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Gallery: 2017 Jet Ski World Cup; Pattaya, Thailand

Andrew Donovan
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Gallery: 2017 Jet Ski World Cup; Pattaya, Thailand

Being my first trip to Thailand, I was a bit unsure of what to expect from the Jet Ski World Cup Grand Prix in Pattaya, Thailand. Not what you’d call a “world traveler” I was a little hesitant to venture so far from home; how would I like the food, the smells and sights of such a foreign land? And of course, how would the racing be? Well, like everything, it all depends on where you go. I saw food being cooked on the back of a bicycle parked on the side of a street while I walked to a 5-star restaurant. The smells of beautiful orchids filled the air. And the sights? Imagine sunlit beach, amazing temples and a nightlife like no other.

A massive list of International and local riders lined the beach at Jomtien, Pattaya, welcoming 50 more riders than last year. With 4 days of racing, there was plenty on offer the spectators, family and friends. Every class you could think of was going for a world title, from Amateur Novice Ski to Pro Freestyle, Pro-Am Endurance to 1100 Super Stock.

The first day was mainly Amateur racing with the Pro Endurance class coming in to finish the day. With 38 riders on the line for this heat – one of two 30-minute (plus one) lap races. Last year’s winner, Christian D’Agostin was there to try to hold onto the trophy. Unfortunately, he popped an intercooler hose in the first few laps leaving him out of contention for Moto One. Aero Aswar was flying and unlikely to be beaten until he had engine failure with only three laps to go. This left it wide open for the Frenchman, Jean-Bruno Pastorello, who took the day’s win. Pastorello also went on to take the second moto, as D’Agostin experienced another hose failure and leaving him in 19th.

Pro Runabout GP was also packed over the heats and finals. This year with numbers up, heats were held with the Top 7 going through to the final. With a line up of names like James Bushell, James Masterton, and Chris McCluggage, the race was guaranteed to be fast-paced and action packed. McCluggage was strong from the start with a solid lead in Moto 3. His smooth style and reliable steed (on loan from Hungarian György Kasza) let him take out the win in all three motos and the $45,000 check, closely followed by Burbayea in second overall.

Pro Ski GP was a great bit of racing with a strong field and some beautifully turned out skis. Jeremy Poret from France was the man to beat. He was unstoppable and took the win in all four motos. Another great bit of racing was Pro-Am Runabout. It was a full class with 16 riders from 9 different countries. The racing was close, with three different winners throughout the four motos; Masayuki Chigira of Japan, Shinji Kugizaki also from Japan and Wu Rong Hua of China battled it out for first, second and third. Wu was set to take the title until he broke a drive shaft in Moto 3. His team managed to get the ski fixed and ready for the last race, which he took second and third overall. Expect to see a lot more from him and his team.

Freestyle was also a crowd favourite with current IJSBA World Title holder Mark Gomez making his first appearance at Kings Cup. Also on hand was crowd favourite and former world champion, Lee Stone and Taiji Yamamoto from Japan. Lee was back to try and reclaim his title from Gomez after having engine trouble at Havasu back in October. Gomez was strong and consistent in round one, throwing out Superflips, Can Cans and a Scarecrow flip. He was smooth and looked on track to hold his title.

When it came to Lee’s ride, people were expecting to see the infamous Double Back Flip. This put a lot of pressure on Stone who pushed to execute it as the first trick of the round. Doing so takes the trim to be pre-set meaning that no other trick can be performed while this is in place. Once Stone lands the Double Flip he can then reset the trim to standard. Unfortunately for him, Stone didn’t land the trick and the ski would not restart, putting him out of the heat and leaving him with an uphill battle to take back the title. Gomez went out strong in the second heat and was declared the World Champion once again. Stone went on to take second after a showing that he is one of the best freestyle jet skiers ever.

So how was my first trip to Thailand? Everything was an eye-opener. In all, it’s a place you should see at least once, especially the Kings Cup. It was the best jet ski event in the world by far, being the most professionally ran event I’ve ever encountered, and the nicest setup I’ve seen or heard of. And let’s not forget the biggest checks for the place-getters too.

