Alec Weckström has been selected as Finland’s best powerboat racer of 2025 by Urheilutoimittajain Liitto, the Finnish Sports Journalists’ Union.
The Victory Team driver claimed his maiden F1H2O Grand Prix victory at Zhengzhou, China in October and finished fifth in the World Championship with 82 points. Weckström led the title race after his Chinese triumph before engine trouble at Jeddah dropped him to ninth and ended his championship challenge.
Weckström joins three other Finnish motorsport athletes selected by the journalists’ union: rally driver Kalle Rovanperä, motorcycle racer Rico Salmela and snowmobile racer Aki Pihlaja. The selections will be announced at Thursday’s Urheilugaala (Sports Gala) at Helsinki Arena.
The 2025 season marked Weckström’s return to F1H2O after sitting out 2023 and 2024. He joined Victory Team alongside three-time world champion Shaun Torrente and Ahmad Al-Fahim, with the Dubai-based team securing their first-ever Teams’ Championship.
Weckström’s breakthrough at Zhengzhou delivered a Victory Team 1-2 finish ahead of Torrente, with the Finn holding off his team-mate by 3.910 seconds after snatching the lead from pole-sitter Jonas Andersson at the start. The result extended his championship lead to seven points and marked his fourth podium in 12 F1H2O career starts.
Torrente eventually claimed his fourth world title by nine points from defending champion Andersson, despite retiring from the Sharjah finale with a broken engine. The American’s championship success equalled the four titles achieved by Scott Gillman and Alex Carella.
Weckström previously finished fourth in the 2022 F1H2O World Championship and fifth in 2021 during his debut season with Gillman Racing. The Helsinki driver’s absence from the 2023 and 2024 seasons followed his exit from the championship midway through 2023.
The 2025 F1H2O season featured five rounds across Indonesia, China and the Middle East from August through December. Weckström finished on the podium at Zhengzhou and contributed crucial points to Victory Team’s Teams’ Championship campaign.
Rovanperä, selected as Finland’s best car racer, won the Suomen MM-ralli (Finland Rally) and finished third in the World Rally Championship before retiring from the discipline to focus on circuit racing. Salmela finished fourth in the Moto3 junior world championship and secured a place in next season’s Moto3 World Championship. Pihlaja claimed honours in snowmobile racing.
The Urheilugaala marks the 19th edition of Finland’s premier sports awards ceremony. The Sports Journalists’ Union has selected best motorsport athletes across four disciplines since 2016, with previous powerboat racing winners including Sami Seliö.
John Moore’s 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 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
