2026 Match Racing Tour begins in China

Denmark’s Jeppe Borch and his Borch Racing crew of Thor Malthe Andersen, Sebastian Wright Olsen, and Matias Rossing claimed the 2026 Macao Match Cup, edging Sweden’s Oscar Engström 3–2 in the five‑race final. This was the first event of the 2026 World Match Racing Tour, with 12 teams competing in FarEast 28R keelboats on March 25-29 in Macao, China.

After mostly light-air on the Macao River, the breeze built to a steady 10–12 knots for the final day. The semi-finals earlier in the day set the stage: Sweden’s Oscar Engström battled past young American Christian Prendergast in a back-and-forth duel that finished 3–2 in Engström’s favour, while Borch powered through Johnie Berntsson with a decisive 3–0 victory.

The final was a rollercoaster. Borch raced to a 2–0 lead, looking poised to close out the title, but Engström mounted a spectacular comeback to level the match 2–2 and force a winner‑takes‑all decider.

The fifth race was intense from the pre‑start; Engström’s attempted hook clipped Borch’s stern and drew an umpire penalty. Borch capitalized, holding the lead through a late gust and crossing the line to seal the championship and the USD 30,000 first prize.

“It was nerve‑wracking,” Borch said. “Winning the first two races, then losing the next two made the decider a real mental test. Huge credit to the boys for keeping the boat fast when it mattered. It’s been an incredible week in Macao.”

Oscar Engström earned a hard‑fought runner‑up spot, repeating his strong form at the 2025 WMRT Final in Shenzhen in January where he also finished runner-up to the nine time match raving world champion Ian Williams from Great Britain.

Sweden’s Johnie Berntsson took third overall after defeating Christian Prendergast 2–1 in the Petit Final.

The World Match Racing Tour now moves on to the USA for the Congressional Cup April 29-May 3 in Long Beach, CA.

Results: https://www.matchracingresults.com/2026/wmrt-macao-match-cup/

Tour details – Macao Match Cup – 2026 schedule – Facebook

Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The winner of the WMRT each year is crowned the Match Racing World Champion. For tour format, click here.

Source: WMRT