Five ClubSwan 28s, twelve Smeralda 888s, ten Longtze Premier, four Cape 31s and 42 J/70s started off the Principality. 400 sailors from ten nations expected challenging conditions in the 40th year of the Primo Cup. Although the wind blew at around 10 to 14 knots on the first day, it came from the east to north-east and had a considerable swell in tow. The following day, the race committee organised two more races in lighter winds of between 5 and 8 knots. The last day of racing had to be cancelled due to increasing winds and excessive waves.
Primo Cup: Premiere for ClubSwan 28
Particular attention was paid to the ClubSwan 28. It was the first regatta as part of a dedicated event series for the still young one-design class. As with the first appearance of Nautor's sports boat at the Rolex Swan Cup last year, five crews travelled to Monaco. Now, however, the Primo Cup was the prelude to six events taking place off Porto Cervo, Saint-Tropez or on Lake Garda. The five ClubSwan 28s sailed out of Port Hercules for a total of five races. Marcus Brennecke's "Hatari" (known from his successful ClubSwan 50 campaign), sailing under the Japanese flag, came out on top by the narrowest of margins. With Philipp Autenrieth from the Bayerischer Yacht-Club, the "Hatari" had a close race with the Swiss "Anya Race". Lorenzo Bortolotti's "Black Swan" completed the podium.
Longtze Premier
From the 6.80 metre sports boat that the B/One ten boats came to the Principality. The Swiss crew on "Shensu", who were among the favourites right from the start, showed why they deserved to win the Longtze Premier. They led for most of the weekend against strong competition and put in an almost clean series (1-1-3). The compatriots behind her on "QI" and the Germans on "Xiaolong Racing" were no match for her.
J/70
With 42 starters, the J/70-crews the largest fleet. "G-Spot" triumphed after a series of races that Giangiacomo Serena di Lapigio controlled from start to finish. The successful team from Monaco also won the coveted Perpetual Trophy, which the YCM presents to the winner of the strongest class. Denis Infante's "Euro Voiles" fought hard, but was unable to close the gap to "G-Spot". The Swiss on "Ailoa" took third place. The best of the two German teams was "Roxy" in tenth place. In the Corinthian category, "Euro Voiles" retained the lead ahead of "Ailoa" and "Jalla Jalla".
Cape 31
The 9.55 metre long carbon racer from Mark Mills' computers is the result of efforts by Lord Irvine Laidlaw ("Highland Fling") to create a standardised class for Cape Town's Table Bay. Four Cape 31s once again took centre stage at the Primo Cup with their Gennakers measuring over 100 square metres. This year, the spotlight was on the family: Adrien Follin ("Give Me Five") won with flying colours, dominating the fleet and relegating his brother Robin Follin on "Solano" to second place. The fraternal duel pushed the Irish "Adrenalin" team into third place.
Smeralda 888
The standardised class, which bears its Lüa in its name, had a home game and was expectedly strongly represented with twelve boats. The concept of the Smeralda 888 was devised by a group of Italians in the early 1990s to revitalise the regatta activities of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS). The timeless Frers designs now mostly sail under the banner of the Yacht Club de Monaco. "Giada" dominated the Primo Cup with two victories and a third place. "Django", skippered by Giovanni Lombardi from YCM, held her own, but was unable to displace the leader. Marco Favale's "Millennium Falcon" completed the podium.