Pro Ski GP 1. Jeremy Poret, 2. Botti Jean Baptiste,3. Raphael Maurin, 4. Kevin Reiterer, 5. Dustin Motzouris; Pro Runabout GP: 1. Chris MacClugage, 2. Muhammad Burbayea, 3. Waleed Alsharshani, 4. Hajme Isahai, 5. James Bushell; Pro Freestyle: 1. Mark Gomez, 2. Lee Stone, 3. Taui Yamamoto; Pro-Am Endurance: 1. Jean Bruno Pastorello, 2. Suphathat Footrakul, 3. Teera Settura, 4. Jin Won Kim, 5. Chaiyaporn Nornua; Pro-Am Women Ski Limited: 1. Kylie Ellmers, 2. Yukiko Kume, 3. Orraphan Teerapatpanich; Pro-Am Runabout Stock: 1. Marjak Pancho, 2. Abdullah Al Fadhel, 3. Aqsa Sutan Aswar

FlexxLoader From TruckBoss Takes Toy Hauling to The Next Level

Ocean Priselac
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FlexxLoader From TruckBoss Takes Toy Hauling to The Next Level

The above statement is absolutely true. Take a look at the pictures and videos on the TruckBoss site and see for yourselves. The FlexxLoader cradle and guide system are efficiency at its finest. The Flexxloader transforms from a hauler to a buggy system. This method is an easy way to get your ski down to the beach by easily converting the FlexxLoader’s cradle to a buggy. It’s useful as a beach dock as well as for storage at home.

Coupled with the TruckBoss Deck, the FlexxLoader is like a dream come true. It’s a hassle free method that can be used to haul snow bikes, Jet Skis, or sit down PWC’s. FlexxLoader is designed for use only with the TruckBoss Deck System, equipped with winch loading. Easily attach the FlexxLoader to a TruckBoss Deck with the new and improved guide and slide system. The ramp is also lighter and easier to handle.

The FlexxLoader components are compatible with all major PWC brands. TruckBoss parts are made in the USA and Canada. The FlexxLoader System Components consist of either a large or small cradle. The large cradle is built for sit down PWC’s and the small cradle is designed for stand up PWC’s. Each cradle comes with the deck and glide system. Check out the TruckBoss website for a more detailed description of each system and its components.

Also, don’t forget the TruckBoss annual Snow Savings Event that ends December 31st. Save a bundle on a Bundle!

We Announce The Watercraft Journal 2017 Watercraft of The Year

Kevin Shaw
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We Announce The Watercraft Journal 2017 Watercraft of The Year

It’s not often that we’re able to tie things up so nicely, but this year we’re able to welcome all three manufacturers – Kawasaki, Sea-Doo and Yamaha – to the podium for The Watercraft Journal’s prestigious Watercraft of The Year award. For 2017, all three OE (original equipment) manufacturers brought a unique and diverse array of new vehicles to the water, each of them targeting a specific audience, many of whom were either completely new to personal watercraft or absent for far too long. Either way, all three of these entries were responsible in some way or another for bringing droves of new and returning enthusiasts to the water.

As we’ve noted previously, the personal watercraft industry experienced a surge in growth unlike anything seen prior to 2008. That’s nearly a decade of lackluster sales, that is, until now. We’re seeing growth of over 11-percent, market share growth deep into the double digits, and unparalleled product advancement. There’s a lot to be excited about, and the products shown here are directly responsible for (in large part) that growth and expansion, so while not all can be Watercraft of The Year, their respective success is worth praising all the same.

2017 Watercraft of The Year 2nd Runner-Up: 2017 Sea-Doo Spark Trixx HO 2-up

Haters gonna hate, they say. And when it comes to the Sea-Doo Spark and its Polytec hull, there sure are a lot of haters floating around them intarwebs. So amid all the chatter and hubbub professing that there’s no way Polytec could hold up to any sort of abuse, what does Sea-Doo do for 2017? They offered a Spark designed for jumping waves, power slides, 360’s and other freestyle tricks. Yup, Sea-Doo literally trolled all the anti-Spark trolls. Hell, they even named it the “Trixx.”

Starting with a 90-horsepower, 2-up (two-seater) Spark, Sea-Doo offered the machine in a more-fun-than-usual Candy Blue and Chili Pepper color combination; screwed down some smartly-molded padded foot wedges (ideal for doing wheelies like the back footpegs on a BMX bike) and crafted an aluminum telescoping steering neck. Some fun graphics around the Trixx liven up the look too.

Being absurdly lightweight and equipped with a rev-happy ACE 900 engine, the Trixx is a ton of fun. Take into account its radically extended VTS (Variable Trim System) with 17-degrees upward and negative 6-degrees downward (a total of 10 degrees of additional movement), and the Trixx can stand nearly vertical. And when you’re done showing off, you can still ride it like a regular Spark. Sure, you might think this was a fun, flash-in-the-pan, one-year-only limited edition, right? Wronnng! Not only was the Spark Trixx the single highest selling PWC for 2017, but Sea-Doo sold twice as many Trixx’s as Kawasaki sold watercraft. Let that sink in for a minute.

