Brothers Supak and Teera Settura flew the flag for Thailand in grand style and secured coveted victories in the Pro Sport GP and Pro Runabout 800 Open categories respectively at the Thai Airways sponsored King’s Cup Jet-ski World Cup Grand Prix 2014, held at Jomtien Beach from Dec. 3-7.
Supak was almost faultless in the Pro Sport class, taking victory in three out of the four motos (races) to finish 34 points clear of his brother Teera in second place.
Pattaya mayor Itthipol Kunplome (3rd left) presents the King’s Cup trophy to Pro Sport GP champion Supak Settura (4th left) at the D’ Varee hotel in Pattaya, Sunday, Dec. 7.
Teera achieved a measure of revenge over his younger sibling in the Pro Runabout category as he was equally dominant over the field, taking three moto victories to leave him 52 points clear of his closest rival, compatriot and PTT teammate Teerapong Khungieng. Supak suffered technical issues and finished well down the field in 14th place.
The King’s Cup Jet Ski World Cup has been held in Thailand since 1996, initially with just Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore taking part, but has since grown to become one of the premier events on the world jet- ski calendar, regularly attracting top racers from over 30 countries around the globe.
Supak Settura of the Bobby Hunter team displays champion’s form at the King’s Cup World Cup Grand Prix at Jomtien Beach.
One such performer, 19-time world champion and jet ski legend Chris McCluggage of the United States showed that he still has what it takes at the top level as he dethroned reigning champion Dustin Motzouris of South Africa in the Pro Ski class to claim the World Cup trophy for this year. The American took advantage of Motzouris suffering a shoulder injury in Moto 1 to win two races on Saturday and hold on with a podium finish in the final race on Sunday to claim the title.
Previous King’s Cup champions, Thailand’s Chaowalit Kuajaroon and Chokuthit Molee of the Flamingo Racing Team came up disappointingly short in the Pro Runabout Open as they finished fourth and seventh respectively. The title was won by the UK’s James Bushell ahead of Japan’s Isahai in second place.
Teera Settura was victorious in the Pro Runabout 800 Open class.
The final main category was the Pro Freestyle event, always a crowd-pleaser as riders perform seemingly unimaginable acrobatics and stunts on their modified jet-skis. The winner of the event this year was Rashid Ali Al Mulla from United Arab Emirates, who just pipped Thailand’s Weerapong Maneechom for the title.
England’s James Bushell achieved success in the Pro Runabout Open category.
2014 also saw an Endurance category added for the first time at The King’s Cup, consisting of 2 motos, one on Saturday and one on Sunday, and was won by Japan’s Masaharu Takenoshita . Other categories this year included Novices, Amateurs, Womens, Experts and a Spark class.
The award presentation ceremony was held Sunday evening at the D’ Varee hotel on Jomtien Beach and saw the five coveted King’s Cup trophies presented by Pattaya mayor Itthipol Kunplome and Vilaiwan Twichasri, TAT’s Deputy Governor for Tourism Products.
For a full list of this year’s winners, go to website: www.jetski-worldcup.com.
Large crowds descended on Jomtien Beach over the weekend to enjoy the fine weather and spectacular jet-ski racing.
