john m says:

This boat has an hydraulic drive system.

Probably just a hydraulic gearbox, from the looks of things...

The brace that you see in
front of the impeller is where the bearing should be ( I think) It
looks like a very strong support made out of metal and imbedded in the
fiberglass.

THat would be called the strut, and the bearing in it is just a cutlass
bearing, Rubber in a metal tube. It is supposed to be like that, as it's only
job is to support the shaft. The actual thrust bearing is inside the boat,
usually either just aft of the transmission, or integral to the tranny.

Steve