Fausto Atzori Stain, the Italian designer and builder whose aluminium-hulled powerboats competed at the highest levels of European and World Offshore Championship racing for more than two decades, has died. He was 85.
Born in 1939 in Terralba, Sardinia, Atzori came from a family with engines in its blood. He left the island as a young man, worked in Germany, and eventually settled in San Raffaele Cimena, near Turin, where he founded Stain, later formalised as Stain International s.r.l. The company began in industrial metal fabrication and aluminium technology before expanding, in the early 1970s, into offshore powerboat racing.
From Aluminium Shop to Offshore Grid
Stain’s competition history began formally in 1973 with the construction of an aluminium Class 2 trimaran, Arcidiavolo, nicknamed Shotts. Working initially under licence from British Cougar Marine designs, the company produced some of the first aluminium catamarans in 1983-84.
Cougar Italia, built in 1984, competed at world championships in Viareggio, Key West, and Auckland, where it came close to winning the title. By 1987, Stain was producing original designs and its own engineering solutions, including the Victory surface stern drive system.
Championship Wins and Landmark Builds
Among Stain’s most celebrated boats was the catamaran built for Domenico Achilli under the Achilli Motors name. It won the 1990 Cowes-Torquay race, one of offshore racing’s most prestigious events. The Outsider, a 46-foot monohull still fondly remembered in classic offshore circles, is currently under restoration in Sweden.
Atzori also built custom transmissions and propellers, supplying components to Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic Challenger II and contributing to its overall design. His boats competed with throttlemen including Steve Curtis across the European offshore circuit.
Later projects included conversions and prototypes for the Porsche-designed Kineo 27 and Kineo 33 speedboats. Atzori was hands-on throughout; archival photographs show him at the wheel of a Stain-Cougar monohull during 1987 races in Viareggio.
UKOPRA Pays Tribute
The UK Offshore Powerboat Racing Association was among the first to mark his passing.
UKOPRA
“Sad News today from Italy as one of the great offshore powerboat designers has sadly passed away. Fausto Atzori Stain rip 🏁 🙏”
UKOPRA noted the ongoing restoration of the Outsider as a sign that his legacy remains very much alive in the classic offshore world.
Grandfather to a MotoGP Champion
Beyond the water, Atzori’s legacy extends into the MotoGP paddock. He was the maternal grandfather of Francesco “Pecco” Bagnaia, the two-time MotoGP World Champion.
When Bagnaia was three years old, Atzori built him a motorised tricycle fitted with a 50cc engine to teach throttle control. The following year came a miniature Honda, ridden on a makeshift garden track at the family home. The paddock would later recognise Atzori as Bagnaia’s first tutor in the art of the throttle.
Bagnaia marked his grandfather’s passing on Instagram with a photograph and a white heart.
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.
