Ben Jelf finished fifth in the Regione Sardegna Grand Prix of Italy in Cagliari on Sunday, in a race that he described as absolute carnage.
Five drivers barrel rolled out of the race. Jelf navigated past all of them, fought his way from eleventh on the grid, and crossed the line in fifth as the time limit ended the race with five laps remaining.
Sprint and Grid
Jelf had already put points on the board before Sunday’s Grand Prix, finishing sixth in Saturday’s Sprint Race. Starting eleventh for the Grand Prix, his afternoon began with immediate drama. On the opening lap, Sami Selio barrel rolled directly in front of him at Turn 2. Jelf clipped the overturned boat as he went past and carried on.
Through the Fleet
Once the race restarted after Shaun Torrente and Rusty Wyatt both barrel rolled on the second restart, Jelf began working his way forward. He held off Brent Dillard, passed Jonas Andersson, and set his sights on Alberto Comparato in fourth. The three of them – Jelf, Andersson and Comparato – spent several laps in a three-way battle, trading lines at every corner, side by side through the spray.
Jelf got past Comparato to claim fourth. Before the lap was complete, Peter Morin barrel rolled at the right-hander, bringing out the yellow flag. The standings reverted to the previous completed lap. Jelf was classified fifth.
Championship
He now sits fifth in the early championship standings, behind Stefan Arand, Grant Trask, Bartek Marszalek and Jonas Andersson.
Now in his fifth season in F1H2O, the Maidstone driver brought a strong 2025 campaign – which included double podium finishes at Lake Toba, Indonesia – into Cagliari. He goes to the second round in Kyrgyzstan in August with 12 points and momentum.
Jelf said:
Wow, what a race. That was intense – it was absolute carnage out there! But the battle with Jonas and Alberto was awesome. It was some really good, tight racing and I’m totally buzzing from it.
He added:
We put some important points on the championship board this weekend. That is entirely down to the hard work and dedication of everyone on our team, and I am eternally grateful to them. We now set our sights on Kyrgyzstan. We proved this weekend that we have the pace to fight with the best, and we will keep pushing for more podium positions.
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.
