After a week of epic battles off Porto Cervo (Sardinia), Bella Mente Racing concluded the Mini Maxi Rolex World Championships on Saturday (Sept. 6) with fourth place overall. The team’s fearless leader, owner/driver Hap Fauth, was awarded the event’s Alberini Trophy for exemplary sportsmanship both on and off the water.
Owner/Driver Hap Fauth accepting the Alberini Trophy at the Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship (Photo Credit: Jesus Renedo)
“Hap is always graceful in victory and defeat,” said Mike Sanderson who joined Fauth along with Terry Hutchinson, John Cutler and Ian Moore in the afterguard for all five days of racing. “He is most definitely the man of the moment, and it was great to see that our team wasn’t the only one that recognizes this. On the last day he was already enthusiastic, talking about how we can improve the boat and team for next time. We are looking forward to doing just that.”
Day 5 at the Mini Maxi Rolex World Championships (Photo Credit: Jesus Renedo)
On the final day of the event, Bella Mente Racing was relieved to have some good breeze as the previous four days had brought light winds. Sanderson added, “This allowed us to stretch our legs and really see how we sat against the competition. The good news is that we were very much on pace, but unfortunately Saturday’s conditions weren’t enough to move us up in the rankings. If we had at least one or two more days where the wind speed got into the teens, it could have been quite a different regatta.
Day 5 at the Mini Maxi Rolex World Championships (Photo Credit: Jesus Renedo)
“We can’t say we are leaving Sardinia happy; we had high expectations and anything short of a win was always going to be disappointing. However, we brought a strong team to the event and fought hard in every race. It just wasn’t our week.”
This summer’s Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship marks the end of Bella Mente Racing’s 2014 campaign, but the team is already strategizing improvements for next year. Stay tuned this fall for updates on the 2015 campaign.
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