2017 Watercraft of The Year 1st Runner-Up: 2017 Kawasaki SX-R JetSki

“You did it. You crazy son-of-a-b***h did it.” Although that quote is famously attributed to Dr. Ian Malcolm of Jurassic Park fame, it was pretty much all everyone could say when Kawasaki finally revealed what was easily the single-most anticipated personal watercraft in, what? A decade? Hmm, maybe less. But still, a factory-built 4-stroke standup from the company who invented the standup JetSki is a big deal, and that it finally became a reality this year makes it a shoe-in for contention as The Watercraft Journal’s 2017 Watercraft of The Year.

We just returned ours after half a year of testing and we’re sad to see it go. Albeit the heaviest standup Kawasaki has built (551-pounds) and over eight-and-a-half feet long, the new SX-R is quite the beast to master. But it tracks straight, it’s massive, angled tray allows for plenty of movement, and man, does it run. (Nearly 160-horsepower will do that.) Racers are just now beginning to polish the SX-R’s rougher edges through aftermarket support, and the ski is finally overcoming its rocky first impression with the hardcore standup crowd.

Being almost mandatory equipment for competing in certain key IJSBA Ski classes also pushed to make the SX-R so popular. Coming in at $9,999 was also a major feat, and for Kawasaki to achieve that goal required a lot of tight budgeting and cost cutting. The ’17 SX-R is famously stitched together from a warehouse of existing KMC products including the Teryx side-by-side, and a whole lot of stuff borrowed from all of the other existing JetSki runabouts, including the Ultra 310X. It was met with moderate success this year, and hopefully continued sales throughout 2018 will ensure a future for the SX-R for years to come.

2017 Watercraft of The Year Winner: 2017 Yamaha GP1800 WaveRunner

Possibly, at no time in the past decade did “Win on Sunday, sell on Monday” hold more truth in the personal watercraft industry than with Yamaha’s 2017 GP1800 WaveRunner. Internet naysayers had less than two months to besmirch the new GP1800 before the performance aftermarket started rolling out tuning results. 79, 80, 81…84 miles per hour all with an air ribbon delete and an ECU tune. Toss in an intercooler upgrade and a repitched prop, and the GP1800 was capable of 86mph all day long. And that was just what the runabout did in a straight line.

On the race course, the GP1800 has famously and consistently beaten everything. Pilots earned multiple world titles at the IJSBA World Finals. The GP1800 reigned supreme throughout the AquaX USA tour. At the annual Long Beach-to-Catalina Offshore enduro, the GP charged through 5-foot-plus Pacific chop to clinch the championship. The combination of the industry’s largest-displacement supercharged four-cylinder 4-stroke, and the lightest mid-sized runabout hull makes the GP1800 an unstoppable juggernaut. In fact, the GP inspired more racer defections from competing brands than any single machine in a long, long time.

Frills free and priced to kill at $13,999, the 2017 GP1800 literally sold out its production run by mid-June. So successful was this machine among enthusiasts and racers alike that it climbed to the 6th place in the Top 10 highest selling personal watercraft for 2017. That’s a massive feat, especially for a high performance supercharged, race-bred watercraft. (Not the typical stuff for the mainstream.) The unparalleled success of the GP1800 both on the showroom floor and the buoy course is truly impressive and truly a worthy recipient of this year’s Watercraft of The Year award. Congratulations!

Cycle Springs Powersports Announces Holiday Hours

Kevin Shaw
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Cycle Springs Powersports Announces Holiday Hours

It’s wintertime, so you know what that means for those poor souls down in Florida, right? Nothing. It’s always like 70-something-degrees there. It frosted once a few years back, and the entire state ran out of bread and milk in 6 hours.

All joking aside, it is the holiday season and the good folks at Cycle Springs Powersports will be shutting their doors to let their employees spend time with their families and prepare for the new boating season. Per a Facebook post, they wrote:

“We will be closed for Christmas December 25th, and New Years Day January 1st, 2018. And it’s inventory time we need to count all the toys. We’ll be back on January 8th, 2018.”

