Powerboat News has been contacted by a Romanian owner who is trying to trace the history of a vintage wooden racing boat currently in his possession, and we’re hoping readers can help.
The boat is a wooden monohull runabout, approximately 4.5 metres long and 1.9 metres wide, recently restored and now running an older Mercury 60hp two-stroke outboard. Its livery carries the name “Hungalu Racing” alongside “Dunaferr,” and race number 705. The owner believes the boat took part in a “Hungalu Cup” competition in Hungary in 1986, though he is still working to confirm the exact details.
Both sponsor names point toward Hungary’s state industrial sector under the socialist era. Dunaferr was the country’s major steelworks, based in Dunaújváros; Hungalu is understood to refer to Hungary’s state aluminium industry, centred on Ajka. Industrial combines of that kind commonly backed domestic motorsport in Eastern Bloc countries through the 1970s and 1980s, which would fit with a boat carrying both names.
The owner has also raised the possibility that the boat could be connected to “Velden” – most likely a reference to Cees van der Velden, the Dutch Formula One powerboat world champion whose Boxtel-based factory built competition hulls raced internationally through the 1970s and 80s. Worth noting for readers with more knowledge than us: van der Velden’s boats were tunnel catamarans built for top-level Formula One circuit racing and sold to international teams, a different profile to a small wooden single-outboard monohull carrying Hungarian industrial sponsorship. Whether there’s a genuine connection, or whether the boat’s history lies elsewhere entirely, isn’t something we’ve been able to establish.
If you recognise this boat, raced in Hungary in the 1980s, or have any knowledge of the Hungalu Cup or similar domestic competitions from that era, we’d like to hear from you. Get in touch via the comments below.
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.
