Tre Golfi Sailing Week IMA Maxi European Championship Inshore Series - Day 2
by Tre Golfi Sailing Week 20 May 2025 09:51 PDT
7-22 May 2025
The second day of inshore racing at the IMA Maxi European Championship delivered another spectacular show in the Gulf of Naples, with breathtaking scenery and challenging weather conditions.
The wind, generally from the southeast, shifted frequently in both direction and strength, ranging from 3 to 20 knots and keeping tacticians and crews on their toes throughout the course.
Today's coastal race featured a highly scenic route: an opening mark under the cliffs of Sorrento, followed by a fast reach to Punta Campanella, a mark offshore of the Galli Islands, a lap of Capri from the south, and finally the return leg to the finish line off Punta Sorrento.
First to cross the finish line after an intense battle at the front was Magic Carpet e, the Wallycento owned by Sir Lindsay Owen Jones, with local sailing hero Francesco De Angelis calling tactics. However, the day's win on corrected time went to Bella Mente, the Maxi 72 owned by American Hap Fauth, with a top-level afterguard including Terry Hutchinson, Lucas Calabrese, Ian Moore, and Adrian Stead. Second place went to CippaLippa X, the Mylius 60 of Paolo Gamucci, with an outstanding performance given the size difference with the larger boats. Proteus, the Maxi 72 of George Sakellaris, finished third.
"It was a really great day today. With the wind from the south/southeast it was all quite chaotic, and with such a short upwind leg, it felt like we were racing dinghies - even though we're all on very different boats with very different speeds, it was very tricky," said Michele Regolo, tactician aboard CippaLippa X. "Then near Sorrento, the wind dropped, and the fleet kept reshuffling with every puff - it was really, really hard. But in the end we had a good race. A small squall, I think, helped us... and sometimes in sailing you need a bit of luck too. We're really happy to be here in Sorrento racing and enjoying the week".
After three races, the overall leaderboard is now topped by Bella Mente, thanks to their victories in the long offshore and today's coastal race, followed by Jolt (Peter Harrison, with Michele Ivaldi) and Proteus (George Sakellaris).
"It was a pretty hectic day out in the Gulf of Naples - very overcast skies and shifty breeze, anywhere from 3 up to probably 21 knots, so a lot to manage," commented Adrian Stead, strategist for Bella Mente. "But it was a really enjoyable race. We had a big battle out of Sorrento, then around the point with puffy conditions, a fast run down to Capri along the south side, and then back to Sorrento. Great fun! It was a tough race - we got a great start, but couldn't quite get out to the left, so we had to play catch-up. By the time we got to the southern side of Capri, we caught up with Jolt and stayed close enough to take the win on
corrected time. Tomorrow looks set to be a beautiful day - we're expecting 12 to 18 knots. Should be great sailing!"
This evening at 6:00 PM, the Council Chamber of the Municipality of Sorrento will host the event "Sporting Events and Sailing for Sustainable Territorial Development", a roundtable on the relationship between sport, institutions and local development. Speakers will include the Mayor of Sorrento, Massimo Coppola, the President of Circolo del Remo e della Vela Italia, Roberto Mottola di Amato, and the former President of the FIV Campania Committee, V Zona.
The Tre Golfi Sailing Week 2025 is organized by the Circolo del Remo e della Vela Italia in collaboration with the Yacht Club Italiano, Reale Yacht Club Canottieri Savoia, IMA, ORC, FIV and UVAI, with the support of Rolex Official Timepiece, Loro Piana, North Sails, Wally Yachts, Banca Patrimoni Sella & C., Ferrarelle, Ottogas, Deloitte, Italia Yachts, Le Axidie, Caffè Borbone, Schenker, Miliare and the Consorzio Prosecco DOC.