OSG, the Italian boat of Giancarlo Cangiano and Giovanni Carpitella, won the opening Grand Prix of the Powerboat P1 World Championship in Malta in a race that will long be remembered for high seas and unforgiving race conditions. Normally contested over two legs, dangerous sea conditions forced the cancellation of Sunday's race on 6th May and so Saturday's first round (5th May) results stood, with Wettpunkt.com in second and Kiton in third. Although the Italian craft of Fainplast had crossed the line first in the Evolution Class, a protest was lodged and subsequently upheld that the Metamarine boat had missed a course buoy during the race. It resulted in disqualification.

In SuperSport, the result was much more decisive after an emphatic Round the Island performance by the British husband and wife team of Mike Shelton and Jackie Hunt, despite waves of over 5 metres high. For many of the highly experienced seafaring racers, these were the worst conditions ever experienced, making the clear-cut win in Extremeboat, powered by Mercury Engines, even more impressive.

It was not without some relief to the battered and bruised boats and bodies that Sunday's event was cancelled. Malta loves its P1 and the crowds respond in their tens of thousands. However, any initial disappointment for the large crowds was short lived when the organisers, in close co-operation with the Maltese Armed Forces and Civil Protection, created a time trial event within the stunning 'Fortress of the Mediterranean' Grand Harbour, Valletta. US manufacturer's team Outerlimits Powerboats took top honours and their first P1 victory in the dying seconds of the Powerboat P1 Time Trial, slicing two tenths off the time of Wettpunkt.com