Contender 28T, the Original Contender Hull Grown Up

The Contender 28T bloodline, from 25 Open to 28T

Ask a South Florida captain about the Contender 28T and you will usually hear about a different boat first, the 25 Open. Contender's 2011 fleet page described the 28 Tournament as based on the first, the original, and what many still consider the most complete, well-designed 25 in the industry. Archived Contender spec sheets from 2010 show why: the boat then sold as the 25 Open measured 28 feet overall with an 8-foot 10-inch beam, about 4,700 pounds dry, 7,150 pounds ready to fish, 185 gallons of fuel and a 500 hp rating. The name counted the running hull; the overall length included the molded-in transom.

Salt Water Sportsman tested a redesigned 25 Open with what the magazine called Contender's Euro-transom layout and listed it at 28 feet, 8 feet 10 inches, 185 gallons standard and 240 optional, 500 hp maximum. That boat is the direct ancestor of today's 28T. Contender itself, founded in 1984 by Joe Neber, built its early reputation on the 25, and the 28T keeps that hull's narrow, deep personality.

The 2019 relaunch and the rounded cap

Sport Fishing's 2020 buyers guide called the 28T one of the original Contender models and said it returned with a new, more aesthetically pleasing rounded cap and other small modifications to the relaunched classic. The factory pages tell the same story in numbers. In 2016 the 28 Tournament was listed at 4,700 pounds dry, 7,150 pounds loaded, 180 gallons and 500 hp maximum. By 2018 and 2019 the 28T and its 28S sister were listed at 7,400 pounds ready to fish, 180 gallons and a 600 hp rating.

The current boat is 28 feet with an 8-foot 10-inch beam, 20 inches of draft, 7,400 pounds ready to fish, 24.5 degrees of transom deadrise and a 600 hp rating. Contender's current spec table lists 170 gallons of fuel, which matches its published fuel tank guide, even though the model page's intro still mentions 180 gallons. Water is listed as 25 gallons on the web page and 21 gallons in the 2026 brochure. When numbers disagree, the builder's tank guide and brochure are the safer reference.

• 2010 spec sheet (sold as 25 Open): 28 ft, 8 ft 10 in, 4,700 lb dry, 185 gal, 500 hp
• 2016 site (28 Tournament): 4,700 lb dry, 7,150 lb loaded, 180 gal, 500 hp
• 2019 site (28T): 7,400 lb ready to fish, 180 gal, 600 hp
• Current: 7,400 lb ready to fish, 170 gal, 600 hp, Seakeeper Ride standard

Great white credentials with OCEARCH

Few small center consoles have a working résumé like the 28T. The shark research group OCEARCH, led by Chris Fischer and Capt. Brett McBride, used a Contender 28T to catch, tag and release great white sharks around the world, and Contender featured Fischer's testimony on its site. He said the team had destroyed the boats it used in the past, both while working and when tied up to the mother ship in the open ocean, and that the Contender endured, describing it as built like a tank.

Marketing aside, that use case says something useful about the hull and structure. A boat that tows alongside a ship offshore and handles 3,000 to 5,000-pound sharks on deck has to have a stout stringer grid and hardware backing, which is exactly where older Contenders tend to impress surveyors.

Box space, livewell and rod storage

The deck is deliberately clean. Up front is a fully lined and insulated 140-gallon fish box, aft are two more 76-gallon boxes to port and starboard, and a 40-gallon transom livewell runs on an 1,100 gph pump according to Sport Fishing. Two under-deck rod lockers sit either side of the console, four flush rod holders line the gunwales and five more ride on the back of the leaning post. The full transom includes a dive door and integral swim platform.

The standard console is Contender's Sport console with a side entry door, two cupholders and room in the oversized panel for multiple displays. Trim tabs, a freshwater system, and a built-in console front seat with cooler are standard. Options include stand-on console second stations with hard or soft tops, Helm Master autopilot and joystick, anchor chute and windlass, welded bow rail, electric head, teak inside the console, outriggers, gulper pumps in the aft boxes, electric reel outlets and multiple leaning posts.

Speed and fuel on twin Yamaha 200s

Contender's archived performance bulletin for the 28 Tournament used twin Yamaha 200 hp HPDI direct-injection two-strokes. The boat ran 29.1 mph at 3,000 rpm on 11.8 gph, about 2.5 mpg, and 41.3 mph at 4,000 rpm on 18.9 gph, about 2.2 mpg. Top speed was 55 mph at 5,500 rpm burning 37.6 gph. Salt Water Sportsman's earlier test of the 25 Open on the same twin 200 HPDI power recorded the identical 41.3 mph at 4,000 rpm and 54.5 mph at 5,300 rpm, which gives the factory figures some independent support.

Modern twin 250 to 300 four-strokes will run faster and quieter, but no current test with published fuel figures was available to us. On the older numbers, a cruise around 35 to 41 mph at roughly 2.2 to 2.5 mpg means 170 gallons is enough for a long canyon or Bahamas day with a reserve, though not for a return trip at full throttle.

28T or 28 Sport, pick your compromise

Contender's 2016 lineup paired the 28 Tournament with a 28 Sport on the same 28-foot by 8-foot 10-inch hull. The Sport added forward seating as standard and pitched itself as a fishing machine built for family fun; the 2018 factory page listed the 28S with the same 140-gallon forward box, twin 76-gallon aft boxes, 40-gallon livewell, three storage compartments under the forward seating and a 600 hp rating.

Today the 28T covers both roles through options such as forward seating, rear benches, stadium seating and upgraded consoles. On the used market, a 28S is often the better family buy, while a stripped 28T with a second station and outriggers is the better tournament tool.

Costs of keeping a 28-footer on twins

At 8 feet 10 inches the 28T exceeds the 8-foot 6-inch trailer limit, so towing generally needs a wide-load permit, and most owners keep the boat on a lift or in dry stack. Twin outboards double routine service, so budget about $12,000 to $26,000 a year excluding depreciation for storage, insurance, engine service, fuel and canvas.

Repowering is common on older boats. A 28 from the late 2000s with fresh twin four-strokes can be a better value than a newer boat with high hours, but confirm the transom and engine mounting area were inspected during the repower.