The 222 Offshore team travelled to Monaco on Saturday to receive the Sam Griffith Trophy awarded to the UIM Class 1 world champions. Australian driver Darren Nicholson and Italian throttleman Giovanni Carpitella were presented with the famous memorial trophy at the 2023 UIM Champions Trophy Ceremony by UIM President Dr. Raffaele Chiulli and Powerboat P1 CEO Azam Rangoonwala.
Fought out over six races at five events – with a mid-term schedule of back-to-back race weekends and three races in a week on Lake Michigan – the 2023 world championship showcased the sport at its absolute best, with Nicholson and Carpitella delivering a near faultless, season-long campaign to win the title.
“The 222 Offshore crew proved to be the class act in an outstanding series against world class opposition in a season that saw three different race winners with six teams and four manufacturers on the podium,” said Azam Rangoonwala. “The Sam Griffith Trophy, often described as the most coveted prize in world powerboat racing, dates back to 1964 when Class 1 came of age with a sanctioned world drivers’ championship. Sam L. Griffith was a larger than life character who became a sporting hero in the 1950s and it was his name that was selected to adorn the trophy.”
Speaking at the awards ceremony in Monte Carlo, the self-effacing Nicholson commented: “When I started racing back in 2011 with Peter ‘Muddy’ McGrath he told me that I could drive ok and since then racing in three major championships around the world has provided me a lot of seat time to fine-tune my skills. I hope to have the opportunity to keep racing and improve further. Our 222 Offshore team who prepare the boat to the level required to compete consistently at every race demonstrate outstanding skills and unwavering commitment, and Giovanni and I are forever indebted. We are the ones accepting the award but this world championship title belongs to the entire team.”
The popular Carpitella added: “Winning the Class 1 title was a dream from when I was very young watching the racing with my father in the 1980s. It was a great season last year. Darren and I are like husband and wife – of course, I’m the husband! What we have achieved together in the sport is really, really incredible and we hope to be back in Class 1 this year to do it all again.”
The 2024 UIM Class 1 World Championship will kick off in mid-May at Cocoa Beach on Florida’s Space Coast.
