GCCM Gold Coast Mackay Yacht Race 2026 - Entries open

by Southport Yacht Club 15 Jan 23:25 PST 30 July 2026

The countdown is on with today marking 195 days till Australia's newest ocean race, the GCCM Gold Coast Mackay Yacht Race kicks off on the 30th July. With the official release of the Notice of Race today, entries are now open for the 2026 race.

Offering 520 nautical miles of spectacular coastal offshore racing from the iconic skyline of Australia's Gold Coast, the course sends the fleet around the outside of K'gari and weaves past many tropical islands of the Great Barrier Reef.

Organised by the Southport Yacht Club, Commodore Glenn Burrell said the timing of the Gold Coast Mackay race helps feed boats into the northern race weeks, such as Airlie Beach Race Week by Whitsunday Sailing Club, Magnetic Island Race Week by Townsville Yacht Club and the famous Hamilton Island Race Week. In 2026, Hamilton Island Enterprises has come aboard as a brand-new sponsor of the Race.

Jeanette Harris, the Director of Property and Marina on Hamilton Island says "Hamilton Island is proud to join as a Gold Sponsor of the GCCM Gold Coast Mackay Yacht Race, a natural lead-in event for yachts heading north to Hamilton Island Race Week. The race provides crews with an ideal offshore test while building momentum toward the North Queensland regatta calendar and the iconic Whitsundays sailing season.

"Aligning with Gold Coast City Marina, Southport Yacht Club and Mackay Marina enables us together to offer competitors world-class service and berthing, reinforcing Queensland and the Whitsundays as a highlight of Australia's regatta calendar," said Jeanette.

Gold Coast City Marina & Shipyard return as Principal Naming Rights sponsor. Chief Operating Officer Andrew Chapman says "GCCM is again very happy in our capacity as the inaugural naming rights sponsor to continue our commitment to Australia's fastest emerging offshore race the Gold Coast to Mackay Yacht Race, that not only feeds yachts north for the race week regattas in Airlie and Hammo but also helps crews to qualify for the Rolex Sydney to Hobart. We are committed to supporting the sailing fraternity and look forward to seeing old friends again this year and making new friends on and off the water around GCCM & the shipyard or, the yacht clubs around the Country and the South Pacific."

The Monohull Line Honours in 2025 was snapped up by Grant Wharrington's supermaxi Wild Thing 100 with an elapsed time of 37 hours and 48 minutes, just shy of their 2024 inaugural record of 35 hours and 36 minutes.

Grant Wharrington, who recently had to retire from the 80th Rolex Sydney Hobart will be back in 2026 having already stated their intention to race, with Mackay now firmly on their annual calendar. Grant has also thrown down the gauntlet to other big boats looking for a thrilling long-distance race in warm waters to contest their inaugural Line Honours record.

In 2025, skippers and crew were delighted by the spinnaker start and range of downwind surfing and variable conditions further north, whilst the absence of marks made for a navigators delight and tactical routing between the islands and reefs enroute to Purdue.

As one of the longest passage races for multihulls in Australia, Commodore of the Multihull Yacht Club of Queensland, Adrian Relf, said "With such a growing presence of raceable, cruising multihull yachts heading north for their annual cruising season or northern regattas, the GCCM Gold Coast Mackay Yacht Race presents a great challenge and logical option for multihull racer/cruisers."

Commencing after the Noakes Sydney-Gold Coast race, the GCCM GOLD COAST MACKAY YACHT RACE kicks off on the 30th July, with an epic start line off the beachfront, straight in front of Cavill Avenue, Surfers Paradise.

Entries are now open to all Australian and international boats via the official race website, www.goldcoastmackay.com Early Bird entries close Friday May 10.