Devil’s Isle Racing stamped their authority on the Hamilton Harbour Race, which was held in conjunction with Scooter Mart Motor Fest on Sunday.

The local racing syndicate achieved an impressive five victories and fell just shy of completing a clean sweep of honours in the three classes they competed in.

Steven Meireles and Philip Raposo won both races in the D class with Shane Madeiros and Erin Butterfield replicating that feat in the A class, while Henry Talbot and Andrew Cottingham grabbed one win in the S class.

“It was another great day for Devil’s Isle Racing team,” Cottingham told The Royal Gazette.

“It was a great race day for everyone and firstly I’d like to thank the committee and the crash boats. They both did a fantastic job keeping the course clear and keeping everyone on time.”

Talbot and Cottingham’s victory was especially sweet as it was their first competing against professional rivals Steven Bridges and David Selley.

“We were pleased with our first race win against Steven and David in their 24 [24ft Skater].

”Being four feet shorter than us, it’s like a little go kart on that small track we had, so we had to drive our tails off to stay in front,” Cottingham said.

The pair were denied the sweep as Bridges and Selley, who compete in the American Powerboat Association Offshore National Series in the United States, took the win in the second timed race.

“Unfortunately the second race we couldn’t get around them,” Cottingham said.

Bridges had a blast making a rare appearance back in home waters.

“It was nice to be racing here at home,” he said.

We decided only a few days before the race to compete in Aaron Sims’s 24 Skater

“David and I have never been in a 24 before, so it was a bit of a learning curve with no seat time and definitely a different feeling getting back into a small boat with an open cockpit.

“It didn’t quite go as planned. We lost the first race with having too much fuel in the boat, so at the end of the race we are burning off the fuel and getting better. I think if we had two more laps, we could have got them but ran out of time.

“In the second race the boat was much lighter and ran a lot better. We led from start to finish.”

The pair of Brandon DeSilva and Blake Burgess were the sole entry in the BV class.

“It wasn’t the amount of boats that we were expecting and hoping to come out,” DeSilva said.

“Being the only boat in my class I was actually more interested in watching the S class hook while I am in the race. It was good to see two S class boats battling for their win.

“All in all it was a good day and I just like to thank all my sponsors and the Bermuda Power Boat Association. It was a great day.”

Bakari Smith Jr, E’Mari Ingemann and rookie driver Lucas Flood were victorious in the three junior races held.

Bermuda Power Boat Association commodore Janae Nesbitt thanked all of those who helped make the successful event possible.

“Races could not be possible without our sponsors Crisson Construction, Easy Lift and www.bdaboats.com,” she said.

“On behalf of the Bermuda Power Boat Association we would also like to thank Marine and Ports and coastguard for their assistance, and all our crash boats that dedicated their time to make sure our race day went off safely and successfully.

“Lastly we would like to thank Scooter Mart Motor Fest and Bermuda Charge for inviting us to take part in their annual event.”