Mercury Marine outboards to be offered on select Sportsman models for the first time
FOND DU LAC, Wis. (Sept. 21, 2020) — Mercury Marine, a division of Brunswick Corporation (NYSE: BC), is pleased to announce that Mercury outboard engines, including the 350hp and 400hp Verado models and other high‑horsepower Mercury outboards, will be offered for the first time on nine Sportsman models, beginning Nov 1. Mercury has continued to grow its presence in key saltwater markets as customers from around the U.S. have been seeking higher horsepower and requesting Mercury outboards. Sportsman, its dealers and many other key saltwater OEMs are now giving their customers the opportunity to experience the power and reliability of Mercury.
“We were extremely excited to hear Sportsman and Mercury are working together and we can start offering Mercury engines on Sportsman boats to our customers,” said Bill Erickson, founder and owner of Erickson Marine. “Mercury has awesome products and our customers were demanding Mercury outboards on their boats. The engines perform incredibly well and have awesome power‑to‑weight ratio, which is great for the larger bay boats and the offshore boats Sportsman currently offers. With a 26‑foot bay boat, you need big horsepower to make it perform but also light weight, so you do not draw much water — and Mercury has all of that.”
Beginning in early November, Mercury packages will be offered on orders of Sportsman models 352, 322, 302, 251, 252, 267, 267OE and 247.
“We are seeing increased adoption of our entire product lineup from boaters around the world, specifically our high‑horsepower outboards, which has led to increased adoption from new OEMs and dealers,” said Chris Drees, Mercury Marine president. “Over the past 12 months, we have partnered with 100 new dealers and close to 40 new OEMs — many in key saltwater markets across the United States. This growth is evident at major shows like the Miami International Boat Show and the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, where there have been more Mercury engines at the show than any other outboard manufacturer over the past few years.”
Sportsman, like Mercury, has announced an increase in production this fall to meet growing demand. Mercury plans to add hundreds of new employees in manufacturing and distribution operations.
“This is the beginning of a great partnership and another opportunity to continue our increased presence in saltwater markets,” said Randy Caruana, Mercury Marine vice president of the Americas and Asia Pacific. “Our teams have been collaborating on this partnership and it’s great to see Mercury power will be on board many of Sportsman’s center consoles around the country. We look forward to a bright future together.”