Incorrect.... Paul Fiore with the help of Mark Shneff of Activator went out to design a new 40. They started with the 32 hull and actually bolted the rear 8' of another 32 together. Since the front section of the rear 8' was too wide to fasten to the transom of the 32' they slid it up to the wider part of the transom where it would fit and got the step by accident. They threw a couple of outboards on the hull with no deck and went and tested it and were impressed with what they came up with and how well it performed. That in a nut shell is how and where the 40 came from and the beginning of the step hull.