The IHRA F1 Powerboat Series enters the final day of its 2026 season with five drivers still able to win the Formula 1 title, after a Saturday of qualifying heats at the Alton Powerboat Nationals produced two different heat winners, a photo finish and a run of incidents on a rough Mississippi River.
Dylan Anderson holds the championship lead on 987 points after four rounds, with Spencer Love 13 points behind on 974, Jared Jensen 33 back on 954, Chris Rinker 36 back on 951 and Jeremiah Mayo 75 back on 912. All five were on the water for Saturday’s two Formula 1 qualifying heats, which set the grid for Sunday’s Heat 3 and the season-deciding Final.
Formula 1: Two Winners, One Photo Finish
Chris Rinker won Heat 1 by more than 11 seconds after a strong start from pole, recovering points ground on the three drivers ahead of him in the standings. Jared Jensen fought back from a poor start to finish sixth, while Spencer Love’s race was compromised when he struck debris in the water and dropped from second to fourth.
Heat 2 went the other way. Andrew Tate led throughout after a strong start and held on to win by 0.375 seconds over Spencer Love. Behind them, Jared Jensen produced the move of the day, passing Dylan Anderson in the closing stages to take third from the points leader by just 0.077 seconds. Chris Rinker failed to start off the dock and recovered from last to finish fifth.
Chris Rinker, after winning Heat 1:
“Honestly, there’s a lot of luck involved with it. We pulled up and hit the switch and looked over and Spencer was there, and I said, alright, we’ve got this.”
Formula Lights: Chaos in Heat 1, Shelby Love Answers Back
Heat 1 produced the wildest racing of the day. Bristol Sherman spun out and collected a buoy on the opening lap, red-flagging the race for a rolling restart. On the restart, Shelby Love spun twice fighting the current, Addison Dumford went airborne avoiding a wave and landed hard without damage, and Dan Trosen Jr narrowly avoided a collision with Dumford’s boat mid-air. The heat was called early for time, with Jared Wallach declared the winner ahead of Jose Mendana Jr.
Shelby Love reset in Heat 2 and won comfortably after adjusting her boat’s setup, with Jack Schubert recovering from a rough Heat 1 to finish second and Jose Mendana Jr completing a late pass on Jake McKee for third.
Jake McKee leads the Formula Lights championship on 1,034 points, the only driver in four figures. Jose Mendana Jr is second on 910 points, 124 behind, with Shelby Love third on 903 (131 back) and Addison Dumford fourth on 896 (138 back).
Tri Hull: Cole Wehring’s Points Lead Survives a Scare
Cole Wehring, chasing his first series title, won Heat 1 after drawing a favourable starting position, holding off Mason Rinker and three-time champion Neal Marsh. Wyatt Zoeller’s motor sheared off the back of his boat after the chequered flag, ending his day.
Heat 2 ran in reverse points order and produced a different story. Neal Marsh carved through traffic from a mid-pack start to win, while Wehring was collected in an incident with Mason Rinker in the closing corners and dropped to tenth. Mason Rinker recovered to finish third.
Cole Wehring leads the championship on 1,075 points, with Mason Rinker second on 1,014 (61 back) and Neal Marsh third on 1,007 (68 back). Saturday’s results tighten that gap heading into Sunday.
Talent Cup: A Stand-In Wins on Debut
The series’ first-year class saw Cade McCumber step into a late Heat 1 opportunity, filling in for the usual second Brown family entry. The heat was won by Jaxon Kresse, with McCumber second and points leader Addy Love third after spinning out fighting the current. Luke Brown went dead in the water early and finished fourth.
Addy Love leads the championship on 833 points, six ahead of Luke Brown on 827.
What’s Left on Sunday
Formula 1, Formula Lights and Tri Hull all run a Heat 3 on reverse championship order on Sunday morning, followed by the season-deciding Finals in all four classes: Talent Cup, Formula Lights, Tri Hull and Formula 1, in that order, before the awards presentation closes out the 2026 season.
IHRA F1 Powerboat Series Coverage
Full results, championship standings, driver profiles and event previews.
All IHRA F1 Coverage
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.
