With the arrival of the 1972 season, the first signs of a clear malaise appear in the national inboard racing class sector, the causes of which are mainly attributable to three factors. First of all, the increasingly low interest in racers benefits the outboard classes, some of which are very interesting and pushed towards Europe by important overseas engine manufacturers. Secondly, there is a reduction in the number of drivers and an almost total absence of new talent for this specialty. Finally, the costs required for the set-up of the vehicles, especially in some classes such as the R4 2500 cc and the 91" APBA, are decidedly too high. All of this has a negative impact on the 1972 racing season, to the point that, in none of the categories (LV, R2, 91" APBA), due to the small number of participants, is the Italian title awarded.

The racers of the R4 2500 cc class, with the beginning of this decade and the disappearance of the glorious KD 900 kg, have inherited the difficult task of animating the motorboating days, but unfortunately they are in particularly difficult conditions. The introduction of the powerful 300 HP Alfa Romeo Montreal 8-cylinder V engine that should replace the now obsolete 6-cylinder in-line, still in use, fails to give new life to the category. Initially, in fact, only two drivers race with this engine: the aforementioned Antonio Petrobelli and Benito Casinghini, who are joined, at a later time, by the great champion Leopoldo Casanova. Too little, for a category that, no more than three or four years earlier, included in its ranks over fifteen competitors.

International competitions
In any case, 1972 was confirmed, on the international stage, as one of the best years, with important victories and brilliant performances by our racers. Above all, Erino Facchini's excellent year is worth remembering: the driver from Vigevano, in Sabaudia, took home the world title for inboard racing boats in the R2 1500 cc class, taking his Molivio-Alfa Romeo boat to success and preceding Silver Shark (the pseudonym of a well-known Italian driver), Massimo Funaro and the Frenchman Renè Casset. This world championship was organised as part of the celebration of the centenary of the Canottieri Tevere Remo and saw the participation of six competitors: the Italians Facchini, Mattioli, Shark and Funaro, and the Frenchmen Nugue and Casset.
The final victory of the Italian Facchini came through two successes in the first and third heats, and a second place against Shark's only first place in the second heat. In the end, after an exciting duel, Facchini gets the better of Timossi-Alfa Romeo, by only 8" and 9/10. In the wake of this title, Facchini decides to participate, in Swedish waters and more precisely in Stenungsund, also in the European racer championship of the R3 2000 cc, international UIM class. To complete the expedition, we also find the Mantua-born Giuseppe Mattioli. In the race, there is a large Swedish representation, composed of the following pilots: Lars Göran Jansson, Ulf Sterner, Lars Block, Lars Andersson, Gunnar Björklund; also participating is the Danish pilot Jörgen Book. All these participants, use three-point hulls, evidently designed for the inboard sport classes, but, in the circumstance, rated as racing. The engines then, vary from Volvo Penta to Ford. Erino Facchini, with his racer Molivio-Alfa Romeo, winning three first places in the first three heats, clearly wins the continental title. To complete the excellent performance of the winner there is also the second place in the final classification of our Giuseppe Mattioli. The squadron of Swedish pilots, more than ever convinced of being able to interrupt our supremacy in the inboard field, must be satisfied, at least for now, with the third final place of Lars Block.

Let's focus again on the R2 1500 cc class: the timeless Leopoldo Casanova returns to the headlines, winning the European title after two seasons without any international success. The Parma powerboating ace delights everyone with a great performance in the French waters of Nevic d'Ussel, a small and rather famous spa. Casanova, who leads the Popoli-Alfa Romeo boat to success, wins three of the four heats on the program; in the final standings he precedes the French Nugue and Casset and our Silver Shark which, despite winning one heat, has several mechanical problems, finishing just off the podium, in fourth position. The final standings see, in seventh place, the young and feisty Milanese driver Franco Cantando who will soon have the opportunity to shine among the various inboard classes.

