Rolex Farr 40 Worlds set to start in Porto Cervo

by Jill Campbell on 24 Jun 2009

Fleet racing downwind - 2008 Rolex Farr 40 World Championship Rolex/ Kurt Arrigo http://www.regattanews.com

Twenty six Farr 40 yachts representing 10 nationalities (Australia, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Germany,Greece,Italy, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United States) are ready and waiting for tomorrow’s start in the Rolex Farr 40 World Championship organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS). Windward-leeward races will take place from June 24th to 27th with a maximum of ten races scheduled for the series.

Although the Farr 40 class is highly competitive and victory often hangs on a team’s performance in the last race of the last day, Vincenzo Onorato’s Mascalzone Latino (ITA), three-time Farr 40 World Champion and current title holder will certainly be one to watch.

Onorato fields a long-standing team which includes America’s Cup sailor Adrian Stead (2003, 2007) on tactics as well as 2007 Italian match race champion Matteo Savelli and Whitbread sailor Gerry Mitchell.

Hopes will also be high among the rest of the Italian contingent which includes Giovanni Maspero’s Joe Fly with Francesco Bruni (America’s Cup 2003, 2007) calling tactics.

Maspero came second in last year’s World Championship in Miami but did not compete in the European Circuit events in Porto Rotondo and Capri. Massimo Mezzaroma’s Nerone, winner of the World Championship in 2003 and the European title in 2007, both organized by the YCCS, and with tactician Vasco Vascotto, is also a strong contender.

Mascalzone and Nerone lead the current European Circuit classification followed by Alessandro Barnaba’s Fiamma (ITA) which has Tommaso Chieffi calling tactics.

The majority of the Farr 40 fleet has been in Porto Cervo for several days and owners and teams have had a chance to eye up the competition during practice sessions and are well aware of the task ahead.

'We are very determined, we hope to do well', affirmed Giovanni Maspero, owner of Joe Fly. 'Obviously we are here to win. The strong teams to watch are Mascalzone Latino and Nerone, who won here in 2003, as well as Barking Mad, a well known American team which does very well. Goombay Smash with Morgan Larsen on tactics should also do well.'

Vincenzo Onorato, winning helmsman on MASCALZONE LATINO - 2008 Rolex Farr 40 World Championship © Rolex/ Kurt Arrigo http://www.regattanews.com

Reigning champion Vincenzo Onorato was cautious: 'The statistics are against us: we have won three world titles in a row, this never happened before and we know that it can’t last forever!

This will be an interesting Worlds for us, a very competitive World Championship but if we have a Mistral wind, tactically it will be simple and this means that a lot of boats can come through.

On the water in these past few days I have seen that the Australians are very good, also the new team, Transfusion: they are very fast.'

Aside from Transfusion, which has 2008 Laser World Champion Tom Slingsby calling tactics, a number of strong international participants will be vying for victory. Australian entries Estate Master, owned by Lisa and Martin Hill, and Lang Walker’s Kokomo both have strong teams.

Estate Master boasts Nathan Outteridge, 2008 49er World Champion, and Malcolm Page, Olympic gold medal winner in the 470 in Beijing 2008, while Kokomo can call on the expertise of tactician Colin Beashel, America’s Cup winner with Australia II in 1983 and former World Champion in the Star class (1998).

Jim Richardson, President of the Farr 40 class and two-time winner of the Farr 40 World Championship (1998, 2004), is competing aboard his Barking Mad (USA) with tactician Terry Hutchinson, a veteran of America’s Cup campaigns in 2000, 2003 and 2007.

Racing is scheduled to start tomorrow 24th June at 11 am. Mistral winds of 15 to 18 knots are forecast for the early afternoon which should build later in the day.