The 2025/26 Australian Offshore Superboat Championships will return to the New South Wales Hunter Valley and the waters of Lake Macquarie for the highly anticipated opening round of the new season, a season which promises some of the biggest fields in more than a decade, led by the stunning outright Supercat Extreme category that will feature a number of new and returning boats campaigned by both rookie and experienced crews.
Having worked tirelessly to re-establish themselves after setbacks post-Covid, the Australian Offshore Powerboat Club has been rewarded for their efforts with what will be the best field of boats to contest the Championship for more than ten years. Led by the impressive outright Supercat Extreme boats, there has been a big shakeup in every class of competition for the coming season leading to an air of excitement about what’s to come at Lake Macquarie.
Clear favourites to start the new campaign in Supercat Extreme will be Lake Macquarie locals ‘Boost Mobile/222 Offshore’ with reigning champions Darren Nicholson and Peter McGrath strapping in again to weather the coming storm, but whilst the team will use their immense experience; which includes World Championship victory – they know the new season will present some big challenges.
12-months ago at Lake Macquarie, Andrew Searle and Tom Barry-Cotter debuted their new look ‘ACME Racing’ Maritimo, the team having debuted in the final round of the previous season on the Gold Coast as a shakedown, the 2024/25 Offshore season their first real assault with the new boat where typically of a debut package, there were teething issues. This time around though after a big off season preparing new powerplants and making some further adjustments to the package, the multiple national champions are convinced they will present a much greater challenge to the ‘222’ team and are excited about the prospect of the season ahead.
But as they say in the commercials, that’s not all..!
In Port Adelaide back in April, another former Maritimo package made its return to the water under the flag of 2005 Bathurst 1000 winner Todd Kelly, the new-look ‘MOJO’ program put together in the two weeks ahead of the event with new owner Stuart Eustice and Kelly planning a full assault on the 2025/26 season, but electing to run Port Adelaide as a shakedown.
A big off-season for the ‘Kelly Performance’ supported team will see them look to push for podium finishes off the back of two wins on debut at Port Adelaide, although Kelly is quick to point out that they came at the expense of penalties and technical setbacks for their rivals; regardless, they impressed on debut and will be looking to send a message to the established teams that they’re looking for a championship!
And that leads us to the ‘new’ teams, led by two Championship winning crews; multiple Supercat Outboard Champions Antony De Fina and Matt Kelly, and multiple Supersports 85 Champions Mick and Jason Kelly (and yes, three of those Kellys are related, but interestingly, not to Todd Kelly..!)
For AOPC Commodore Antony De Fina, much of his life has been dominated by the sport, his father a pioneer in the category during its formative years, and like most competitors in the sport, his dreams had always centered on the outright category where finally, after many years of success in the Outboard classes, he’s made the leap after purchasing the former Team 3 Victory cat formerly campaigned in Australia by Adam Gilbert.
Joined again by wheel-man Matt Kelly, the pair are under no illusions about what to expect in their maiden season as they work the intricacies of managing a longer, heavier inboard engine boat against some very serious competition, but one thing is for certain, the package has the credentials and the team have immense experience in the sport, and like their rivals, they’re not entered just to make up the numbers, so will be good to watch in their debut season.
For reigning Supersports 85 Champions Mick and Jason Kelly, their plan had been to step into the Supercat Outboard class for season 2026, but through a number of changing circumstances found themselves faced with a 34-foot ‘Skater’ hull which once held both the Australian and New Zealand #1 titles; Hornet Racing the evolution of that, with what is arguably the most stunning paint scheme in the sport – they’ll be hard to miss.
Both teams know they have plenty of work ahead, experience teaching them that with graduation comes a whole new learning experience, but like the other experienced campaigners in the field, they’re not starting from ground zero so could present a challenge to the category’s more seasoned campaigners, especially if they face a setback.
Meanwhile for Philip Wiley and Darren Apps, two long time mates brought together over a passion for ski racing, they’ve emerged from the off-season break with their own project having taken delivery of Brett Luhrmann’s ‘Team Australia’ Maritimo. The duo will spend the new season coming to grips with a very different boat to what they’ve been accustomed too, but have also drafted in the experienced Paul Fowlds, the multiple outboard Offshore Champion running alongside Apps for the opening few races in accordance with regulations, which requires at least one experienced campaigner in the boat for the team’s first four races.
With their size, speed and sound, the Supercat Extreme boats are the most iconic in Offshore competition, but will by no means present the only focal point across the six 30-minute races at Lake Macquarie.
There’s been change in the Supercat Outboard category too in the off-season, most notable being that of reigning Champions ‘The Mantis’. Post-Port Adelaide the Antony De Fina built catamaran was sold on to rival Steve Lancaster of DLR Offshore fame, Lancaster campaigning the multiple championship winning boat under the ‘Kess Racing’ banner this season with the experienced Scott Kelly alongside.
They might be the ‘underdog’ as a new combination, but with the extra speed of twin Mercury 300Rs at his disposal, Lancaster will be able to take the fight directly to the ‘Sting’ pairing of Mike Ratcliffe and Karl Wall who despite missing Adelaide after their big off in Geelong, come into the new season fully repaired and fully prepared. They’re also looking for redemption after holding the championship points lead with De Fina and Kelly at the mid-point of last season, both teams having claimed three wins apiece to that point; for them, 2026 is about completing the job!
Whilst ‘Kess’ and ‘The Sting’ campaign the more powerful 300R engines, for ‘TCR Offshore’s’ Scott Richardson and Steve Kelly, they will have their hands full this season against ‘DLR Offshore’s’ new-look crew, with Craig Dove now joined by son Lachlan in the popular Victorian boat, both teams campaigning the older 300XS Mercury powerplants. Having completed the 2025 season second in points, DLR will be looking to maintain their place in the Championship and based on their reliability last season, will present a real threat to the faster teams.
