The 2026 Race World Offshore Key West World Championships kicked off today—the first of three races total—with just over 100 entries racing in a total 15 classes. Monster Energy/M•CON grabbed the checkered flag in Class 1, M•CON/HURT! App/Monster Energy took the win in Class 2 (formerly Factory Stock), CR Racing took the win in Super Cat, and STR Allied was victorious in Super Stock. It was an action-packed day of racing with a couple of accidents: first the Class 4 Simmons Marine entry spun out, ejecting Jason Zolecki and Jake Coons from the boat, that led to a red flag and a restart, then Super Stock ended in lap 5 of 7 when Bad Decisions/XINSURANCE flipped, landing upside down. (All pilots checked out OK.) The weather in Key West was mostly sunny, with only one brief shower that did not impact racing. Here’s a recap of each class; all results are unofficial as of this writing:
Class 1: Eight entries came to Key West to compete, including Club Car Wash/BPR, which had claimed the APBA Class 1 Offshore National Championship crown earlier in the season. Not participating in this week's competition is JJ Turk, who drives the 48' MTI XINSURANCE North while he recovers from neck surgery. This week, champion racer Brit Lilly joined throttleman Nick Buis in the boat, while Lilly's partner in Super Cat, Bill Pyburn, raced in the Club Car Wash/BPR entry with Australian champion Darren Nicholson.
Tyler Miller and Myrick Coil were the team to beat in Class 1. They took their Monster Energy/M•CON 418 Skater from pole-to-pole to take the win, followed by Marine Technology/GC Racing (Willy Cabeza and John Tomlinson) and Outta Pocket Racing/XINSURANCE (Kevin Birrell and Billy Moore). Running with the Class 1 fleet for the first time were Chad Rudesill and Rusty Williams in their new Say Less MF boat—one of three different boats and classes run by the pilots.
Super Cat: Casey Boaz and Rob Unnerstall in CR Racing were really feeling their Sterling Engines’ power, taking an early lead and successfully holding off their seven competitors to take the checkered flag. Pyburn and Lilly showed a lot of speed in their Dirty Money entry, but the boat suffered a mechanical issue, ultimately taking on water into the boat, forcing the team to exit the course. Finishing second were Chris Grant and Jay Muller in C.J. Grant Racing/Graydel, while Michael Howe and new throttleman, Shaun Torrente in Howe2Live Offshore were third.
Class 2: After a red flag stopped the action due to what officials called a bad start, the race resumed after a restart. Miller and Coil were again unstoppable in their M•CON/HURT! App/Monster Energy competitor, handily staving off their seven competitors. Joe Spoloric and Garrett Coonrod in Lake Wylie Racing, and Logan Adan and Giovanni Carpitella in Montlick Injury Attorneys, finished second and third, respectively.
Super Stock: Of the 16 entries, STR/Allied (Shaun Torrente and Matt Jamniczky) was in front when Bad Decisions/XINSURANCE flipped halfway through the race, which officials opted to not continue, so it finished in first place. Cole Leibel and Gary Ballough in Raymarine and Billy Allen and Sabrina Kowalik in Team Allen Lawn Care were second and third, respectively. Nuff Said hit a buoy and was penalized one lap.
Super Vee: Three entries joined Class 1: Wazzup Motorsports, DSK Marine and Go GPS Racing/Cortez Cove. Ed "Smitty" Smith and Anthony Smith finished first in Wazzup; DSK was second and Cortez Cove was third.
Modified Vee: Kirk Hanna and Mark Rinda in NMBRV Resort finished first; Kyle Miller and Jay Wohltman in Speed Marine were second and Steve and Stephen Kildahl in Boatfloater.com were third of a total nine entries.
Cat 300: Wicked/Lakeside Motorsports took the win over Pantera Mike Racing and Jackhammer.
Vee Limited: Team Legend 504 took the win over Mike's Marine Care and BoatRacingExperience.com.
Extreme: Demon Bikini/Venom ran unopposed in this class.
Here were the podiums in Bracket Classes:
200: OC Racing, Victory Racing, Justice League.
300: Team Woody Racing, Herbott Racing, WeHaulBoats.com
400: Saris Racing, Hartman/XINSURANCE, Team 07 Racing.
500: Rum Runners, Back in Action, Bronx Phantom/Marker 1 Marine.
600: Moderation, Ride Legal Velocity, Gerard Marine.
700: Team Progression/REDRUM, Pist'n Broke, Yacht MGMT Racing.