Sami Seliö is returning to the UIM F1H2O World Championship for the 2026 season, partnering with Italian Alberto Comparato under the Comparato F1 banner. The announcement ends speculation about the two-time world champion’s future that had been building since he posted what appeared to be a retirement message in late December.
Powerboat News reported in January that Seliö had shared an image on social media showing him in his overalls, accompanied by the words: “SUCCESS IS NOT ONLY MEDALS, BUT WHAT YOU LEAVE BEHIND!” The reflective tone prompted widespread conjecture that he was stepping away from the sport after 27 seasons at its highest level.
He is not.
The business behind the pairing
Seliö joins the Comparato operation as team manager as well as driver, bringing his experience of running a competitive F1H2O programme to the merged setup.
Ferdinand Zandbergen, who partnered Seliö for the past four seasons at Red Devil-SMC F1 Team, has left F1H2O to focus on his family’s business. His departure, combined with Damon Cohen’s unavailability following his serious spinal injury at the Grand Prix of Sharjah in December, created the conditions for the deal.
How the Comparato seat opened
Damon Cohen partnered Alberto Comparato throughout the 2025 season. The Australian double barrel-rolled at turn one with 12 seconds remaining in Q1 qualifying at Sharjah. Multiple vertebrae fractures were confirmed, with one vertebra completely shattered and fragments moving into the spinal canal. Cohen underwent surgery in the UAE and a fundraising campaign was launched to support him and his family. He is not available for the 2026 season.
Two families, one team
The Comparato name has been present in F1H2O since 2001. Fabio Comparato – Alberto’s father, now owner of the team operation – was himself a race winner in the championship, taking victory from pole in Malaysia in 2004 during a season that ended with a third-place championship finish. He and Seliö were rivals on circuit during overlapping careers in the championship.
The return in context
The significance of Cagliari is not lost on anyone who knows Seliö’s history. His debut season was 1998, the same year Cagliari hosted the very first Grand Prix of the F1H2O calendar – the Grand Prix del Mediterraneo, on the harbour at Su Siccu. Seliö won the Rookie of the Year award that season. He arrives at the same venue 28 years later as a two-time world champion.
Career record
World Championships (2007, 2010)
Grand Prix Victories
Further Podium Finishes
Career Pole Positions
His 26 career poles rank third in F1H2O history, behind only Guido Cappellini and Scott Gillman. He passed 1,000 career championship points during the 2022 season. Both titles were won at the final race of the season – 2007 at Sharjah, when Cappellini’s boat failed ten laps from the finish and Seliö took the race and the title by four points; 2010 at the final round, overcoming American Jay Price.
Comparato: the other half of the pairing
Alberto Comparato is 28 years old and follows his father Fabio into the team his family runs. The Italian from Chioggia won the UIM F2 World Championship in 2018 at the age of 20, the youngest ever to do so, and made his F1H2O debut in 2019. He holds the record as the youngest driver to take pole position in the premier class, set at San Nazzaro in 2021, and claimed his sole Grand Prix podium at Sharjah in 2022.
In the Comparato F1 pit lane, he will again be guided by the voice of Mathilda Wiberg. The Swedish driver will be on his radio again this year. Wiberg is also his partner off the water, and in 2025 became the first woman in history to win a Formula-class world championship in any form of motorsport, taking the UIM F2 title at Vila Velha de Ródão in Portugal. She was named 2025 UIM Driver of the Year in January.
Sami Seliö and Alberto Comparato were unavailable for comment at the time of publication.
2026 confirmed grid
| Team | Country | Drivers | Numbers | Engine | Hull |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victory Team | 🇦🇪 UAE | Shaun Torrente 🇺🇸 Alec Weckstrom 🇫🇮 Ahmed Al Fahim 🇦🇪 (reserve) |
1 2 – |
Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke |
DAC DAC DAC |
| Team Abu Dhabi | 🇦🇪 UAE | Jonas Andersson 🇸🇪 Erik Stark 🇸🇪 Rashed Al Qemzi 🇦🇪 Mansoor Al Mansoori 🇦🇪 (reserve) |
5 6 35 – |
Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke – |
DAC DAC DAC DAC |
| Sharjah Team | 🇦🇪 UAE | Rusty Wyatt 🇨🇦 Stefan Arand 🇪🇪 Grant Trask 🇦🇺 Filip Roms 🇫🇮 (reserve) |
17 18 TBC 55 |
Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke |
Sharjah Sharjah DAC – |
| China CTIC Team | 🇨🇳 China | Peter Morin 🇫🇷 Brent Dillard 🇺🇸 |
7 8 |
Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke |
Moore Moore |
| Strømøy Racing | 🇳🇴 Norway | Marit Strømøy 🇳🇴 Bartek Marszalek 🇵🇱 |
50 77 |
Mercury 360 APX 4-stroke V8 Mercury 2-stroke |
DAC DAC |
| Maverick Racing | 🇫🇷 France | Cédric Deguisne 🇫🇷 Alexandre Bourgeot 🇫🇷 Beranger Robart 🇫🇷 (reserve) |
73 74 – |
Mercury 360 APX 4-stroke V8 Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke |
Moore Moore Moore |
| Atlantic Team | 🇵🇹 Portugal | Duarte Benavente 🇵🇹 Ben Jelf 🇬🇧 |
10 9 |
Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke |
Moore DAC |
| Comparato F1 | 🇮🇹 Italy | Alberto Comparato 🇮🇹 Sami Seliö 🇫🇮 |
44 11 |
Mercury 2-stroke Mercury 2-stroke |
DAC TBC |
Cagliari is the first confirmed venue; the remainder of the calendar is still being finalised.
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.