From the R2 1500 cc racers, we come to those of the 91" APBA class who, in 1972, compete for the last time in the assignment of international titles. On the waters of Lake Viverone, in the homonymous location, Silver Shark, together with the other Italian pilots, dominates the European 91" APBA, also supported by the excellent combination of the Timossi hull with Alfa Romeo Raineri engine with indirect injection, masterfully cared for by its preparers, the mechanics Zoni and Speroni of Colorno. Silver Shark, gets the better of the very good Erino Facchini, thanks to the successes in the second and fourth heats, and to the second place in the initial test. Facchini, on the other hand, after the victory in the first heat, collects two second places. Good performance also by Orfeo Maltinti who wins one heat, but, then complains of some problems with the engine. In the final ranking, behind the winner, Shark, and Facchini, we find the revelation Emilio Gerardo; followed, in order, by Orfeo Maltinti, Michel Barone, Lucien Nugue, Renè Casset, Gerard Rousset, Jean Pierre Benozillo and Massimo Funaro. All the participating competitors, with the exception of Shark, have Molivio hulls. For the engines, instead, we have nine Alfa Romeo Raineri, and a Renault mounted on the hull of the Frenchman Rousset.

At the world championship, again of the 91" APBA, held in Sabaudia, we witness the historic first place achieved by Renè Casset; the transalpine, goes to the honors of the news as the first French motorboater to write his name in the roll of honor. Despite all the favorites of the forecast being for our Casanova, Shark, Cantando, Funaro and Santamaria, Renè Casset, piloting a hull of the Italian shipyard Telaroli, with the fairing livery painted with the colors green and yellow like the famous Lotus Formula 1 of Jim Clark, manages, also thanks to a pinch of luck, to get the better by virtue of a regular performance.
The world title is as always assigned by the sum of the time over the distance of three heats. After the first heat won by Casanova, but with Casset fourth at about a minute from the winner, in the second heat here comes the twist: Casanova and Funaro are demoted for early start, Facchini and Shark, instead, are forced to retire. The victory of Casset, practically, it's a done deal. In the last heat, with a careful race conduct and limiting the gap from the very fast Shark and Casanova, a third place is enough for Casset to take the title. The final ranking of the world championship of the 91" APBA class, reports: first Casset in 38'51"4/10, second his teammate Barone with 41'31" and, in third position, the Italian Santamaria. They follow, in order: Casanova, Shark, Cantando, Facchini, Funaro, Nugue and Benozillo. All the competitors entered the race using Alfa Romeo Raineri engines on their boats.

Continuing the analysis of international championships, let's focus on the world championship of small racers of the R1 1000 cc class, held on Lake Garda, in Pescate. For reasons that are apparently bureaucratic, the German pilots are absent; consequently, the group of participants sees in the water the representatives of the British team with six pilots, all very well prepared and more than ever determined to reconfirm the title won last year. Both the reigning champion, Noone and his teammates, use three-pointers, mostly built by themselves, based on designs by Noone, and powered by Hillman and Sunbeam. For our colors, we have two pilots: Giuseppe Colnaghi and Walter Maltinti, the first with a Noone hull powered by a 4-cylinder Helvetia engine of 963.19 cc, derived from the Ford Escort developed by the talented preparer Branca, the second with a Molivio hull powered by a Sunbeam. Also in the game is the Swiss Joseph Ulrich, a regular in the various inboard categories. The world title, after the three heats, mocks the British Andrew Chesman whose success is completed by his other teammates, John Roger Basketfield, second place, and John Ernst Mousley, third place. Walter Maltinti saves the honor of the Azzurri, finishing fourth overall. Colnaghi, due to mechanical problems, was forced to retire right from the start.

A week later, for the R1 1000 cc, the continental title is also awarded, on the waters of the Po river, in Boretto. The forecasts, clearly, favor the British riders, but, with a pleasant surprise, our Colnaghi, taking revenge for his bad luckwho had hounded him in Garlate, took the title by obtaining three victories out of the four scheduled tests, demonstrating his clear superiority. In Boretto, the returning Luigi Dell'Orto was also seen in the race, aboard the three-point San Marco-Ford, conquering a brilliant fourth place overall, while the other Italian, Walter Maltinti, a bit in the shade, had to settle for seventh place, preceding Mousley and Basketfield, who were also in obvious difficulty. The performance of the new world champion Chesman, on the other hand, was unlucky, finishing in fifth place in the final classification. For the British rider, a second place in the first heat, followed by two retirements; the same fate also for Noone who, after the initial third place and a demotion for an early start, did not return to the start in the remaining tests. The other British riders, John Ernts Mouseley who won in the third heat, and John Basketfield who occupied the other two steps of the podium, kept up with our Colnaghi. Among the new entries in the race at Boretto, it is worth mentioning the only female representative, the Swiss Esther Kloser, protagonist, negatively, of an accident in the first heat which fortunately resolved itself without physical consequences, but with the hull no longer usable.