Yes, that means besides Christmas and New Years Day, Cycle Springs will also be closed for the first week of the year so that they can get properly stocked up for 2018. So, enjoy the time off, maybe schedule an appointment to bring your current machine by their service center when they reopen, or maybe chat with a friendly sales representative about taking home a new unit. It’s Christmas after all, and mom always said it was OK to get yourself one present…

Yamaha’s GP1800 Continues Sweep of 2017 AquaX USA Series

Kevin Shaw
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Yamaha’s GP1800 Continues Sweep of 2017 AquaX USA Series

You’ve got to be living under a rock if you haven’t noticed that one brand has pretty much swept every runabout race all year long (especially that of the US series of P1 AquaX. Our most recent coverage from the first-ever World Championships held last weekend in Key West, Florida was published earlier this week and can be read HERE) – and that is Yamaha WaveRunners. No if’s, and’s or but’s; it’s been Yamaha at the top of every podium at every stop of this year’s tour.

And as you read our recap from the World Championships, this past weekend was no different, with long-time Yamaha racers Brian Baldwin, Nicolas Rius and new-for-2017 Eric Francis battling it out. Yamaha proudly recapped Baldwin’s climb to first place in a press release below:

Pro watercraft racer Brian Baldwin and the Yamaha GP1800 WaveRunner made history this past weekend, becoming the first-ever AquaX World Champion at the inaugural International event held in Key West, Fla.

Joining Baldwin on the podium were fellow GP1800 racers Eric Francis and Nicolas Rius who completed the sweep for the GP1800.

The world championship title ends a storybook first season for the Yamaha GP1800 WaveRunner that dominated the Pro AquaX national tour, IJSBA World Finals, and the AquaX World Championships. Making the AquaX World Championship title even sweeter was the GP1800’s shutout of the new Sea-Doo RXT-X 300 that could do no better that 6th place.

“This was a great inaugural year for the GP1800. We proved that the GP1800 is the benchmark for high-performance watercraft, and I couldn’t be more proud of racers and tuners that joined the GP1800 effort from the beginning,” said Yamaha WaterCraft racing director Scott Watkins.

Congratulations to all of the Yamaha riders that competed this year at the P1 AquaX events and Dean’s Team, Riva Racing, and Broward Motorsports.

Save 25% Off All WCJ “Busted Lip” T-Shirts Until January 2018!

Kevin Shaw
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Save 25% Off All WCJ “Busted Lip” T-Shirts Until January 2018!

It’s our first sale! Yay! That’s right, we’re hacking 25-percent off of the normal price of $20 per shirt to $15! And it’s not just for Hanuka and Christmas or even New Year’s either – but this sale is running from now until the end of January 2018. We really want to move these bad boys over the next month and a half so we can make room for our new 2018 T-shirt design (don’t worry though, we’ll still keep this one too).

The official T-shirt of The Watercraft Journal for 2017, this cool retro-1980’s style shirt is printed with top quality colors on a top-of-the-line machine so the print won’t discolor, crack or fade. And while you’re at it, make sure to pick up one of our cool “Busted Lip” decals featuring IFWA and IJSBA World Champion Mark Gomez (who also writes for The Watercraft Journal from time to time) doing what he does best, riding his ski better than any of us could.

So yeah, click this link right here to take you to The Watercraft Journal shop and pick up your reduced-price T-shirt right now (or tomorrow, or whenever you see this).

Video: Florida Man Captures Shocking Video Of PWC Accident

Cody Cole
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Video: Florida Man Captures Shocking Video Of PWC Accident

Waves can be often deceiving as one Florida man learned recently. While riding his Sea-Doo off the coast of Tampa near Egmont Key earlier this month, Alex Preston and his father captured an incredible accident involving a fellow rider while capturing video of a passing cargo ship. What he caught was absolutely shocking.

As the waves from the ship came upon them, Alex decided to play around with them a bit. While he slowly went over the first wave, he witnessed a rider in the near distance hit the large waves head on at a high rate of speed. The wave launched the rider and his PWC quite a distance into the air and threw him off his craft. Figuring the rider would probably be in some serious trouble, Alex and his father quickly raced over to the scene to find the PWC floating driver-less and the rider unconscious, badly cut across the neck and floating face down in the water.

“He was in bad shape when I got to him. He was unconscious for a few minutes and would have surely drowned. I should also note, that just 10 minutes before this I was riding near a large bull shark and over the day we had spotted many sharks swimming. Yes, it crossed my mind that I was in the water with someone bleeding.”

