36th Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup

Thirty-eight elite teams came for the 36th Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup on September 7-12 in Porto Cervo, Italy. The 2026 event had a full range of conditions, from the light winds of the opening days to an intense Mistral with gusts exceeding 28 knots.

The Rolex International Maxi Association (IMA) Maxi 1 World Championship title went to Joost Schuijff’s Farr 100 Leopard 3, with New Zealander Chris Nicholson on tactics. After finishing third in the opening race, the boat put together a highly consistent series, winning five of the seven races contested, including the final four in succession.

This is Leopard 3’s second victory in the Rolex IMA Maxi 1 World Championship, following their triumph in the inaugural edition held in Porto Cervo in 2024.

“It’s the culmination of a great deal of hard work with an extraordinary boat and team. We love racing in Porto Cervo – it is without doubt one of our favorite venues. We’ll be back next year with a revamped Leopard, aiming to repeat our success,” said team manager Gerard Mitchell.

The Rolex IMA Maxi Grand Prix World Championship had already been decided with a race to spare in favor of the J/V 76 Northstar III, owned by Peter Dubens, with two-time Olympic medalist Nick Rogers calling tactics.

In the Maxi 3 class, James Neville’s Artemis Bleu, with New Zealand tactician Dean Barker, came out on top. The British Botin 65 finished on a high note, with three consecutive wins in the final three races.

“Winning here was a real challenge, because we were racing in highly varied conditions, from light to strong winds.” commented Neville. “This year, the Costa Smeralda has been lucky for us: first a victory at the Sardinia Cup with the TP52, and now this result with Artemis Bleu.”

The Maxi 4 class was also decided in a hard-fought finale with the overall win going to Yoru, Luigi Sala’s Vismara 62. Two second-place finishes on the first two days followed by back-to-back victories in the Mistral winds gave Yoru the win.

Among the Maxi 5s, H2O, owned by Riccardo De Michele and with Lorenzo Bodini on tactics, once again demonstrated her pace at the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup. The Vallicelli 78 won four of the five races held, including the final competition, to take the title.

In the Multihull class, victory came down to a head-to-head battle between Adrian Keller on Allegra and Lord Irvine Laidlaw on Highland Fling XVIII. The two boats finished level on points, with the win going to the VPLP Custom 80 Highland Fling XVIII on countback due to three first-place finishes secured over the course of the week.

Details: https://www.yccs.it/en/regattas-2026/maxi_yacht_rolex_cup-3344.html

Source: YCCS