We return to the waters of Lake Paola, in Sabudia, to focus on the outcome of the world championship reserved for racers in the R4 2500 cc class. With no foreigners, the fight for the title is limited to our pilots Benito Casinghini, Antonio Dosi, Leonardo Mazzoli, Giuseppe and Aurelio Dotti. Despite having the most powerful vehicle, Casinghini fails to win the first heat. This is what the surprising Mazzoli does, however, who wins while keeping the Celli-Alfa Romeo Montreal of his rival Casinghini in his slipstream. In the second heat, the five competitors arrive in a handkerchief at the first tack, at the exit from the first buoy. Mazzoli collides with another boat and in the collision the pilot from Parma suffers fatal injuries. Once again, we witness a tragic day for motorboating; despite this latest accident, for years, people continue to talk about pure fatality, without worrying about the lack of safety in which motorboats are forced to compete. As a sign of mourning, the world championship was suspended and, consequently, the title for the year 1972 was not awarded. A little more than a month later, on the fascinating and historic racing field of Campione d'Italia, the hulls of the R4 2500 cc returned to the race to win the continental title. Under pouring rain and with the ever-present memory of the unfortunate Mazzoli, a championship was brought to life which, due to the umpteenth absence of foreign drivers, was limited to the usual comparison between the five members of the Italian team. The returning Antonio Pertrobelli won the European title again, once again taking his Celli-Alfa Romeo Montreal to the top step of the podium. Petrobelli won by dominating three of the four heats, preceding Antonio Dosi and Aurelio Dotti. Unlucky performances for both Casinghini, forced to abandon, already during the first heat due to the hull breaking, and for Giuseppe Dotti who retired due to mechanical problems.

National races and long distance races
The Lancia Flaminia class confirmed its validity in 1972 by fielding thirteen drivers in the water. A good result considering the exclusively national character of these racers that use single-make engines with restrictions. For the record, the victory of the 1972 Lancia trophy passed from the hands of Gianpiero Maurelli, author of a season below his standard that led him to obtain only a sixth place, to the very worthy hands of Aldo Martinetto. In second place, in the final classification of the trophy, we find Franco Beretta, followed by Francesco Manfredini.

In cross-country races, particularly in the Raid Pavia-Venezia, Roberto Brunelli seems to have no rivals. Always at the helm of his Timossi-BPM of the R°° class, this fiery driver from Parma achieved a prestigious hat-trick of victories after the successes of 1970 and 1971. In this thirty-second edition, Brunelli achieved an average speed of 158.983 km/h, totaling an overall time of 2h 27'11", winning, in addition to first place overall, also the Coppa D'Oro Theo Rossi di Montelera, with 169.842 km/h in the timed stretch Isola Serafini-Revere. This Raid once again highlights the validity of racing inboard boats: in fact, in the overall ranking, we find seven racers classified in the first ten places, among whom, in addition to the winner Brunelli, stand out names of the calibre of Gino Lupi, Giuseppe Colnaghi, Emilio Gerardo, Leonardo Mazzoli, Franco Gilberti and Aldo Martinetto.

In 1972 another important motorboat race enriches the interest of the pilots of the inboard classes: it is the Giro del Lario, organized by the pilot-builder Eugenio Molinari. The race, now in its second edition, is reserved for the hulls of the outboard sport and racing and inboard sport classes. Its route is about 100 km, starting from Bellagio; it then passes through Lecco and returns to Bellagio, then it heads to Como and, finally, the final arrival is once again in Bellagio. In 1972 the winner is Tullio Abbate, with an inboard sport S°° hull: a complex built by himself and powered by BPM. The Como driver recorded an average of 131.918 km/h, slightly lower than that obtained by Renato Molinari in 1971, with 135.741 km/h, on an outboard catamaran that in the annals of this new cross-country race will be the only non-inboard victory. Tullio Abbate ran into a terrible day from a meteorological point of view, with strong gusts of wind that made the lake waters very choppy: last year, this had not happened and his rival, Renato Molinari, had been able to compete in perfect conditions. Behind the winner Abbate, in the final overall classification of the Giro del Lario, we find the German Oskar Trost (a driver who has often taken part in Italian cross-country races), Bruno Locatelli and Franco Gilberti, all on boats by Abbate himself, with a BPM engine in the S°° class.

