UKOPRA 2026: Already a 45-Boat Season Entry

Forty-five boats have already registered for the 2026 UKOPRA Offshore Powerboat Championship, with the entry list spanning seven classes and including a reigning UIM World Champion. The five-round series opens at Shamrock Quay, Southampton on May 15-17.

Origins

UKOPRA was established in 2017 by Kerry Bobin with the help of the editor of this publication, with a shared conviction that offshore powerboat racing in the UK needed a governing body that worked for competitors. The association staged its first race in Poole in September 2017 and has overseen championships in every season since, with the exception of 2020, which was halted by health restrictions.

The founders expected Class 3, with its lower entry costs and wider pool of eligible boats, to form the backbone of early entries. What arrived was a Class 1 fleet that regularly ranked among the largest assembled anywhere in the world for open-water offshore racing.

Kerry Bobin served as Chairman until standing down early last year due to ill health. John Moore took over the reins and later resigned to launch this website. Neither is now involved in the running of the association.

Building the Infrastructure

From the outset, UKOPRA cut through the administrative burden that had deterred competitors from other series. An online racing licence portal and boat registration system were introduced in 2018, built by Blowfish Technology. The early 2017 rules have been replaced by a bespoke rulebook, last revised in 2025, covering class specifications, safety equipment, conduct, environmental responsibility, and a structured card penalty system.

UKOPRA governs and administers the championship. World Powerboat Events Ltd organises the races.

Danielle Strawford

Danielle Strawford takes on the role of Series Coordinator for 2026, having built one of the most thorough safety backgrounds in UK offshore racing. She began as a Safety Officer in the RYA ThunderCat Racing Championship before joining UKOPRA at its first championship race in Poole in 2018, a role she has held in every season since – aside from two rounds at Falmouth and Lymington in 2023, when she took time out to have twins.

Her children now attend every race. Her partner, Jody Miles, is actively involved at events, taking on whatever is needed on the day.

Strawford is a former competitor in the UIM V-24 one-design World Championship. That background informs an approach to competitor safety that leaves nothing optional.

Race Ready 2026

On March 7 and 8, UKOPRA held its Race Ready 2026 event across two Southampton venues. Medical examinations, new licence applicant training, and the AGM took place at the Novotel, West Quay Road on the Saturday. Immersion training followed on the Sunday at Andark’s facility at 256 Bridge Road, Swanwick.

The dunk test is mandatory for all competitors in canopied boats. The revised 2026 programme runs five escape configurations at the Andark underwater escape trainer, from a 45-degree submersion with windows through to a full 180-degree inversion requiring Built-In Breathing System (BIBS) use and steering wheel removal. Most crews, new and experienced, attended.

For 2026, UKOPRA introduced a £200 registration deposit at the point of entry, offset against the first race entry fee. The change was designed to ensure that boats on the entry list represent genuine commitments to race.

Steve Willis

Steve Willis, who manages the UKOPRA Facebook page – now at more than 50,000 followers – and handles race timing, assessed the season ahead.

“UKOPRA is extremely enthusiastic about the opportunities this season, as the fleet continues to expand across all three classes. However, as the timekeeper, I will require a sponsor to purchase 50 Swiss watches for my right arm. In all honesty, where else in the world can one find a fleet with such a diverse range of boats, featuring teams from various parts of Europe and the Southern Hemisphere?”
– Steve Willis, UKOPRA Social Media Manager and Timekeeper

Entries to Watch

The highest-profile arrival is Sam Howes, lining up in Class 3D with Team Interceptor (D-6), a Chaudron hull owned by his father Paul. In March 2026, Sam and co-driver Kurt Mifsud were confirmed as 2025 UIM Pleasure Navigation World Champions in the Endurance Boat Production 300 (B) class, racing under the Great Britain and Malta flag. The trophy was presented at the UIM Trophy Ceremony in Monaco.

Sam is based in Mellieha, Malta, and works as a yacht captain. His father Paul left Brighton in 2007 to settle in Malta with his family. A former City of London options trader who raced briefly in the UK, Paul subsequently established an offshore racing series in Malta and has supported Sam’s racing career throughout.

Peter Bonham Christie brings Apache (2-555) to Class 2 – the Don Shead-designed hull that won the 1972 London to Monte Carlo race and the 1979 World Class II Championship under David Hagan. Bonham Christie, a Hampshire-based entrepreneur and founder of classic car logistics company Straight Eight Logistics, took over custodianship of Apache from Nick Wilkinson earlier this year. Full story on Powerboat News.

Wilkinson is also on the entry list. He lines up in Class 3E with King of Prussia (E-858). The number 858 was the original race number carried by HTS – the boat that became Apache – chosen by its first owner, transport magnate Ralph Hilton, as his east London area dialling code.

Peter Hall brings Thunderstreak (E-H400) to Class 3E, a 1963 Bertram hull built for Tommy Sopwith – the oldest boat in the field by some distance. Thunderstreak won three consecutive UK National Class 3E Championships under Hugo Peel’s Team:Royal Yacht Squadron before Peel retired from racing in 2025. Hall, based in Bembridge on the Isle of Wight, acquired the boat in an off-market transaction after racing neck-and-neck with Thunderstreak for three seasons in his own classic boats. Full story on Powerboat News.

Marcus Dodd has entered two boats: Oblivion (E-2) in Class 3E and Assagai (M-71) in Class 2. Malc Dopson has done likewise, with 66 Racing (2-66) in Class 2 and 66 Racing 2 (E-66) in Class 3E.

The Classes

Class 1 is the top tier, for boats between 9.75 and 15.30 metres with a maximum declared power of 2,300hp. Both monohulls and multihulls compete. A liferaft is mandatory.

Class 1L runs the same length range as Class 1 but is capped at 1,500hp, providing a competitive route for teams operating below the top power threshold.

Class 2 covers boats between 7.50 and 12.80 metres with a maximum of 1,000hp. A liferaft is mandatory.

Class 3E is the largest class by entry in 2026, with boats between 7.50 and 10.05 metres and a maximum of 1,000hp.

Class 3D is capped at 400hp, with boats between 7.25 and 9.25 metres and a maximum monohull width of 2.20 metres.

Class 3C runs boats between 6.00 and 8.00 metres with a maximum of 200hp and a monohull width limit of 2.10 metres.

Class 3B is the entry-level offshore class: boats between 5.00 and 7.00 metres, a maximum of 115hp, and a monohull width limit of 2.00 metres.

2026 Entry List

Registered as of March 10, 2026. Entries span teams from the UK, Sweden, Ireland, Malta, and South Africa.

2026 Calendar

Full 2026 powerboat racing calendar at Powerboat News.

The registration list is exceptional for the point in the season at which it stands. One notable absence is Drew Langdon, a multi-class UKOPRA Class 1 champion, who told Powerboat News last Friday that his Outerlimits hull Silverline will be ready for the opening round. Also expected to join the championship is a new Swedish team featuring a driver that UKOPRA founder Kerry Bobin first met in Oskarshamn in 2015 – the Essex-based builder built the foundations for a truly international series.