Maurizio Schepici was born in 1975 in Messina in Italy, and founded the Tommy Racing Team in 2011. The team is named after his dog, Tommy
Powerboats are like the Formula One of the oceans. This motor sport on water can be thrilling and dangerous at the same time. One classic powerboat race is the Cowes-Torquay, set to take place at the beginning of September, when several top boats and pilots will undertake another exciting and challenging course. Motor boating enthusiasts have enjoyed this classic contest for years; the first Cowes-Torquay race took place in 1961!
Fans come from all over the world to check out the field of competition, boats and drivers, and to view the action as powerful boats and advanced engines go head to head in battles at high speeds.
The Cowes Torquay Powerboat Race is organised by the British Powerboat Racing Club, and this year Tommy Racing Team, a team very well known in the UAE, will take part.
Boat pilots Maurizio Schepici and Gabriele Giambattista will race the Cowes Classic as Tommy Racing Team. It will take great courage and seamanship on their part to come out on top at the end of the day and receive the prestigious Beaverbrook trophy.
We had chance to meet Maurizio, who is also the owner of the team, for a quick interview.
We know in the past you were a hammer thrower, with a lot of records still unbeaten; how did you become a powerboat pilot?
In 2000 I moved from Messina to Rome for work and here in the capital I discovered powerboating, and was immediately fascinated by these racing cars of the sea, able to fly at extreme speeds over brutal waves. The first offshore catamaran I tried was a Moretti 3000. In 2011, I created my own team.
Looking to the future and your ambitions, what would you like to achieve in your racing career?
I wish hope to grow further, and maybe even experience other categories.
You could say you are a real pilot only after you capsized…
Of course! And you can confirm that, since you were with me during my first one. It was in Naples in 2011 during a Class 3 race.
You often come to the UAE to watch and take part in powerboat races. Tell us something about your stays in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Although powerboating is often associated with parties on glamorous beaches, ports & yachts, when you are involved in a 3-day stage schedule you can’t afford to be anything less than focused on the race and at your sharpest; so the race weekend for the pilots and their team doesn’t really allow for too much fun….. but when the stage is over we can let our hair down a little. I love how the UAE fuses incredible architecture with Arab tradition and culture. I love coming to the UAE out of the race season. I spent a couple of New Year’s Eves in Dubai.
How is Dubai changing thanks to Expo 2020?
Expo 2020 is widely expected to work as an economic catalyst as it generates economic benefits in the form of increased tourism, job opportunities, and hospitality revenues. Dubai is becoming a larger hub; the population is rapidly increasing. The Government is already working hard to ensure perfect organisation of the Expo and to get the maximum benefit from that: financial benefits, both during the run up to the event and after, in terms of large construction activity, and investments from outside the country, among others.
What is the best advice you can give to those who wish to approach the world of motorboating?
If you want to do well in racing you have to get professional training. This is particularly relevant in the championships where the boats are all identical (very common in the lower categories), as you need every advantage you can get and need to learn how to squeeze every mph from your boat – that’s what makes the difference between winning and losing. It is also important to learn how to race creating a safe environment, together with being comfortable with all the safety procedures.
Words by: Nico de Corato
Photos by: Nico de Corato and supplied
