Maxi Cup finishes in style
The 28th edition of the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup concluded 9 September with fierce competition.
Photography by Rolex Borlenghi
18 September 2017
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The winners of the respective Classes were Momo (Maxi 72), Ribelle (Supermaxi), Highland Fling XI (Maxi), Galateia (Wally), Jethou (Mini Maxi R), Supernikka (Mini Maxi RC1) and H2O (Mini Maxi RC2).
The Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup also included the Maxi72 World Championship and competition was fierce. The German team Momo won the championship in a tough fight, just one point ahead of Proteus. Bella Mente and Cannonball were third and fourth placed, just two points behind. Momo was also declared winner of the 2017 Maxi72 Class to cap off a successful week.
In the prestigious Supermaxi Class, the 33m Ribelle finished strong winners, with Win Win and Nilaya placing second and third overall. YCCS members Paola and Salvatore Trifirò, Ribelle’s owners, were pleased with the result.
“We wish to thank everyone who contributed to make this edition of the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup as splendid as ever. Our victory is the fruit of a long and complex process that brought us to build a very innovative yacht. But we never would have gotten this result without the hard work of an exceptional team made up of some of the best sailors in Italy. We are very happy.”
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The Maxi Class saw Sir Irvine Laidlaw’s Highland Fling XI place first overall, edging out Nefertiti. Rambler 88, with AC vet Brad Butterworth as tactician, placed third overall. “With a boat as fast as ours our real problem is our rating, not our adversaries on the water. But we’re always trying to improve and are very happy to be here, Porto Cervo is a wonderful area to sail in.”
The Wally fleet was extremely competitive with a lot of boats in contention. Galateia won handsomely over Nahita and Lyra. Sir Peter Ogden’s Jethou won in the Mini Maxi Racing Class, placing first every day and beating Spectre and Lucky, who finished in second and third places respectively, tied for points.
In other results, Roberto Lacorte’s Supernikka won in the Mini Maxi RC1 Class, and it was a close battle in the Mini Maxi RC2 Class, with H2O’s owner Riccardo De Michele coming away with the Cup.
The prize ceremony at the 28th Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup saw a huge crowd in Piazza Azzurra, with YCCS Commodore Riccardo Bonadeo applauding the racing on show.
“It has been an intense week of racing. Optimal conditions and the Costa Smeralda’s natural beauty are the elements that make this location uniquely suited for events like the Maxis, one of the most important events on the Med sailing calendar.”
This year’s race brought 50 yachts to Porto Cervo to celebrate YCCS’s 50th anniversary in what was a memorable year of Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup.
Action will continue at YCCS as J/70s get ready to race in next week’s Audi J/70 World Championship.
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