In keeping with the graduation of champions through to the faster classes, the Supersports 85 category will have a new look to start the 25/26 season, but unlike the Supercat classes, this one has a twist.
Over recent years the battle for supremacy between Cootacraft’s Mark Pecherzeswki and the ‘The Colonel’ of Mick and Jason Kelly has been a highlight, two very different boats competing gunnel-to-gunnel at almost every round, and whilst the Kellys have emerged on top the last two seasons, there has been no doubt about which of the two boats is faster (remembering that the class is capped by GPS to 85mph), Pecherzewski though, lamenting a lack of reliability last season.
Sadly that lack of reliability saw a major overhaul in the off-season where frustratingly parts delays kept the mighty ‘Special Edition’ from readiness for Lake Macquarie, forcing a change in direction, and here’s the kicker..
Graduating to the Supercat Extreme class saw a vacancy in the Kelly family’s beloved ‘Colonel’; enter newly crowned Supersports 65 Champion Hary Bakkr.. Bakkr had designs on building a new ‘Razorcraft’ for the 2026 Supersports 85 season but work commitments (building Razorcrafts for customers) had sidelined the project, delivering the Kellys a solution to keeping their ‘Skater’ in the field. That vacancy and subsequent challenges to Shane Paton’s graduation to driver of ‘Nut Case’ for the new season saw the mighty green-machine available for Lake Macquarie, and yep, you guessed it, Pecherzewksi and Mel Nelson will jump aboard to earn points towards their tilt at the 2026 Supersports 85 title, although acknowledging that they might not be in contention for the class win this weekend.
In keeping with the strong growth of the category, the Supersports 85 class will have no shortage of depth, Bakkr and Pecherzewski joined by Aaron and Jack Panozza in ‘Skater 28’, Darren Penfold in ‘Thunderstruck’ and Anthony and Hunter McEnally in ‘Watersports Marine’ all in contention for a race win across the weekend, and if 2024 was any guide (three different winners across the Lake Mac weekend), anything is possible.. And just a tip, don’t discount the mighty little green boat..!
With Bakr having graduated for the 2026 season, the path is open for a new champion in the Supersports 65 class and again, there’s no shortage of contenders although all will need to be on their A-game with the return of 2024 Champion Patty Paczkowski in ‘Valentus’. Family commitments kept the team from a full program last year, although a return at Wyndham Harbour did nett three race wins, but for the 2025/26 season, Paczkowski is intent on regaining the crown, although he won’t have it all his own way.
Charlie Di Iorio is back in the family-run ‘Cardiac Arrest’ with Greg Walters again alongside despite repairing his much-loved ‘HUN74’ Haines Hunter in the off-season, the Di iorio and Walters combination a serious threat for the outright title, whilst Ben Embleton – again with the experienced Liam Sutherland alongside – will look to press their intentions in their first full season in the Championship.
Throw in the returning Brendan Weeks and Sophie Lancaster in ‘The Con’, Aaron Jackson in ‘All Coast Marine’; who claimed three podium finishes at Lake Mac 12-months ago – Zak Gould in ‘Degen’ and Patrick Bonnici in ‘Power Marine’ and you have no shortage of action across all four classes.
For anyone attending the event, teams will again be based at Empire Marina at Marmong Point with the boats traversing a 6.5-kiloemtre course that runs from the start/finish line at Marmong Point south towards Bolton Point, then east towards Warners Bay, up close and personal to The Esplanade at Speers Point, on towards The Five Islands then back to Marmong Point presenting many great vantage points around the rotation.
Three 30-minute races will run on Saturday, October 18 with races scheduled at 12:00pm, 1:00pm and 2:00pm, whilst on Sunday, October 19, races will run at 11:00am, 12:00pm and 1:00pm.
For more information on the Australian Offshore Superboat Championships, visit us at;
www.superboat.com.au
www.facebook.com/OffshoreSuperboats
www.facebook.com/ausopc
————————————-
2024/25 Australian Offshore Superboat Championships
Supercat Extreme Championship (after four rounds of four)
1. Darren Nicholson/Peter McGrath (Boost Mobile/222 Offshore) – 376-points
2. Andrew Searle/Tom Barry Cotter (ACME Racing) – 323
Supercat Outboard Championship (after four rounds of four)
1. Antony De Fina/Matt Kelly (The Mantis) – 440-points
2. Steve Lancaster/Craig Dove (DLR Offshore) – 347
3. Mike Ratcliffe/Karl Wall (The Sting) – 226
4. Scott Richardson/Steve Kelly (TCR Offshore) – 206
Supersports 85 Championship (after four rounds of four)
1. Mick Kelly/Jason Kelly (The Colonel) – 361-points
2. Mark Pecherzewski/Melanie Nelson (Special Edition) – 241
3. Ryan Shan/Scott Kelly (RS Motorsport) – 92
Supersports 65 Championship (after four rounds of four)
1. Hary Bakkr/Shane Paton (Nut Case) – 377-points
2. Charlie Di Iorio/Greg Walters (Cardiac Arrest) – 156
3. Danny Caelli/Dean Caelli (Villain) – 131
4. Greg Walters (HUN74) – 32
———————————————-
2025/26 Australian Offshore Superboat Championships – calendar
R1. Lake Macquarie, NSW – 18-19 October, 2025
R2. Wyndham Harbour, Victoria – 21-22 February, 2026
R3. Geelong, Victoria – 14-15 March, 2026
R4. Port Adelaide, SA – 09-10 May, 2026
