Powerboat P1
Hannes Bohinc enjoyed nothing short of an incredible debut season with OSG Racing. The trio of him, Giovanni Carpitella and team owner Giancarlo Cangiano became formidable opposition for fellow competitors to contend with and they would eventually claim the Powerboat P1 Evolution class title.
Already a well respected and decorated figure in the world of powerboat racing and the 2005 P1 World Champion, 49-year-old Austrian Bohinc announced his return to the top flight in March 2009. Following success in the 2008 Round Britain, he had initially been keen to race his own Wettpunkt.com boat but the rules did not favour a diesel entry and a chance meeting with 2006 P1 World Champion Cangiano changed Bohincs mind.
Despite his success across 20 years being exclusively diesel powered, Bohinc was immediately impressed by the credentials and performance of both the man and machine he would be working closely with.
“We recently tested the boat on Lake Como and I was very impressed with the engine/boat combination.” he said of SNAV OSG, the US-built Outerlimits SV-43, powered by Mercury twin 9.1litre supercharged V8s, capable of generating over 1500hp. “Giancarlo is a gentleman and an accomplished powerboat racer. He does things the right way with passion and excellence. It promises to be a very exciting season.”
The 2009 campaign, which began in May, started in the best possible fashion for OSG Racing as the team took pole on the eve of the first round of the 2009 Championship in Malta, firing an early warning to the competition in the process. Controversy reigned over the following days as both the Cigarette Smash Poker and Lucas Oil Budweiser boats were handed 3 minute time penalties having passed on the wrong side of the first buoy, but the penalties were reversed under protest and SNAV OSG in the hands of Bohinc and Cangiano took third place in the first race of the season.
There was no stopping them, however, in round two as the 74-mile Maltese Grand Prix of the Sea gave them a first victory of 2009 and the lead in the Evolution class after two rounds of the World Championship.
By this time, Bohinc was becoming increasingly familiar with the petrol powered craft, while his partnership with Cangiano was strengthening just as rapidly. “Our partnership was improving lap by lap and this is a fantastic end to a great weekend for everyone associated with the team.” the Italian said. Bohinc added: “The petrol engine requires different disciplines to diesel and we are still on a learning curve but this is a very satisfying start. Well done to everyone at OSG and Outerlimits for preparing the boat so well.”
Rounds three and four would take the competitors to the Turkish capital, Istanbul, as OSG Racing looked to take advantage of an excellent opening to the 2009 Championship. Despite a promising start, taking third in the PowerPole, the new partnership of Bohinc and Carpitella – racing in place of Cangiaro, who stayed in Naples prior to the birth of his first child – the weekend rapidly turned sour for the team.
Forced to retire during the first lap of the third round owing to the belt powering the superchargers snapping, they were again left empty handed following round four. This time they would not even begin the race. An engine blew during practice, with a new one fitted five minutes from the start. However, the boat would not fire-up and the opportunity to leave Turkey with even a single point evaporated. “We came here knowing that a win was a strong possibility but it was not to be and we must now look forward to Italy and put the disappointment of the weekend behind us.” said a defiant Bohinc. “I would like to express my thanks to the engineers who did everything possible to get the boat race ready in the heat and with the clock ticking. It was an heroic effort.”
As disappointing as Istanbul became, so was the euphoria of Italy for those involved with SNAV OSG in rounds five and six as the team reignited its Powerboat P1 World Championship challenge with two wins out of two, gaining an invaluable 200 championship points in the process.
Bohinc decided to stand aside to allow reserve driver Carpitella the opportunity to race on home soil. Victory in both legs of the Italian Grand Prix of the Sea in San Benedetto del Tronto came amid a backdrop of heavy rain and thunderstorms, and Bohinc was full of praise for his colleagues. “It was an excellent weekend for the team and today’s performance was faultless. The boat and engine combination was back to its best and the championship remains in our sights.” he said.
Also in sight was Sweden, Gothenburg to be precise. Bohinc returned to action alongside Cangiano for the first time since Malta as SNAV OSG built impressively on those foundations already laid, securing a another win in a closely fought sprint race. Having trailed Lucas Oil for much of the race, the defining moment came with three laps left as Bohinc and Cangiano put all of their combined experience to use to achieve a vital success.
A second place finish was to come amid high drama the following day’s Scandinavian Grand Prix of the Sea. The Lucas Oil boat, having hit wash whilst turning, flipped onto its roof and began sinking.Thankfully, with the race stopped, both pilots suffered only shock and bruising.
Bohinc and Cangiano would again make the podium as their quest to win the Powerboat P1 Evolution class title remained on track. The final two rounds of the season in Sicily were now looming and three boats remained in contention for the world crown.
With over a month in between P1 Powerboat events, Bohinc turned his attention to the Cowes-Torquay-Cowes race. He was already one of only six drivers to have won it twice but was denied in one of the cruellest ways imaginable alongside Ed Williams-Hawkes and Max Holzfeind in the brand new Buzzi-designed Wettpunkt.com powerboat.
A ruptured fuel tankforced them to retire with just 1.5 miles remaining of an epic encounter that had provided over four hours of action, with Wettpunkt.com and Cinzano battling for the win. “That’s racing,” Bohinc philosophically explained afterwards. “It was really tough but we did everything we could to win in these difficult conditions. It was a fantastic team performance and we are naturally disappointment after coming so close.”Bohinc hoped he could soon put that disappointment firmly behind him as Sicily and the final two rounds of the season for the OSG Racing team fast approached.
There were but three teams left in the hunt for the ultimate accolade in the Powerboat P1 Evolution class. Leaders Silverline, second placed OSG Racing and Cigarette Smash Poker, lying in third. All of them suffered setbacks in their preparations for Sicily as a hair line crack to the hull of the SNAV OSG Outerlimits powerboat was discovered, while their two competitors has to contend with blown engines during the mornings practise. It would be the SNAV OSG that came out on top in round nine, the sprint race, and in emphatic style. With Cigarette Smash Poker coming second and Silverline sixth, the standings going into the final race of the 2009 championship saw OSG Racing 35 points behind Silverline with Cigarette Smash Poker in third, 39 points behind OSG.
However, of the top three in the Evolution class, only SNAV OSG would qualify for 50 engine reliability bonus points if they were to complete the following days’ course and, if they were to do so, they would move to the top of the leaderboard. A clear run would be enough for world honours. In taking second place behind Furnibo, the OSG Racing team of Hannes Bohinc, Giancarlo Cangiano and Giovanni Carpitella and their Mercury- powered Outerlimits powerboat were crowned 2009 Evolution class World Champions.
They finished with 811 points, 26 ahead of Silverline of Great Britian in second. The winner of three Grand Prix events and podium finishes in eight of a possible ten races, the SNAV OSG was the championship’s dominant boat.
“We have been the best prepared team with the best overall package. It has been an exciting and rewarding season and I have enjoyed the challenge and the camaraderie.It feels good to be a double P1 world champion.” said an ecstatic Bohinc.
Looking forward to the 2010 season, Bohinc is keen to return and help defend the newly acquired title, but has had little time to himself in the months since the OSG Racing P1 success.
“My business life is always demanding and apart from arranging a carpenter to add new shelves to my trophy cabinet, I have had no time to thing about powerboats!” joked the Vienna-based entrepreneur. “It was a fantastic season and I’d really like to be involved next year, but for now I’m focused on taking my company into 2010 in the best possible shape, then I can consider my options.”
