The Régates de Beauharnois marks its 18th anniversary this weekend on the waters of Lake Saint-Louis in Quebec, and for hydroplane enthusiasts it carries an extra layer of significance. The final and most consequential stop on the 2025 Hydroplane Racing League calendar, with as many as five Grand Prix heats on the programme, the championship is still very much up for grabs.
At the heart of the story is a well-known New Zealand name, though perhaps not the one Canadian crowds might have expected. The points-leading Lucas Oil, the defending Grand Prix championship boat, will be steered not by Ken Lupton but by his father, Warwick Lupton, a two-time UIM World Champion. Ken has remained at home in New Zealand, tied up with family and farming responsibilities, and Warwick has stepped in to take the wheel.
Warwick is no stranger to the role. He already showed genuine pace earlier in the season with a third-place finish at Brockville. "I'm fit and ready to go," he said this week, and Quebec fans will have a rare opportunity to watch one of the most accomplished hydroplane racers New Zealand has produced competing on their doorstep.
Warwick Lupton's record in the sport spans more than three decades and reads like a catalogue of honours. Two UIM World Grand Prix titles, five Masport Cups, two Griffith Cups, three AE Baker Cups, and multiple New Zealand Grand Prix victories sit alongside each other in a career that has taken him from local lakes to world championship waters across two continents.
His path into the sport was almost accidental. He was originally drawn into racing after purchasing a boat intended for water-skiing, but the competitive instinct took hold quickly. By 2001, he had swept the Griffith Cup, the AE Baker Championship, and the Paynesville Gold Cup in Australia in a single season. His first UIM World title followed in 2006 at Lake Karapiro in New Zealand, and a second came four years later at Yarrawonga in Australia.
Central to those successes was the Annihilator 007, a hydroplane designed by Malcolm Jamieson that set itself apart from the conventional designs of its era. Lighter and faster, it became an iconic piece of machinery, though it was also capable of drama. In 2015, while Warwick was leading at Lake Dunstan, the boat somersaulted and snapped in half on landing. He escaped with minor injuries, and the rebuilt hull continues to race to this day.
The Lupton family's connection to sporting achievement runs well beyond the boat ramp. Warwick's father, Ewen "Snow" Lupton, became a household name in 1983 when his horse Kiwi stormed to victory in the Melbourne Cup. That same spirit of determination has carried through the family.
Warwick's sons Ken and Jack have both emerged as leading drivers in their own right. Ken, the defending HRL champion, has guided Lucas Oil to the top of the standings again this season. Jack, who has competed in both Canada and the United States, is bringing his GP-33 JLM Motorsport back to New Zealand for future competition, a move that promises to add further firepower to what is already a strong domestic Grand Prix field.
When Ken's schedule made the trip to Quebec impossible, it was a natural choice for Warwick to take over. His willingness to do so speaks to the Luptons' standing as one of the sport's genuine dynasties, carrying New Zealand's colours onto international water year after year.
The Beauharnois Regatta is a centrepiece of the Quebec sporting summer, drawing thousands of spectators to Bourcier Park each August. Together with Valleyfield and Saint-Félicien, it forms the core of the Canadian hydroplane season, and this year's edition carries added championship weight.
In the Grand Prix class, Lucas Oil will be closely watched, but Kent Henderson is not going away. His GP-757 Canada Boy sits 65 points behind in the standings and remains the primary threat to the title. Andrew Tate in GP-71 The Wild One, Brandon Kennedy in GP-35 TM Special, Ken Brodie in GP-50 Freedom, and Éric Langevin in GP-212 Sylco complete a field that gives the contest genuine depth.
The championship arithmetic is straightforward enough. If Warwick keeps Lucas Oil near the front across the heats, Ken wraps up back-to-back HRL titles from the other side of the world. If Henderson dominates proceedings, the points gap could close and the title picture could shift entirely before the final heat is done.
Warwick has spoken more than once in recent years about stepping aside and letting the next generation carry the sport forward. Yet each time he returns to the cockpit, he demonstrates that he remains a genuine competitor rather than a sentimental presence. His contribution to New Zealand hydroplane racing extends well beyond his own results. By aligning local Grand Prix engine regulations with HRL specifications, he helped expand grids and reduce costs for competitors at home. He continues to mentor younger drivers, share expertise with rival teams, and work to grow the sport's footprint in New Zealand. His standing rests on both his record as a champion and his reputation as someone who genuinely cares about the health of hydroplane racing beyond his own achievements.
When the engines fire this weekend on Lake Saint-Louis, Warwick Lupton will be among those in the thick of it. The Beauharnois crowd will see for themselves that New Zealand's elder statesman of the sport is, as he said himself, fit and ready to go.
