A field of 48 riders – both professional and amateur – flocked to the 18th annual, world famous Karujet in Guadeloupe. The event, described by those competitors who’ve raced it as the toughest in offshore race in the sport, has a penchant for breaking things, both man and machine. Started in 1998 as a challenge between two friends racing around the Caribbean island nation has evolved into one of the most iconic and legendary events in all of jet ski racing, and as stated by Aquabike, was “in 2006 recognized by the UIM affording it World Championship status.”
For 2015, four of the seven previous World Champions to have claimed the title since 2006, Ugo Fidelin, two-time winner Davy Vaitilingdon, Teddy Pons and Marc Forbin were amid the throng who faced seven grueling stages of racing held over four days, each of which “setting out each day from the event base on the beach at Viard.”
At the end of the four-day crucible, it was Jean-Baptise Botti whose overall score that earned the Frenchman the coveted title of World Champion. “After winning stage 5 and seeing that Alex had a problem I just took it easy the whole way,” Botti told the UIM in an interview, “I knew I just needed to finish the final stage with a decent time, so I didn’t risk any trouble out there. Happy, very happy.”
Below is the incredibly thorough, complete recap from the near-week-long event produced by UIM Aquabike. Their videos are always top notch, so take a half an hour and soak in what possibly is the toughest offshore race on the planet.
