New Zealand’s Ken Lupton has given New Zealand plenty to cheer about, taking out the prestigious ANZAC Trophy at the Yarrawonga Power Boat Spectacular at Lake Mulwala on the Murray River over ANZAC Day weekend, Saturday 25 April.
Racing under the Ken Lupton-Racing banner with Lucas Oil backing, Lupton piloted his GP-577 hydroplane to victory in one of the most celebrated events on the Australian powerboat calendar. The ANZAC Day Trophy honours the service and sacrifice of Australian and New Zealand armed forces, making it a race with meaning well beyond the podium.
The centrepiece of the Victorian Speed Boat Club’s annual race weekend at Lake Mulwala is the E.C. Griffith Cup, the world’s longest-running perpetual powerboat trophy. That honour went the way of Australia, with Grant Harrison claiming a record tenth Griffith Cup, repelling the trans-Tasman challenge to keep the trophy on Australian soil. Harrison, already the reigning Lucas Oil Australia Hydroplane National Drivers champion, drove Melton Toyota GP1 to the win in a final that gave the Yarrawonga crowd everything they had come to see.
For Lupton, the ANZAC Trophy win was a fine result in a class renowned for its intensity. Grand Prix hydroplane racing is not for the faint-hearted. These three-point craft, planing across the water on hull and two sponsons, are among the fastest hydroplanes in Australia and New Zealand.
Off the water, Saturday evening brought an exclusive Q&A session at Club Mulwala featuring Lupton alongside Ricky Howard and Tate Ramsey, stories and behind-the-scenes perspectives from careers lived at extreme speed.
Congratulations to Ken and the entire Ken Lupton-Racing team. A well-earned result, and a proud moment for New Zealand motorsport.
