32nd Copa del Rey Mapfre - H.R.H. Prince Felipe of Spain joins + Video

by Icarus Sailing Media on 1 Aug 2013 On the third day of competition of the 32nd Copa del Rey Mapfre, H.R.H. Prince Felipe has joined the crew of 'Aifos'. Today, three classes competed in a coastal race while the other five completed a windward/leeward course. Racing will continue tomorrow in the waters of the Bay of Palma.

The fleet of the 32nd Copa del Rey Mapfre has from today a new participant. H.R.H. Prince Felipe has joined the regatta this morning as skipper of Spanish Navy’s 'Aifos' in the class Hublot IRC one, one of the three fleets that have competed today in the coastal race, along with the Hublot IRC zero and Gaastra IRC 52. All monotypes have been able to fulfill its program of two windward/leeward races, while the two G.H. Mumm IRC classes had to settle with a single race sailed.

With the first half of the regatta program raced, the provisional leaders are: British 'Jethou' in the class Hublot IRC zero, Italian 'B2' in Hublot IRC one, American 'Quantum Racing' in Gaastra IRC 52, German 'Elena Nova' in G.H. Mumm ORC one, Spanish 'Movistar' in G.H. Mumm ORC two, Spanish 'Vamos Spain' in Nespresso Soto 40, Italian 'Margherita' in La Caixa X-35 and Spanish 'Turismo do Algarve' in Mahou J80.

The excitement is at its maximum peak in the Hublot IRC zero class. Andres Soriano’s British 'Alegre' won the coastal race today, beating for a minute and a half American 'Shockwave' after more than three hours of competition. The combined results of the day cause a dramatic situation in the provisional overall results: the top three entries are now tied on 12 points.

H.R.H. Prince Felipe has joined the regatta today as skipper of 'Aifos' in the Hublot IRC one class. The Spanish Navy’s boat entered the finish line of today’s coastal race second in real time, although he finished sixth after applying the handicapped system. Italian 'B2' won this race and is the solid leader of the provisional overall.

American 'Quantum Racing' took today’s coastal race in the Gaastra IRC 52 class. After nearly four hours of racing, the boat skippered by Ed Baird beat Italian 'Azzurra' for more than five minutes and Swedish 'Rán' for almost six. 'Quantum Racing' continues leader of the provisional overall, with now 2.5 points ahead of 'Rán' and nine over 'Azzurra'.

Christian Plump’s German 'Elena Nova' won the only race sailed today in the G.H. Mumm ORC one class. Plump finished ahead of Romanian 'Natalia' and Spanish 'Itaca IX'. However, after adding the points of the five races sailed until today, the overall leader is still Rafael Carbonell’s 'Rats on Fire' (fourth today), with eight points over Axel Rodger’s 'Grupo Clínico Dr. Luis Senís' (sixth today).

In G.H. Mumm ORC two, Pedro Campos’ Spanish 'Movistar' took his third consecutive victory strengthening his leadership in the class provisional overall. He finished ahead of his two main rivals, Iñaki Castañer’s 'X-Spain' and Teo Matheu’s 'Airlan-Aermec'. The provisional podium remains in the same order.

The podium in the Nespresso Soto 40 class, is shared between Spanish, Chilean and French, although the changes are continuous in the class. Equality is huge, but today’s races were dominated by Jose Maria Torcida’s 'Vamos Spain', who after scoring two victories, snatched the provisional lead to 'Mitsubishi Motors' (three-six today), skippered by Juan Reid. Third is Benjamin Enon’s 'Antares'.

Italians Roberto Mazzucato’s 'Margherita' and Alessandro Solerio’s 'Lelagain' shared the victories of the day and lead the podium in the La Caixa X-35 class in that order. 'Red Eléctrica de España', skippered by Ignacio Camino, suffered the consequences of a sixth place in the first race (six-two) and has fallen to third place overall. The top three teams are now separated by only four points.

Portuguese Hugo Rocha’s 'Turismo do Algarve' seems to play in another division in the Mahou J80 class. The 2013 world champion has outstandingly won all of the six races held so far, and already has a cushion of 11 points over his nearest rival, Carlos Martinez’s 'Deltastone' (four-two today). Martinez’s team and José María Van der Ploeg’s 'Factor Energía' (five-four), third overall, seem to have to settle for fighting for silver and bronze in the class, at least, for now.

Tomorrow, the 32nd Copa del Rey Mapfre will be halfway through its regatta with the celebration of its fourth day of racing. The classes G.H. Mumm ORC one and G.H. Mumm ORC two will sail a coastal race, while the rest of the fleet will compete in windward/leeward races. The first start of the day is scheduled for 13h00.