28 Aug 2026
A St Albans dad of two has secured the title of World Hovercraft Champion following his decisive victory at the weekend.
Nick Drew, 49, won the F50 class at the 2026 Hovercraft World Championship held at Whittlebury Park, Buckinghamshire.
Former Beaumont School pupil Nick, who was born and raised in St Albans, first started racing as a teenager in the Junior formula and has since competed all his life.
While he has won the National Championships on a few occasions over the years, this is the first time he has won the World Championship title, having come a close second in 2010 and 2012.
The 2026 World Hovercraft Championships take place approximately every two years, and this is the first time they have been hosted in the UK since 2016.
Racers from France, Sweden, Poland, Austria, Australia and Germany competed in different Formulas, based on engine size, and Nick took part in the Formula 50 category.
The tightly contested Formula 50 is limited to a single fan and a Rotax 503 engine [variants are also accepted]. A race usually involves eight laps of a circuit over land and water between 15 and 20 craft over approximately 10 minutes.
For the World Championships Nick competed in six races across three days to secure the most points for the win.
The courses are marked out with course markers and catch netting on the land sections and buoys on the water sections.
Speaking after his victory, Nick explained how he came to be involved in such an unusual sport: “My dad used to race so I have been in the Hoverclub my whole life and it just seems normal to me! I first started racing when I was 15, but you can actually start as young as 10.
“I love the fact you can build your own hovercraft and modify and tune it without too many restrictions unlike a lot of other motorsports. It is also a lot less expensive than most other forms of motorsport. You can opt to buy a complete craft too if you prefer. The club is a really friendly and family orientated club.”
He built his own hovercraft which he keeps in the garage at home, where he maintains, modifies and tunes it.
“I rarely start it at home though as it’s a bit noisy for a residential area! I’m often making and trying new things to make it go faster.
“It involves various engineering and metal fabrication, some composites work such as glass fibre or carbon fibre, engine maintenance/building and sewing for the skirts.”
Unlike Formula 1 motorsport, there is no backroom team to help him out: “It’s predominantly me, however, I couldn’t do it without the support of my family. Mum and dad helped with financing my current craft and my wife and kids have been very understanding in the run up to the World Championships as it has taken a lot of my time to get it ready. My family normally come to the race meetings with me along with a group of friends, some of whom marshal or help out in race control.”
How do you become good enough at racing a hovercraft to win the World Championships? “You have to be good at driving obviously, but you also have to know what you are doing when it comes to setting the craft up and making sure it is going to be reliable.
“Tuning and improving the craft requires you to be pretty methodical in your approach so that you can understand what’s going on. You need a lot of passion and dedication too.”
His next challenge is a national race meeting this year at Whittlebury Hall on September 26/27 and then he will be back competing in the national championships next year.
“In 2028 the World Championships will be in Germany so I’ll hopefully be going there to defend my title.”
When he’s not racing hovercraft, Nick and his wife Hermione are volunteers with the celebrated St Albans Gang Show, which is where they met. He plays bass in the band, and she is the producer.
The Hovercraft Club of Great Britain is always looking for new venues for race courses and welcome new members for either racing or marshalling and officiating. There are a couple of craft available for arrive and drive sessions. Find out more at www.hovercraft.org.uk
