In Europe, Middle East & Asia, offshore powerboat racing was led by the UIM regulated Class 1 but this category is no longer recognized by the sports governing body. It has re-organised itself and is instead regulated by the Dubai based WPPA, which now allows the sport to have a bigger variety in engines and props.

In the USA, offshore powerboat racing is split between the OPA Races, SBI/APBA/UIM races and the OSS races.

Although there are team sponsors, the sport is still an amateur sport financed by a mixture of private funding and commercial sponsors. One of the benefits of sponsoring an offshore powerboat team is, as team owner and driver Bjorn Rune Gjelsten have stated this, in Formula One motor racing, 1 million will only allow a small space, whereas in offshore powerboating, this covers the whole of the boat.

Depending on the class, speeds varies from 65 mph (105 km/h) to 190 mph (310 km/h).

The sport is moving more to a circuit racing style also known as "run what you brung", which makes for a better TV & spectator experience, though there are still old fashioned endurance offshore racing classes.

Powerboat P1 , the UIM sanctioned world championship is the fastest growing powerboat series in the world. Founded in 2003 with 5 boats it now has 20+ teams from 11 countries and will race in three continents in 2008.

It caters for monohull boats with twin inboard engines in two classes: Supersport, for open top production models which are limited to 85 mph (137 km/h) for safety reasons and Evolution, fully canopied prototype boats with no speed limit.

Engines can be either petrol or diesel depending on the team choice or the manufacturer's recommendation.

A P1 grand prix consists of two races, the Sprint, 50 nautical miles (93 km) and the Endurance over 80 nautical miles (150 km).