3.5cc – 2017 champion Mark Wraight

In the 3.5cc class, 2017 iMBRA European Champion Zack Humphries is untouchable, but the NDC is not his priority – He has eyes on bigger prizes at international level. 2017 3.5 NDC winner Mark Wraight is both fast and reliable, but he is also in the world championships team which may open the door for others if he doesn’t attend all the races. Alongside Mark, we would consider Dave Hole, Geoff Parmenter and Andrew Aykroyd in with a shout and we haven’t yet seen the best of Ian Folksons Ikarus. We’d probably make Dave the favourite but Andrew can win it if he goes to most of the meetings. Battle for the King of Speed will probably be fought out between Dave Marles and Dave Pillman, but we suspect neither of them will do enough events to win the title and those last few km/h of speed usually come at the expense of occasional reliability issues. Keith Burgess also has great speed but has been thwarted by reliability in recent seasons.

7.5cc – 2017 champion Mick Szebeko

The 7.5 should be interesting this season as we have another top racer in Andrew Aykroyd joining the class. Gary Wraight will be looking to return to the podium with his 8 Ball after extensive modifications. Gary will be determined to make 2018 a success after scuppering his chances of the 2017 title by attempting major changes mid-season only for it to backfire spectacularly. Everyone is looking forward to the first glimpse of 2014 World Champion Martin Fields new self-designed 7.5. Martin will be hoping the new boat is as good or better than his superb Pegasus Evo that he sold after the GB International win. Martin will no doubt putting most effort into the internationals so he’s not really a UK title contender. In no particular order, we would say that Mick Szebeko, Gary Wraight and Andrew Aykroyd are the front runners. Julian and Ross Waumsley are also strong in 7.5 and Julian’s average of 26 points per race would have been enough to take the title last year had he competed in every event. Ross may be looking for some wins to make up for the disappointment of missing the eliminators having contracted a serious infection in 2017 which almost cost him his leg.Dave Pillmans new Pegasus Evo may give everyone a fright (Video), but will he do enough races?

15cc – 2017 champion Terry Holmes

The best 15cc boat in the UK is Phill Fields Tornado T7, but like other top racers he will be considering potential damage in a world championship year so Mark Wraight will be looking to put right the disappointment of missing out on an 8th title in 2017. Facebook users will have seen the progress of his all-new Seljak design 15cc boat. We will shortly bring you a build masterclass of this boat. However, we hear he may have to contend with James Taylor who is rumoured to be returning to the 15cc class with a new Tornado T7. James is arguably (With Zack) the best driver in the UK, so Mark will have his hands full if James gets his boat built. James/Mark 2017 champion Terry Holmes will also be a strong contender as he only had one DNF all season last year on his way to the title. 2015/2016 champion Sam Lincoln would normally be considered one of the favourites, but is almost certainly focused on the world championships. We would also back Mikey Hillstead if he can keep the consistency he showed in the latter part of 2017.

27cc – 2017 champion James Taylor

27cc is a straight fight between Ian Folkson and James Taylor in our eyes. Or CMB vs Tiger King! James average 35 points per race in last years championship was simply phenomenal and if he carries that form into 2018 he will be unstoppable. The other contenders would be Steve Baxter and Mick Pain who is ultra reliable, but not on the pace of Ian, James and Steve. All 4 are qualified for the world championships, so this may let in Terry Holmes.

Congratulations to all the Endurance qualifiers for the 2018 iMBRA World Championships:

Three team members had already claimed their place through great results at iMBRA Internationals during the season: Zack Humphries (3.5cc) with a fantastic double win in the European Championships in Hungary and the overall iMBRA Western League. Martin Fields (7.5cc) with great results including wins in Oudenaarde and the GB International qualifies through the iMBRA League, as does Ian Folkson (27cc) with a string of consistent podium finishes in Gonzaga, Oudenaarde and the GB International.

3.5cc – had the highest number of entrants and almost certainly the largest group of quality boats/drivers with the potential to qualify. GB Drivers Champion Mark Wraight set what proved to be an unbeatable score in the 1st round. Despite a mishap in round 1, Leon Morgan showed his big race experience by putting in a great 2nd round score, even making an unplanned fuel stop! Dave Marles drove a superb 2nd round to put all this seasons reliability issues behind him and help make up for missing iMBRA 2016. A few eyebrows were raised by the top class driving from Martin Hillstead to grab the other spot, leaving more than a few experienced international racers rueing what went wrong.

7.5cc – Dave Marles drove a perfect race with his best boat. Probably only Martin Fields can challenge Dave’s 7.5 when everything is working properly and many expected this was the class he was certain to qualify in. 2 out of 2 and Dave was on a roll. Geoff Parmenter continued his good form from the NDC races with a solid drive to qualify and make up for the disappointment in the 3.5. Experienced international racer Robert Daniel has had a lot of success with his 7.5 boat and he drove a measured race to ensure qualification. Julian Waumsley’s Pegasus was fast and reliable as usual giving Julian a fairly comfortable qualifying run. No real surprises in the 7.5cc class and many would have predicted these guys to make the team.

15cc – A walk in the park for Phill Fields. First in the water in both rounds and top scorer in both. 2 Perfect runs to complement his win at the GB International last month. That man Dave Marles makes it 3 out of 3 by reigning in the power when necessary and keeping out of trouble. Zack Humphries tiptoed his Boudicca through the race after a stop in round 1 to make sure of qualification. Zack can go a lot faster but he’s not 100% happy with the handling of his current boat and we expect we’ll see a new one for 2018. Sam Lincoln drove a faultless race to edge out Mikey Hillstead and maybe put a small smile on his dad’s face despite Mark not making it in 15cc this time.

27cc – No surprises here. James Taylor wins with a different boat in each round also setting the highest laps of the day. Mick Pain drove a steady race as usual to grab the second place. And would you believe it? It’s 4 out of 4 for Dave Marles who has qualified with every boat he entered! Dave was obviously as humble as ever taking the plaudits! Steve Baxter qualifies easily with his speed.