This is a perfect example of why you should always invest in a quality life vest. Sadly, this rider’s life vest appears to be a cheap version that unfortunately didn’t do its job and left him face down in the water. They’re supposed to roll somebody face up when they are USCG approved. Alex and his father tended to the rider until he was taken to the beach by his friend where paramedics then transported him to the hospital. Alex has been in touch with him since the accident and he is thankfully recovering well.

Alex says, “I wanted to share this video for a couple of reasons. First it was an incredible incident that happened to be captured on film. Second, it shows the importance of wearing a life vest. If he had not of had one on, I would not have been able to find him. Third, pretty crazy how the life vest kept him face down and was going to drown him. Fourth, if I ever plan on going “Big” off of waves, I will wear a helmet. Fifth, if you do plan on jumping, ride with a friend.”

[The video does contain graphic images and language. -Ed.]

JetJam Promises to Bring Retro Havasu Action to Boise, Idaho

Kevin Shaw
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JetJam Promises to Bring Retro Havasu Action to Boise, Idaho

We get it. A lot of you are thinking, “Waitaminute. Lake Havasu in Boise, Idaho?” Well, that’s the hook for the latest event from the fine folks at the JetJam Racing Series. They recently announced a special event hosted by JetJam in Star, Idaho (local to the Boise area) on June 9th & 10th, 2018.

Now wedged in between their Sparks, Nevada tour stop on June 3rd & 4th, 2018 and their Bakersfield, California even on June 24th & 25th, the “Havasu in ’92” event promises to be a ton of fun with a bunch of retro standup ski action (hence the whole “1992” throwback reference).

If you haven’t already, make sure to check out the JetJam racing series. It’s an entertaining, family-fun racing series that let’s you get right up on the beach to check out the action. Welcoming world class professional racers from across the nation (and beyond), riders “showcase amazing speed and technical abilities while amateur riders have a place to strut their stuff and learn from the best,” according to JetJam’s website.

Best of all, JetJam is designed as a family event, welcoming participation from both kids and adults alike. Don’t miss out on any of the fun and check out JetJam’s website for more information today.

Gallery: P1 AquaX World Finals; Key West, Florida

Kurt NgSaye
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Gallery: P1 AquaX World Finals; Key West, Florida

The P1 AquaX Tour was having their last stop for the year with the world finals in Key West, Florida. This was going to be their first time in Key West and what a great location it was set to be with the crystal clear water of the southern most point of the United States.

With racers arriving into town on Friday they were excited for the final race of the season with beautiful sunny weather. The forecast for the weekend was slated to be chilly with temperatures dropping with some rain arriving on Saturday however. Missing from this round of racing was National Champion Chris MacClugage and fellow racer Mike Klippenstein. They along with Troy Snyder, were racing half way around the world in Thailand for the King’s Cup.

As Saturday morning arrived so did the rain. With racing slated to start at 1PM in the afternoon everyone was praying to the weather gods to have the sun come out. Visibility was reduced because of the weather and it was questionable if racing could be done. Once the decision to race was made it was time to get the course set up and have the helicopter check the course to see if there was any marine life on the course that might interfere with racing.

The crowds were starting to arrive for some fast paced racing at the Edward B. Knight Pier where race control was set up despite the cold blustery weather. As the helicopter was checking the course sea turtles were seen from up above and racing was put on a marine hold. This hold lasted for almost three hours and racing was once again put in jeopardy for the day as time was running out before daylight was lost for the day. While racing was put on hold fans were given a show by Kristen Smoyer on her flyboard. As fans were anxiously waiting it was finally determined by the P1 Staff that racing should go on. They decided that the Pro Class and Amateur Class would race together in their first heat instead of separately as originally planned.

Race one for the weekend saw Erminio Iantosca take his brand new 2018 Sea-Doo RXT-X 300 and get the holeshot. It was the first time anyone saw the brand new ski in action and boy was it fast out the gate. This must have come as happy news as Sea-Doo rep Tim Mckercher was on site to see it happen. Could the Yamaha reign of wins be finally over for the year? Unfortunately for Iantosca, he had to fend off Eric Francis, Brian Baldwin and Nicolas Rius on their Yamaha GP1800s.

Francis, after gaining an overall second place in the national championship, took the lead and never let it go for the remainder of the race. Rius got as close to two seconds behind Francis during the race trying to chase him down but Eric Francis was just too fast for him. Francis took a first place finish followed by Rius and Brian Baldwin in third to finish out the top three. In the Amateur Classes it was David Gorie in the 300 Class, Kevin Sullivan in the 250 Class and Eric Diaz in the 200 Class. And all while racing on Yamahas. This ended the first day of racing and everyone was hoping for a better day the next day.

