Audi MedCup Circuit - Madrid-Caser Seguros wins GP42 series

by ORC Press on 26 Sep 2010 Audi MedCup Circuit GP42 series.

On the strength of having won three stages and 17 of 41 races in the series, Javier Goizueta’s Madrid-Caser Seguros has won the overall 2010 season trophy in the GP42 Series of the Audi MedCup. The 2009 Botin & Carkeek design had a mediocre start to the season, but finished strong, with victories earned in the last three stages of the series – Barcelona, Cartagena, and Cagliari.

Congratulations go to Goizueta and his team: skipper Jose Maria van der Ploeg, helmsman Paolo Cian, and the rest of the crew: Juan Castaneda, Valentin Fernandez, Miguel 'pecas' Jauregui, David Madrazo, Angel Medina, Pietro Montanvani, Juan Luis Paez, and Diego Terrado.

'This was a fantastic season for us,' said van der Ploeg. 'The key to success was two things: the crew and the boat. I learned from last year what was needed, and we set out to achieve these things. The team was changed so that we got the best people in the right positions, and the boat is very fast. We also had our coach, Carlos Llamas, who knows me well and was a tremendous help for us.'

Today the series racing ended with a bang, with strong Mistral winds topping 30 knots, the strongest seen in Audi MedCup sailing in the past two years. Numerous sail and gear breaks, however, did not stop the boats from exhilarating downwind rides of over 20 knots in pure speed, made all the more remarkable considering the flat-water conditions.

Despite these strong conditions, Madrid-Caser was still on top form, winning the day’s only race before the conditions forced cancellation of the remaining two races scheduled. 'This was a fantastic way for us to end a great series,' said van der Ploeg. 'The team has been improving at every stage, and now we are at the maximum, exactly where we want to be.'

'This has been a very competitive season,' said an estatic Goizueta about his first GP42 Class overall season victory. The team fought very hard at every stage, we could never win without a fight. But I am very proud of them, and very satisfied with the results!'

Helmsman Paolo Cian, who was runner-up last year in the overall series with his team on Roma 2, was pleased to have stepped up a place to win this year. 'This was a great program, with all the right elements: great crew, great support, and a good spirit on board. We started out a little rough, but got our team work together by the middle of the season to put our great speed to work.'

Today the series racing ended with a bang, with strong Mistral winds topping 30 knots, the strongest seen in Audi MedCup sailing in the past two years. Numerous sail and gear breaks, however, did not stop the boats from exhilerating downwind rides of over 20 knots in pure speed, made all the more remarkable considering the flat-water conditions.

Finishing as runner-up in today’s strong breeze and in the overall series championship was last year’s season champion, Danny Calero’s Islas Canarias Puerto Calero, skippered by Jose Maria Ponce. The Canarias team started the season strong by winning the first stage in Cascais and taking a substanital 10-point lead in the series, but they could not hold back their Botin & Carkeek sistership after a poor showing at Stage Two in Marseille and Madrid-Caser taking the lead at Stage Three in Barcelona.

And on the strength of winning Stage Two in Marseille, the final team on the podium for the overall championship is Iberdrola (ESP), skippered by Laureano Wizner (ESP).

Following a meeting of owners held here in Cagliari, it was agreed the following events would be in the tenative 2011 Season schedule of racing:

25-28 May Rolex Capri Sailing Week – Capri (ITA)
13-19 June Giraglia Rolex Cup – Sanremo/St Tropez (ITA/FRA)
1-3 July Trofeo de la Reina – Valencia (ESP)
30 July-6 Aug Copa del Rey – Palma (ESP)
3-8 Oct Voiles de St Tropez – St Tropez (FRA)
13-16 Oct GP42 Global Championship – Lanzarote (ESP)

'This new schedule for the class represents the best fit between the interests of our owners, the event organizers, and the overall interest in the class growing to include those teams who have not participated in the Audi MedCup,' said Paolo Massarini, GP42 Class Manager. 'As we said last month in Cartagena, we have enjoyed being a part of the MedCup for the past two years, but we feel we need to go to other venues and participate in a wider variety of racing to enjoy the full potential of these fantastic boats.'

Massarini also said interest from new teams remains strong: 'We expect seven to nine teams for the 2011 season, and have had inquiries from owners in Italy and Germany. They are attracted to the high-performance nature of these boats and their competitiveness in both class and handicap racing.'

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