Day 3 of the Maxi 72 Worlds (Rolex / Carlo Borlenghi)

Bella Mente Racing continued to climb its way up the leaderboard today at the Rolex Maxi 72 World Championship. Despite unfavorable conditions in the waters off Porto Cervo, the team, led by owner/driver Hap Fauth, took second-place finishes in both of today’s windward leeward races and goes into tomorrow’s coastal race in second place overall, less than two points behind fleet leader Momo. The regatta runs through Saturday, September 12 with a layday scheduled for Friday.

Adrian Stead:

We had a good solid day on Bella Mente with two well-earned second-place finishes. We were greeted this morning with a lumpy northeast breeze between 14 and 16 knots, which died down to between 11 to 13 knots, as it put more onus on keeping the boat trucking and finding the best breeze. As Terry Hutchinson said in the briefing, the key is to still execute consistent conservative starts and avoid the OCS traps. We did just that, with two good launches off the line.

Momo had a better day and although we came close, she had just enough in her first cross to take the nod today. Both Jethou and Robertissima took third- and fourth-place finishes, which helped us chip our way up the leaderboard. Tomorrow’s coastal race will be another great opportunity for our team to show our mettle.”

Terry Hutchinson:

The fleet was more aggressive in today’s pre-start, resulting in several boats being called OCS in both races. Hap, Soapy (Ian Moore) and Doogie (Sean Couvreux) deserve high marks for execution on the line; we were not always in the best spots, but we definitely benefitted when the boats around us were called over.

Momo won the day with a solid 1,1 performance. For Bella we were happy to finish the day with a 2,2, as the lumpy conditions are not the boat’s strengths; we knew from the get go that it would be a challenging day as her hull has very little rocker in it when compared to the rest of the fleet. It will be business as usual tomorrow with a coastal race – we’re hoping to keep chip, chip, chipping along!”

Mike Sanderson:

Although Momo had the best day today, it was still a great one for Bella Mente. If just a couple more things went our way, we could have easily come away with at least one of those wins. We experienced tough lumpy conditions in both races but came away with good starts in the two races, so close to stealing Momo’s lead but it wasn’t meant to be.

However, we are in the hunt, that’s for sure, and should see some decent breeze in tomorrow’s coastal race, which is always good for Bella Mente.

Our biggest strength right now is how strong our team is, it’s a great bunch of guys that are pushing hard to try and win this thing. We are leaving no stone unturned on the racecourse.”

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Click here for full class updates from the International Maxi Association

The Rolex Maxi 72 World Championship kicked off today in Porto Cervo, Sardinia with clear skies and light to moderate winds between six and ten knots. Bella Mente Racing and the rest of the competitive six-boat fleet took to the waters for two windward leeward races where the team finished sixth and second place, respectively, resulting in a fourth-place standing going into day two of racing tomorrow. Bella Mente is currently two points behind Momo in third place and four points behind Robertissima III and Jethou, which are tied for first.

Bella Mente Racing and the rest of the competitive six-boat Maxi 72 Class. (Photo Credit: Rolex / Carlo Borlenghi)

Tactician Terry Hutchinson Recapping Day One:

Race one was a struggle. Hap (Fauth), Ian (Moore), and Doogie (Sean Couvreux) executed a great start and well that was the best part of the race. From there, we boat-speeded out to the left hand side with Robertissima III and Momo. Robertissima III tacked early and went about seven lengths astern of Bella Mente. Momo continued on with us and with roughly 2 minutes to the lay line she tacked. We went another 20 seconds and followed some pretty good left-hand pressure. Both boats looked to be comfortably ahead with Momo, which was leading and us (Bella Mente) in second. However, in the last two minutes of the leg it went horribly pear shaped for Bella Mente. Momo crossed the fleet and rounded in first, while Bella Mente rounded in last. From there it was a battle, but we were never really able to threaten. Robertissima III  sailed the best race and ended up with a win. For race two we again executed a solid start. It was another race of snakes and ladders with the fleet always very tight. We sailed a bit looser tactically, and were rewarded for it managing a second. Although the first race was fairly disappointing, we are still in the early days of the event, so we can keep chipping from here.”

Racing resumes tomorrow and the Maxi 72 fleet will mix up the race format with a coastal course. Event organizers are predicting more breeze, with 12 to 15 knots forecasted.

The Rolex Maxi 72 World Championship is organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda in conjunction with the International Maxi Association and runs through Saturday, September 12, with a layday scheduled for Thursday.

For regular team updates, follow Bella Mente Racing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Click here for full class updates from the International Maxi Association