Sports minister Owen Darrell has hailed Bermuda’s dominant display at the recent Lake of Ozarks Shootout in Missouri.

Local professional powerboat racing teams Nuff Said (Luis Martins/Nick Imprescia) and Team Bermuda (Steven Bridges/David Selley) stamped their authority on the way to finishing first and second at the IHRA Offshore Series Championship event last weekend.

“On behalf of the Government and people of Bermuda, I extend my heartfelt congratulations to our powerboat teams on their outstanding first and second place finishes in Missouri,” Darrell said.

“These remarkable results are a testament to the skill, determination and dedication of our athletes and support crews

“Their success on the international stage continues to showcase Bermuda's excellence in marine sports and serves as an inspiration to aspiring competitors across our island. We are immensely proud of their achievements and wish them continued success in the competitions ahead.”

Nuff Said led the 16-strong Super Stock class across the stripe in their 32ft twin-engined catamaran to claim the coveted chequered flag, with Team Bermuda crossing in second.

Also hailing the teams success was three-times S-class world and US national champion Chris Marshall.

“Watching S12 [Nuff Said] and S25 [Team Bermuda] accomplish a dominant first and second-place finish in the most competitive class of offshore powerboat racing was absolutely amazing,” he said.

“All the hard work and sacrifices have firmly established them as forces to be reckoned with. Now the world has no choice but to stand up and take notice that the small island of Bermuda has some of the best offshore powerboat racers in the world.

“Thank you guys for being such great competitors and sportsmen and allowing us to take the journey with you. You truly are the best and made us proud.”

Martins and Selley were equally as thrilled to see both teams standing together on the same podium.

“It’s also incredible to see two Bermuda boats competing at such a high level and congratulations to S25 on their second-place finish,” Martins said.

“Having both Bermuda teams standing on the podium is a huge accomplishment and something we’re all very proud of.”

Selley added: “It was an awesome weekend for Bermuda and really happy for S12 team.

“We had an awesome set-up, but they just had a little bit better boat on the day — hats off to those guys.”

Team Bermuda started the race from pole after producing the fastest qualifying time for the third time this season.

“It came as a shock as we were not expecting that coming into the race,” Selley said.

“We didn’t feel like we ran a perfect lap and you never really know where you stack up until the results come in.

“We couldn’t believe that we snagged the pole and were thrilled to know what we had going into the weekend.

“We were hoping to manage the race from the pole and that part didn’t quite go to plan. But we worked with what we had.”

Team Bermuda have two wins under their belt this year, having claimed top honours at the St Petersburg Grand Prix and Thunder at Cocoa Beach.

They held a 27-point advantage atop the IHRA Offshore Series Championship Super Stock standings heading into last weekend’s race, which they extended after producing a fourth straight podium finish in as many outings this year.

Nuff Said were fourth in the standings heading into the race where they remain after picking up their first win at this level.

The result enabled Martins and Imprescia to narrow the gap in the championship between themselves and third-placed American team Wozencraft to 11 points.

“We came into Lake of the Ozarks hungry and ready to compete,” Martins said.

“We’re very happy with the result, but we’re always looking for ways to improve.”

Allied/STR Powerboats moved up to second behind Team Bermuda after producing their best showing of the season in Missouri.