Nothing certain at TP52 World Champs

Mallorca, Spain (November 4, 2021) – A seemingly unerring consistency, Platoon returning a pair of second places and Phoenix a pair of thirds, sees the German and South African TP52s locked in a three way tussle with the USA flagged Sled for the Rolex TP52 World Championship title. After six races only one point separates the trio.

With just two days of the season left to sail, the overall circuit title for 2021 is equally finely poised. Circuit leaders are Takashi Okura’s Sled who are only one point ahead of Platoon and two ahead of Phoenix. When they needed to at least be matching this top trio today Quantum Racing faltered today with a 5-7 which may prove costly to their hopes of a fifth 52 SUPER SERIES title.

The breeze was again blowing off the shore, carrying with it the influence of the high, undulating mountains at the back of the city itself. That meant more windshifts, changes in pressure to test to the nerves as well as the skills of the afterguards. The spotty wind was hard to read, to second guess what was happening in the next few seconds far less the next minutes, making the remarkable consistency of Platoon and Phoenix all the more impressive.

Both afterguards, Platoon’s Jordi Calafat and John Kostecki versus Phoenix’s Tom Slingsby and Cam Dunn, risked when they needed to and were mostly rewarded by place gains. After a solid third and fourth from yesterday’s similar conditions, Quantum Racing were nicely in the mix in the second race but lost positions on the second upwind for a 12 points day.

“My nerves are gone, admitted Phoenix’s Slingsby. “It was crazy racing out there. Any tactician who says they know what’s going on out there would be lying. It’s just insane racing, it’s crazy, it’s very hard to predict, we’re just riding the rollercoaster. And so I am really happy with two thirds today on a day like that.

“The wind was changing all the time. You are trying to tack on the shift but sometimes there was a persistent shift, sometimes there wasn’t, sometimes it was oscillating, it’s just so hard to know what the wind was doing out there. I don’t know how many times today I said to Cam Dunn, ‘I have no idea what’s going to happen here.’ But it was just one of those days where you had to sail in your own breeze and get round the course quickly.

“In these conditions it really helps having a strategist. Having a good set of eye to give me input on the course is invaluable. And so yes we’re in the mix for the world title and the overall title. The points are so close heading into tomorrow, it’s anyone’s game but we’re happy to be in the hunt. Looking forward. There is a good chance tomorrow is the final day so we have to approach it that way.”

While there are two days of scheduled racing left, the forecast for gales in the Bay of Palma on the final day see some teams altering their strategy for tomorrow, the penultimate day. Set to blow hard from the north, there is a belief there might be enough protection from the land to allow racing, others are setting their stall for tomorrow to be the final showdown.

Racing is planned for November 2-6.

Series information – Race details – Facebook

Worlds – Day Three Results
1. Phoenix (1,1,6,7,3,3) 21 points
2. Platoon (3,3,4,8,2,2) 22 pts
3. Sled (7,2,5,1,6,1) 22 pts
4. Quantum Racing (4,5,3,4,5,7) 28 pts
5. Alegre (5,9,1,10,1,5) 31 pts
6. Bronenosec Gazprom (2,8,9,2,4,8) 33 pts
7. Interlodge (9,4,7,5,8,6) 39 pts
8. Provezza (10,7,2,9,9,4) 41 pts
9. Code Zero (6,6,10,6,7.10) 45 pts
10. Gladiator (8,10,8,3,10,9) 48 pts

2021 52 SUPER SERIES Results (after Day Three)
1. Sled (USA) (Takashi Okura) 66 points
2. Platoon (GER) (Harm Müller-Spreer) 67 pts
3. Phoenix (RSA) (Toni Norris) 68 pts
4. Quantum Racing (USA) (Doug DeVos) 72 pts
5. Alegre (USA/GBR) (Andrés Soriano) 74 pts
6. Bronenosec Gazprom (RUS) (Vladimir Liubomirov) 84 pts
7. Provezza (TUR) (Ergin Imre) 85 pts
8. Interlodge (USA) (Austin Fragomen) 97 pts
9. Gladiator (GBR) (Tony Langley) 131 pts

2021 Schedule
July 13-17 – Royal Cup 52 SUPER SERIES Valencia Mar (CANCELLED)
August 24-28 – Puerto Portals 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week & TP52 20th Anniversary Invitational
September 28-October 2 – Menorca 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week
November 2-6 – Rolex TP52 World Championship RCNP

Following the cancellation of the 2020 season due to COVID-19, the abbreviated 2021 schedule will be the ninth edition of the 52 SUPER SERIES which was established as the world’s leading grand prix monohull yacht racing circuit.

Source: 52 Super Series