Matthew Palfreyman won the 2025 UIM F2 World Championship Grand Prix of Italy I at Brindisi, leading from pole position to take his second World Championship victory. His previous win in the series had come at the same venue in 2024.
Saturday sessions cancelled
Rough water ruled out most of Saturday’s programme. Only a free practice session ran after officials deemed conditions unsafe; everything else was abandoned. Sunday brought calmer water, enough for qualifying and the race to proceed, though the conditions never fully settled.
Qualifying
Palfreyman set the pace in qualifying with a best lap of 47.739 seconds. Peter Morin was 0.125 seconds back in second, with World Championship debutants Andrè Solvang and Hilmer Wiberg third and fifth. Roope Virtanen qualified fourth between them.
Sam Whittle’s session ended after two laps. Hitting waves on the back straight triggered his boat’s airbag system, leaving him 19th on the grid with a best time of 53.987 seconds.
Race
With the water still rough, officials opted for a rolling start. Palfreyman led from the front and never relinquished it, completing 27 laps in 24 minutes 39.646 seconds.
The most eye-catching move in the race came from Hilmer Wiberg. Starting fifth, the Swede had worked his way into the top three within the early laps and held the position to the flag, taking his first UIM F2 World Championship podium. Wiberg and Solvang had both raced in the European series before stepping up to the World Championship; the 2025 European Championship had been decided at Kaunas shortly before the World series opener.
Morin ran second throughout from his front-row grid slot to finish 3.964 seconds behind Palfreyman. Solvang came through to fourth on his World Championship debut, Virtanen fifth. Mathilda Wiberg, also making her World Championship debut, finished ninth.
Two incidents late in the race
Mansoor Al Mansoori had been running 12th when he flipped attempting to overtake Giacomo Sacchi. He had completed 26 of the 27 laps. Whittle, who had already lost his qualifying session to the airbag incident, took on water during the race and required an emergency crane extraction after seven laps.
Johan Österberg retired after four laps. Tobias Munthe-Kaas, who had struggled in qualifying, did not start.
Result
| Pos | No. | Driver | Nat. | Laps | Gap | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 | Matthew Palfreyman | GBR | 27 | 24:39.646 | 20 |
| 2 | 11 | Peter Morin | FRA | 27 | +3.964 | 15 |
| 3 | 70 | Hilmer Wiberg | SWE | 27 | +14.153 | 12 |
| 4 | 27 | Andrè Solvang | NOR | 27 | +21.776 | 9 |
| 5 | 96 | Roope Virtanen | FIN | 27 | +24.677 | 7 |
| 6 | 33 | Nelson Morin | FRA | 27 | +28.709 | 5 |
| 7 | 18 | Stefan Arand | EST | 27 | +30.849 | 4 |
| 8 | 16 | Tomas Cermak | SVK | 27 | +33.341 | 3 |
| 9 | 7 | Mathilda Wiberg | SWE | 27 | +35.884 | 2 |
| 10 | 71 | Nikita Lijcs | LAT | 26 | +L1 | 1 |
| 11 | 9 | Mette Bjerknæs | GBR | 26 | +L1 | 0 |
| 12 | 74 | Giacomo Sacchi | MON | 26 | +L1 | 0 |
| 13 | 41 | Edgaras Riabko | LTU | 26 | +L1 | 0 |
| 14 | 1 | Rashed Al Qemzi | UAE | 25 | +L2 | 0 |
| 15 | 3 | Owen Jelf | GBR | 25 | +L2 | 0 |
| DNF | 45 | Duarte Benavente | POR | 10 | DNF | 0 |
| DNF | 30 | Sam Whittle | GBR | 7 | DNF | 0 |
| DNF | 2 | Johan Österberg | SWE | 4 | DNF | 0 |
| ACC | 36 | Mansoor Al Mansoori | UAE | 26 | ACC | 0 |
| DNS | 77 | Tobias Munthe-Kaas | NOR | – | DNS | 0 |
Qualifying result
| Pos | No. | Driver | Nat. | Laps | Best lap | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 | Matthew Palfreyman | GBR | 21 | 47.739 | – |
| 2 | 11 | Peter Morin | FRA | 28 | 47.864 | +0.125 |
| 3 | 27 | Andrè Solvang | NOR | 35 | 47.877 | +0.138 |
| 4 | 96 | Roope Virtanen | FIN | 54 | 47.931 | +0.192 |
| 5 | 70 | Hilmer Wiberg | SWE | 33 | 48.113 | +0.374 |
| 6 | 33 | Nelson Morin | FRA | 14 | 48.250 | +0.511 |
| 7 | 18 | Stefan Arand | EST | 27 | 48.454 | +0.715 |
| 8 | 7 | Mathilda Wiberg | SWE | 29 | 48.578 | +0.839 |
| 9 | 16 | Tomas Cermak | SVK | 26 | 48.884 | +1.145 |
| 10 | 71 | Nikita Lijcs | LAT | 49 | 48.975 | +1.236 |
| 11 | 36 | Mansoor Al Mansoori | UAE | 43 | 49.027 | +1.288 |
| 12 | 74 | Giacomo Sacchi | MON | 39 | 49.360 | +1.621 |
| 13 | 2 | Johan Österberg | SWE | 42 | 49.401 | +1.662 |
| 14 | 45 | Duarte Benavente | POR | 21 | 49.820 | +2.081 |
| 15 | 9 | Mette Bjerknæs | GBR | 22 | 50.188 | +2.449 |
| 16 | 1 | Rashed Al Qemzi | UAE | 25 | 51.685 | +3.946 |
| 17 | 41 | Edgaras Riabko | LTU | 38 | 52.151 | +4.412 |
| 18 | 3 | Owen Jelf | GBR | 33 | 52.261 | +4.522 |
| 19 | 30 | Sam Whittle | GBR | 2 | 53.987 | +6.248 |
| 20 | 77 | Tobias Munthe-Kaas | NOR | 11 | 58.908 | +11.169 |
John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
