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 Wednesday, August 13:  Portugal’s Lino Araùjo blew the cobwebs away with a stunning victory in the opening 40-minute Moto at the Grand Prix of Indonesia on Lake Toba on Wednesday morning. Jakarta-based youngster Boanerges Ratag and Jay Finlinson finished second and third after Hungarian racer György Kasza lost his long-time lead four minutes from the finish and slipped back to eventually finish sixth.

Araùjo said: “The first race was amazing. At the finish, I thought I would be sixth or seventh but my friend told me I was first. It was very good. I had a bad start and then I pushed all the race.”

Ratag added: “I felt great from the start to the end. I was leading at the start and then Kasza overtakes me.”

Third-placed Finlinson said: “The start was a little iffy for me. This is the first aquabike race I have been to and I had my stop watch on my hand. I was trying to look at that and watch the flag at the same time. I was a little slow. That was my first regatta start ever and my first aquabike race ever. I am going to do the same thing and try and stay up at the front.”

Six Motos over the next three days will determine the outcome of the 2025 UIM-ABP Class Pro Endurance World Championship off the shores of Balige in Sumatra. With refuelling not permitted during the Moto, there was also an element of fuel conservation as a factor to determine the race outcome.

After a parade lap for the 20 riders from nine nations, 16-year-old Boanerges Ratag stunned his rivals, took the hole shot and grabbed the lead from the start of the first Moto, which was held in cloudy and gloomy morning conditions on the world’s largest volcanic lake. The Indonesian led from Kasza, Isahai Hajime, Rasmus Koch Hansen and Araùjo. Trinity Ratat and Yoko Sosie were non-starters.

But the early leader’s speed was short-lived and Kasza found a way past to take the lead after the opening three-kilometre lap. The Hungarian continued to edge away from his rivals over the subsequent few laps and had increased his advantage to 10.093 seconds through lap four. Araùjo moved into third ahead of Koch Hansen, Hajime, Adrian Herias Fernandez, Brisbane-based Bailey Cunningham and eighth-placed Jay Finlinson from Indiana in the USA. Last year’s World Championship runner-up Anthony Radetic was down in 12th position. Mario Lamy retired after just three laps.

Hajime then dropped out of contention with mechanical issues after lap five, as Kasza continued to pull away from Ratag, Araùjo, Koch Hansen and Fernandez. Radetic moved up to 10th behind Kiwi female rider Kylie Ellmers.

By the halfway point, Kasza had increased his lead over Ratag to 23.60 seconds but the stubborn Indonesian youngster maintained second place from Araùjo, Koch Hansen, Cunningham, Finlinson, Ellmers, Scott Phillips, Radetic and 10th-placed Makaio Wimylie. Seventeen of the 20 starters were still in the Moto.

The leading 10 riders held their positions into the last 15 minutes of the Moto, although Kasza eased his pace somewhat to conserve his ski into the closing minutes. With 10 minutes to run, after 20 laps, the Hungarian led by 25.087 seconds with Ratag and Araùjo maintaining their podium places in a top 10 that was running in procession into the closing stages.

Kasza hit trouble after 24 laps with only four minutes on the clock and Ratag and Araùjo stormed through to take first and second places with Araùjo passing Ratag in the closing seconds to win the Moto by 3.58 seconds. Finlinson stormed through the field to take third from Cunningham, Ellmers, Kasza, Koch Hansen, Radetic, Phillips and Wimylie.