43rd Copa del Rey MAPFRE surpasses 50 entries
by Copa del Rey MAPFRE 1 Apr 2025 04:52 PDT
26 July - 2 August 2025
Balearia ORC 3 on day 5 of the 42nd Copa del Rey MAPFRE © Nico Martinez / 42 Copa del Rey MAPFRE
Four months ahead of its 43rd edition, which will also host the ORC European Championship, the Copa del Rey MAPFRE already boasts 55 boats from 14 nationalities on its entry list. With the early registration deadline extended until May 30th, teams are advancing in their logistical planning for one of the largest editions in history.
ORC 0: Teatro Soho-Altavista defends the title
Teatro Soho-Altavista, owned by Javier Banderas and Toni Guiu (Benalmádena), will once again compete for victory with the same determination that earned them their eighth trophy for Benalmádena in 2024.
Competition will be fierce in ORC 0, with a dozen TP52s racing almost in real time, although the classification will be decided by corrected time. The presence of Aifos stands out, with His Majesty King Felipe expected at the helm, alongside teams like Urbania, owned by Tomás Gasset (Marina Vela Barcelona), arriving with a new TP52 from Argentina. Their first event will be the Sandberg Palmavela 2025, where they aim at optimizing their performance in both La Larga and Multiclass.
Other high-level TP52 entries include Gladiator (Tommy Langley, GBR), Arobas2 (Gérard Logel, FRA), Musica (Ruedi Huber, SUI), Vudú (Mauro Gestri, ITA), and the Brazilian boats Crioula (Eduardo Plasencia) and Alizée (Mauro Dottori).
ORC A: Elena Nova aims for a third win
Eleven teams are already confirmed in ORC A, where the Swan 42 Elena Nova (RCNP), owned by Christian Plump, will defend its titles from 2024 and 2023 against a strong fleet of Swan 45s. Among their rivals will be From Now On (Fernando Chain, ARG), Thetis and Farewell Ange (YC Costa Smeralda and YC San Remo, ITA), and Aceites Abril (RCN Vigo) owned by the Pérez Canal brothers. Also competing is DK46 HM Hospitales-Hyatt (CN Balis) skippered by Óscar Chávez, with Olympic champion Fernando León.
ORC B: Argentina seeks to defend the title
The most international class to date, with 15 teams from 9 countries, is led by Katara (YC Argentino) owned by Julián Somodi, which dominated in 2024. Although no other podium teams from last year have yet entered, strong competition is expected in the coming weeks from Italian and Spanish fleets.
ORC C: A compact and competitive fleet
With 15 confirmed teams, the ORC C fleet is looking for new podium contenders. So far, Wanderlust (CN Ciudadela/RCNP) owned by Josep Pons is the only podium finisher from the previous edition to have registered in hopes of improving their third-place position.
ClubSwan: Earlybird and Pez de Abril aim to defend their titles
The ClubSwan 50 and ClubSwan 42 fleets, regulars at the Copa del Rey MAPFRE, will feature around 15 entries each. Earlybird (Hendrik Brandis, GER) will strive to repeat their victory in ClubSwan 50, while in ClubSwan 42, Pez de Abril from Murcia (José María Meseguer) will compete against Nadir from Mallorca (CVP Andratx) owned by Pedro Vaquer, among others.
Women's Cup: A dozen teams for a highly competitive podium
The 2024 title is held by Citanias (Patricia Suárez, RCN Vigo), whose skipper is currently focused on her Olympic 49er campaign for Los Angeles 2028. This is raising doubts about her participation in this event. As of now, three teams (two Spanish and one Brazilian) have registered, with expectations to exceed a dozen participants.
July 29th: First day of racing
The 2025 Copa del Rey MAPFRE will kick off on July 26th with the opening of the race office for presenting all the compulsory documents and the completion of all registration requirements. On Sunday, July 27th, the traditional ribbon-cutting ceremony by authorities and sponsors will take place, symbolizing the official start of the regatta. Monday, July 28th, will be the official practice race, and on Tuesday, July 29th, the starting signal will mark the beginning of the first races.
With a top-level fleet and growing interest across all classes, the 43rd edition of the Copa del Rey MAPFRE promises to be one of the most exciting and competitive in its history, with the ORC European Championship at stake.