Among the negative notes of the 1972 season, we point out during a test valid for the FIM plate of the inboard sport S°° class, the serious accident of which Orlando Bodda was the victim. The Turin driver at the wheel of his three-point E.Molinariu-BPM suffered rather serious injuries to an arm, thus compromising his sporting career.

New records
At the end of the racing year, speed records are back in the news. On the measured base of Lake Paola, in Sabaudia, considered by many pilots to be the most suitable for establishing new records, Leopoldo Casanova shows up with two racers: the goal is to attack the speed record of the R4 2500 cc inboard racing class, held by Franco Foresti with an average of 211 km/h, and of the R3 2000 cc class, of which Franco Gilberti is the owner with 165.590 km/h.

In R4, Casanova has a three-pointer from the Lucini and Frigerio construction site, powered by an Alfa Romeo Montreal; although he manages to get close to the previous world record, stopping the clocks on a 209 km/h passage, the attempt fails.

The indomitable Casanova, launches with the other hull, the Molivio-Alfa Romeo 4 cylinder 145 HP of the R3 2000 cc class, (a series engine as per the regulations, foreseen for the new restricted category that will debut in 1973) and establishes the new world record with 181.818 km/h. This is, therefore, a significant result, considering the engine used.

The Colornese powerboat champion also attacks the world record for long distance, always in the R3 class, using the same hull, and obtaining, over the 24 miles, an exceptional average of 160.930 km/h. With this record, Casanova surpasses the previous limit, belonging to another great inboarder: the constructor pilot Eugenio Molinari who held it with an average of 120.970 km/h.

Staying on the subject of speed records, it is also necessary to highlight the significant record achieved by Livio macchia in the inboard of the diesel series. The achievement of significant records is still far away, but, after the first attempt carried out successfully by Renato Molinari in 1970, a period of development began in this sector and as we will see, the premises for a great future are not lacking.

On the measured base of Lenno, on Lake Como, Livio Macchia takes possession of the new speed limit on the kilometer launched for the inboard diesel class, recently recognized by the UIM regulation. Using a four-point hull, designed and built by the Abbate shipyard, powered by a Perkins diesel model T6.354, 6 cylinders in line, supercharged, with a total displacement of 5800 cc, Macchia establishes the new record with km/h 126.097. This limit knocks down the previous one of km/h 110.820 obtained only a month earlier by the Englishman Michael Bellamy in the waters of Lake Windermere.

After the parenthesis reserved for diesel engines, we return to petrol, reporting other important records, such as the one achieved by Franco Gilberti; a gentleman pilot of the inboard racing, sport and offshore classes, already record holder several times. Gilberti, establishes the new world speed record for the S2 1500 cc class, on the measured base of Sarnico, on Lake Iseo. Although it is not a racers category, we can safely define this record as belonging to that category, given the characteristics of the type of boat used by the Milanese pilot. It is, at first glance, a classic three-point racer built by the Parma shipyard of Carlo Popoli, with the only variation of a modification to the cockpit, widened on both sides of the pilot to be able to fit into the regulations of the inboard sport classes. This racer is equipped with an Alfa Romeo engine with a displacement of 1498 cc, a 4-cylinder in-line engine with 165 HP and dual ignition, prepared by another inboard class driver, Arrigo Mazzanti. With this small racing car weighing just over 300 kilos, our Gilberti manages to obtain the new record for the S2 1500 cc, with 165.524 km/h, and a launch carried out at approximately 167 km/h. Thus, for this class, the old record of the Russian Isakow, achieved with 123 km/h, falls.

After this result, Gilberti, back in Sarnico, decides to improve his own record, obtained in the S4 2500 cc inboard sport class: he fears, in fact, that sooner or later some foreign pilot will try to attack his record! Putting his Abbate hull with four-point hull back into the water, powered by the powerful 270 HP Alfa Romeo Montreal 8-cylinder, specifically developed by Autodelta, Gilberti, launches himself with fury on the measured base and after a few laps also manages to improve by recording an average of 153.260 km/h.