The International Hot Rod Association has cut its remaining 2026 powerboat racing schedule to one event each for the IHRA Offshore Racing Series, the IHRA F1 Powerboat Series and IHRA Outlaw Drag Boat Racing, the organisation announced on Tuesday.
IHRA Offshore is reduced to the Mercury Racing Midwest Challenge in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, August 6-9. IHRA F1 is reduced to the Alton Powerboat Nationals in Alton, Illinois, July 17-19. IHRA Outlaw Drag Boat Racing is reduced to the Spring Creek Marina World Finals in San Angelo, Texas, October 2-4.
The cuts remove the Miami World Powerboat Grand Prix and the IHRA Offshore National Championship from the Offshore calendar, and strip every remaining F1 round beyond Alton, including the Windsor, Colorado finale at Roar of the Rockies.
IHRA said the revisions apply across all its powerboat disciplines as the organisation works through budget issues that emerged early in the season.
IHRA President Dustin Farthing said:
“This was an extremely difficult decision because we know how much passion, effort, and commitment our racers, teams, sponsors, and fans invest into these series. At the same time, we have to make decisions based on the long-term future of the organization and where we believe these divisions can ultimately go.”
Farthing said the decision reflected a need to reset rather than a loss of confidence in the powerboat divisions, and pointed to IHRA owner Darryl Cuttell’s original vision for the series.
“We still fully believe in the vision. Darryl Cuttell had a very clear vision for what IHRA powerboat racing could become, a professionally operated platform with meaningful prize purses, major event production, strong media exposure, and a racer-first environment that elevates the entire sport. We simply reached a point where we felt it was important to take a step back, evaluate everything thoroughly, and build the kind of structure that can support that vision the right way moving forward.”
IHRA said operational restructuring, budget realignment, venue development and sponsorship growth would continue through the rest of 2026, with a fuller 2027 schedule to follow.
What Was Cut
| Series | Remaining 2026 Schedule | Status |
|---|---|---|
| IHRA Offshore Racing Series | Mercury Racing Midwest Challenge, Sheboygan, WI, Aug 6-9 | Confirmed, sole remaining round |
| IHRA F1 Powerboat Series | Alton Powerboat Nationals, Alton, IL, Jul 17-19 | Confirmed, sole remaining round |
| IHRA Outlaw Drag Boat Racing | Spring Creek Marina World Finals, San Angelo, TX, Oct 2-4 | Confirmed, sole remaining round |
Part of a Pattern PBN Has Tracked All Season
Tuesday’s announcement follows months of incremental changes to IHRA’s powerboat calendar that Powerboat News has covered as they happened. The Offshore Racing Series lost the Freeport Offshore Grand Prix and the St. Clair River Classic in late May, after IHRA’s partnership with the Offshore Powerboat Association ended. Full details on that breakdown are here.
Leadership has also been unsettled. Tommy Thomassie was named Director of Powerboating in December 2025, resigned in April, returned in May when president Leah Martin was dismissed mid-race at Cocoa Beach, then left again. Farthing was named president shortly afterwards. Read more on Farthing’s appointment and his open letter to offshore teams after Cocoa Beach.
Three IHRA Offshore rounds were completed before Tuesday’s announcement: St. Petersburg, New Orleans and Cocoa Beach. The Shootout Offshore at Lake of the Ozarks ran June 12-14. IHRA F1 has run rounds at Bradenton, Port Neches, Shreveport-Bossier and Marble Falls.
Powerboat News has tracked signs of financial strain inside IHRA for several weeks. Tuesday’s announcement is the organisation’s first public, on-record confirmation of the scale of the cuts.
IHRA said further detail on 2027 venues and scheduling would follow in the coming months.
For full series background, see the Powerboat News guides to the IHRA F1 Powerboat Series and the IHRA Offshore Powerboat Series.
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.