Sunday came and the weather gods were definitely cooperating is far as the clear skies. There was definitely not going to be any rain in site and racing got going. The temperatures did however decrease overnight and it felt rather cold but it was definitely better than rain from the previous day. The racers would be racing two races each and not be combined as in the previous day. The Pros started the day off and it was Eric Lagopoulos who got the holeshot with Eric Francis right behind him.

Baldwin took the lead and looked like he was ready to battle for the championship. Eric Francis followed him this time and Rius was coming hard after both of them. As racing continued it brought some hard charging and the fans that arrived to the second day of racing looked on and cheered for their favorite racers. Baldwin finished first followed by Francis in second and Rius finished in third. Rius however got injured and dislocated his shoulder and headed straight to the pits after the race to get tended to.

The Amateurs started their race and it was Carlito Del Valle that raced hard and take the first place finish in the Amateur 300 Class. This was Del Valle ‘s last race ever as an Amateur as he was moving up to the Pro Class next season and a first place finish would be a bonus for him making the move. In the 250 Class it was Christian Daly who got the win and dethrone Kevin Sullivan’s flawless season. Jose Gonzalez took the win over Eric Diaz in the 200 Class.

It was time for a break in the action and Kristen Smoyer again entertained the crowd with her highflying Flyboard demonstration. Jetsurf got into the action as well and demonstrated their motorized surfboards in the crystal clear waters off the pier for the crowd to see. Finally it was time for the last race of the year for the Pros to take place. It looked liked a lock for Eric Francis to win the first ever AquaX World Championship. His ski was running great and all he had to do was get a top two finish to claim the championship. As the race started it was Brian Baldwin who got the holeshot.

Eric Francis was right behind him, however he had problems with his ski and his weekend be over. This opened the door for Baldwin to set his sights on a World Championship crown. Nicolas Rius – even though dislocating his shoulder – raced and charged hard, but the pounding of racing eventually was too much for him to handle. As Rius started to fade back in the pack it was Sea-Doo rider Erminio Iantosca who was the hard charger on his brand new Sea-Doo. Baldwin had too much of a lead for Iantosca to catch up to him but it was definitely a bright day for Sea-Doo to take a podium spot for the weekend and ended the Yamaha dominance. Brian Baldwin took the win and the crown, becoming the first ever AquaX World Champion.

In the Amateurs last race of the season Carlito Del Valle ran a flawless race and became the overall winner of the 300 Class. He put on a dominating performance for his last amateur race of his career. Christian Daly again won in the 250 Class and Jose Gonzalez won in the 200 Class. The 2017 AquaX race series finally came to an end. With new tour locations, more sponsors and mass participation it once again put on a great series and can only look forward to the future. Let’s see what next season brings next year.

RIVA Racer, Brian Baldwin Hailed as First AquaX World Champion

Kevin Shaw
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RIVA Racer, Brian Baldwin Hailed as First AquaX World Champion
Image: P1 AquaX USA

Many didn’t know what to expect coming into the first ever AquaX World Championship in Key West, FL. this past weekend. RIVA Racing’s Brian Baldwin and his ’17 Yamaha GP1800 WaveRunner squared up against RIVA Racing teammates Nicolas Rius and Eric Francis. Francis had carried the first race on Saturday, with Baldwin managing third during the day’s only heat.

That didn’t stop the North Carolina native, as on Sunday Baldwin sped ahead of Rius and Francis; Francis grabbed second place during Sunday’s first moto and Rius followed his second place finish on Saturday with a third place finish, despite having dislocated his shoulder during the race. The final moto on Sunday would mean everything and the stakes were high.

Just 10 points separated the Top 3 has they headed into the final race of the 2017 AquaX season. Almost immediately, Francis was downed with a mechanical failure before the race even started, and with Rius nursing an injured shoulder, it suddenly looked like Baldwin’s race. Baldwin nabbed the holeshot and Rius – even with a dislocated shoulder – gave chase for several laps.

Unfortunately, the pain grew too much and Rius dropped out, giving Baldwin his second race win for the day and the top spot of the first AquaX world title. Rebounding from a mechanical issue in race two, Erminio Iantosca pushed hard to reel in Baldwin, but fared with a second place finish. European racer Thomas Favolini came in in third on the final moto.

Complete coverage from the weekend’s racing will be published later tonight on The Watercraft Journal with a comprehensive recap and photo gallery.

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