40 points to Wettpunkt’s 14.
But Bohinc and his team know from experience that outright speed in endurance racing is just one element; reliability, expert seamanship and good fortune are all essential ingredients!
The third event of the season, the Grand Prix of Germany on the Baltic in Travemunde, would be the turning point of the season as the Sony dominance ended, Wettpunkt.com winning its first P1 Grand Prix and signaling to all-comers that this would be no Italian whitewash. The team moved ahead of OSG into second place and now turned their attention to the home of powerboating – Cowes, Isle of Wight – and a venue in which all three Wettpunkt.com pilots had a history of racing successes. A hard fought battle over two days that included a Round the Island endurance event resulted in a first GP win of the season for OSG with Wettpunkt in second place. With Sony disqualified in both races, the championship had become a three way battle – Sony 50, Wettpunkt.com 44, OSG 42 – as the teams headed to Gallipoli, Italy, for the European GP.
Packed with drama off and on the water, Sony once again failed to make the podium as Wettpunkt.com and OSG battled for supremacy and the championship lead. Wettpunkt’s challenge was timed to perfection, the team winning the GP and taking a narrow lead into the final two races, although its initial disqualification and subsequent appeal victory dampened the achievement somewhat as the final event in Naples beckoned. The team knew that its rivals would have to win by a clear margin and, having adjusted its race strategy accordingly, was happy to bring the boat home in second place to claim the World Championship crown; a more than fitting reward for every member of the Wettpunkt.com team, from the mechanics and engineers through to the trio of pilots, whose determination, dedication and ethics were handsomely rewarded over an arduous and action-packed season of drama and excitement.
