Maxi Europeans: Maxi sailors crown European champions in Sorrento

After four intensive days of sailing, the IMA Maxi European Championship in Sorrento produced European champions in four classes. Did the future America's Cup area show itself to be the Regata dei Tre Golfi and the following inshore races, there was plenty of pressure in the air for the final. And this despite the fact that the forecasts initially gave little hope. After a delay, the catamarans started on a coastal course as part of the Tre Golfi Sailing Week Multihull Trophy, followed by the IMA fleet on a windward-leeward course. In the end, the conditions exceeded all expectations: Instead of the forecast 10 to 12 knots, the wind whipped across the Gulf of Naples at 20 knots. Many teams had prepared for more moderate conditions and overpowered themselves on the course. In Maxi 1 and Maxi Grand Prix, the final race will decide the European Championship title, while the winners in the smaller classes have already been decided.

"Leopard 3" dominated the last race

Joost Schuijff's 100-foot yacht "Leopard 3" took advantage of the strong conditions on the final day after damage to the boom earlier in the week. The team won the final race on calculated time under IRC. Skipper Chris Sherlock explains the tactics: "We had a very good start when the pin end opened up. Most of the other boats were in the middle of the line - we took the opportunity and maintained the lead. We had 19 knots of wind on the windward barrel, exactly our sweet spot." Despite winning the day, it was not enough for overall victory in Maxi 1. Karel Komárek's "V" secured the IMA Maxi European Championship title with a second place ahead of Leopard 3 and "Galateia". Tactician Ken Read described the strategy: "Today wasn't about winning or losing, it was about the maths. We had to beat Galateia, because if they had got ahead of us, they could have made life very difficult for us."

Read leaves "V" for America's Cup

The team from "V" pushed "Galateia to the layline on the first cross and worked their way up a position. Read emphasised that they followed a clear plan from then on and felt comfortable as long as they stuck to it. Karel Komárek was delighted with their success. "This is the first really big regatta we've won with this team," explained Read, who is now leaving "V" to concentrate on managing Komárek's American Racing Challenger Team USA for the America's Cup. The victory marks a milestone for the crew, whose performance was consistent throughout the week. The conditions in the Gulf of Naples challenged all teams, but "V" coped best with the changing wind conditions. The combination of tactical discipline and fast boat speed proved decisive in winning the title in the prestigious Maxi-1 class.

"Jolt" secured the Maxi Europeans title

In the Maxi Grand Prix class, Peter Harrison's Jolt saved the best performance for the last day. The British team won the final race ahead of Giovanni Lombardi Stronati's "Django 7X" and Peter Dubens' "North Star". This victory catapulted "Jolt" to the top of the overall standings with a one-point lead over "North Star", which in turn was one point ahead of "Django 7X". Harrison was pleased with the week's performance: "We had a good offshore race and a lot of ups and downs, but we were happy with how it ended. We kind of scrapped the second race around Capri because that was a lottery, and we sailed well for the rest of the week." Consistency paid off for the team, who deliberately focussed on consistency rather than spectacular individual results.

Maxi Grand Prix class on the rise

Jolt benefited from a new tactician this week: Nic Asher had previously sailed with Harrison on his previous Maxi 72, now called "North Star", as well as on his TP52 "Sorcha". Asher analysed the decisive race: "Finally we had a good start today. We had Bella Mente right underneath us and managed to keep her out to the port layline. After that it was pretty straightforward. We had good speed on the downwind course, which made it easier." The maths worked out: the winner of the last race was also the overall winner. Harrison was positive about the future of the Maxi Grand Prix class, which is currently very much alive. Peter Dubens is planning to launch a new generation boat soon. "It's just a question of keeping the momentum going and keeping everyone happy and finding new owners and people who want to come and sail," explained Harrison on the development of the class.

"Cippa Lippa X" triumphed in Maxi 3

Guido Paolo Gamucci's Mylius 60 "Cippa Lippa X" finally won the Maxi 3 title with Canting Keel, after the team had previously finished second several times. Gamucci explained the breakthrough: "I think we have finally found the balance between sail area and handicap. This is our sixth year. We've really made progress since last year, especially with the ballast and the reduced sail area." "Cippa Lippa X" already triumphed last year in the 151 Miglia Trofeo Cetilar and uses 400 kilograms of water ballast from winds over 12 knots. "Cippa Lippa X" won by six points ahead of Franz Baruffaldi Preis and Silvia de' Longhi's JV62 "Manticore", which had to retire from the last race with spinnaker problems. Overall, "Manticore" took second place with 11 points, while defending champion Paul Berger's Swan 80 "Kallima" came third with 13.70 points.

"Fra' Diavolo" successfully defended

In the combined Maxi 4-5 class, Giuseppe Puttini's 50-year-old Swan 65 "Shirlaf" took advantage of the stronger conditions on the final day to win by just three seconds. However, Vincenzo Addessi, President of the Yacht Club Gaeta, secured second place in the race with his Mylius 18E35 "Fra' Diavolo", comfortably defending the title. "Fra' Diavolo" led by the largest margin of all classes: five points ahead of Riccardo De Michele's Vallicelli 78 "H20" and Luigi Salas Vismara 62 "Yoru". At the awards ceremony, Addessi also received the trophy for the best-placed IMA member. Addessi commented: "It is a very positive result for Fra' Diavolo, which confirms us as IMA Maxi European Champion in our class. The result comes mainly from the people - the team has been sailing together for years and everyone is very experienced. I personally take care of the maintenance of the boat because I am very interested in the technical issues, the performance and the aesthetics of the boat."

Multihull Trophy ends in disappointment

The Tre Golfi Sailing Week Multihull Trophy came to a disappointing end when the last race had to be cancelled after the three participating catamarans got caught in a wind hole. Adrian Keller's Irens 84 "Allegra" took the overall win, but partly because it was the only multihull taking part in the Regata dei Tre Golfi the previous Friday. Irvine Laidlaw's Gunboat 80 "Highland Fling 18" scored the most points in the inshore and coastal series during the week. Allegra's tactician Paul Larsen analysed: "Obviously we did the offshore race and the other boats didn't, but in the inshore racing we tried to win against them on a level playing field. From Allegra to Layla, they all have great sailors on board, good sails and are sailed well. Every boat had its moment."

Outlook for upcoming maxi regattas

The maxis continue their Mediterranean season with the 151 Miglia-Trofeo Cetilar, an offshore race from Livorno to Punta Ala. This is followed on the IMA calendar by the Loro Piana Giraglia, which starts on 13 June in Saint-Tropez.

Results Maxi-EM:

Maxi 1:

• 1st V (Karel Komárek)
• 2nd Leopard 3 (Joost Schuijff)
• 3rd Galateia (David M Leuschen/Chris Flowers)

Maxi Grand Prix:

• 1st Jolt (Peter Harrison) - 1 point ahead
• 2nd North Star (Peter Dubens) - 1 point ahead of 3rd place
• 3. Django 7X (Giovanni Lombardi Stronati)

Maxi 3:

• 1st Cippa Lippa X (Guido Paolo Gamucci) - 6 points
• 2nd Manticore (Franz Baruffaldi Prize/Silvia de' Longhi) - 11 points
• 3rd Kallima (Paul Berger) - 13.70 points

Maxi 4-5:

• 1st Fra' Diavolo (Vincenzo Addessi) - 5 points ahead
• 2nd H20 (Riccardo De Michele)
• 3rd Yoru (Luigi Sala)

Multihull Trophy:

• 1st Allegra (Adrian Keller)
• 2nd Highland Fling 18 (Irvine Laidlaw) - highest score Inshore/Coastal