Admiral's Cup Inshore Racing Starts - Full-throttle Inshore Warfare
by Louay Habib / RORC 22 Jul 22:16 BST
17 July - 1 August 2025
The opening inshore clash of the 2025 Admiral's Cup was a gritty, high-octane showdown packed with drama and razor-sharp tactics.
In a shifty 16-knot breeze, building to over 20 knots by the second race, the fleet tore through tight courses in the Solent, trading blows in boat-on-boat duels that left no margin for error. With the fleet fully loaded, every tack and gybe counted. The competition was ferocious from start to finish, with IRC corrected times so tight that podium places were decided by mere seconds. This wasn't just close racing, it was full-throttle warfare on the water.
Race 1 was on a technical windward course of 2.5nm for AC1 and a shorter course of 1.9nm for AC2. Race 2 was a round-the-cans race of 25nm for AC1 and about 23nm for AC2. The orienteering race started in the Central Solent and on into the Western Solent with a finish at the Royal Yacht Squadron Line.
Today's race winners were Stefan Jentsch's Botin 56 Black Pearl, Peter Harrison's TP52 Jolt 3 and Jim Murray's B&C 42 Callisto, which had a stellar day scoring two bullets, keeping a perfect scoreline for the Admiral's Cup.
Full results from the Admiral's Cup here.
RACE 1
In AC1, Eric de Turckheim's Teasing Machine won the pin, but Jolt 3 and Karl Kwok's TP52 Beau Geste quickly showed their class with strong starts a few boats up from the pin. Giovanni Lombardi Stronati's Django WR51 opted for an early tack and looked sharp up the first beat. Jolt 3 led to the top mark and gybed early, with Black Pearl following suit. That tactical call paid off as Black Pearl pushed hard downwind and by the second beat had taken the lead, holding off Jolt 3 in a thrilling duel to the finish. Black Pearl claimed victory by just six seconds on IRC corrected time from Jolt 3, with Django WR51 completing the podium.
Abby Ehler is mid-bow for Black Pearl and commented after racing: "After a disappointing Channel Race, we knew we needed a serious reset. Switching into inshore mode was key - more crew onboard, tighter racing, and a sharper mindset. On race day we focused on a clean start, being the scratch boat it's make or break. If we don't get off the line cleanly, we're stuck in the fleet and can't stretch our legs. But the biggest asset we have is our team dynamic. Even when things don't go to plan, we lift each other. There's a lot of laughter, a lot of trust, and we know how to regroup and go again. That spirit keeps us going through the toughest moments."
Ed Baird is tactician on Peter Harrison's TP52 Jolt 3 (YCM): "That first race was a real tactical challenge. We didn't win the pin, but we started in a spot that let us play our game. We were happy with our position, able to tack or hold as needed, and shortly after the start we got a lift, then tacked into a nice left-hand shift. We were playing the clouds as much as the compass. It was shifty, which kept us on our toes.
The pin was slightly favoured, but we positioned just high enough on the line to give ourselves tactical options. Current was a factor too, especially early, and we didn't want to get trapped. Downwind, boats like Black Pearl show their power. As the breeze built, they were definitely quicker than us, so we had to be smart, stay clear and hang on.
We were a bit conservative on the second beat, managing the TP52s around us more than attacking Black Pearl, which got away on a shift and that cost us the win by a few seconds. But overall, the team sailed really well. Great driving from Peter, strong support from Cam (Dunn) and Andy (Green) - it was a solid team effort all around."
AC2 saw a powerful display from Callisto, who surged out of the pin end start and never looked back. Jolt 6, Django JPK and Beau Ideal gave chase, but Callisto rounded every mark in front. Meanwhile, the de Graaf family's Ker 43 Baraka GP made significant gains up the northern side of the course, edging into third behind Karl Kwok's Beau Ideal. Callisto took a dominant win by over 100 seconds on IRC corrected time. Beau Ideal corrected out to second with Baraka GP completing the podium by just one second from Chris Frost's Carkeek 42 AMP-lifi and 13 seconds from Sean Langman's GP42 Back to Black.
Race 1 drama saw Carl-Peter Forster's TP52 Red Bandit suffer rig failure and Jolt 6 and Caro rip their spinnakers. All of the Red Bandit crew were uninjured and have returned to Cowes Yacht Haven. In a show of great sportsmanship, Team Rán's support boat, with Bouwe Bekking on board, escorted Red Bandit to safety. The Red Bandit crew gave Niklas Zennstrom's Rán Team a huge round of applause once dockside in Cowes.
Pierre Casiraghi's Carkeek 40+ Jolt 6 has Ben Saxton calling tactics: "With some pin-end bias and the tide ripping up the beat, we aimed to hit the pin, get into good current early and jibe set to escape the worst of the tide downwind. Unfortunately our kite exploded during the jibe set - not ideal, but that's racing.
The crew reacted quickly. We got the jib back up, rigged a new kite, and pointed straight at the leeward mark to stay in the game. We managed a decent second lap and clawed our way back to seventh. In this fleet, that could end up being a keeper.
Tactically, the Solent always keeps you sharp, especially in a fleet this deep. We've got Will Harris navigating, feeding me data from the box, and then it's about blending that with instinct and reading the fleet. You're always adjusting.
Despite the hiccup, the boat's going well— under the guidance of co-skipper Tom Dawson, we've upgraded the rig, keel and sails, and the team is firing. It was a gritty day, but a great one. Massive thanks to RORC—it's epic seeing this calibre of fleet racing again."
RACE 2
The second race of the Admiral's Cup Inshore Series delivered a longer tactical test through the Central and Western Solent, culminating in a dramatic finish off the Royal Yacht Squadron line. With pressure building throughout the race with some big directional shifts, eventually gusting to over 20 knots, the closing stages saw both fleets become tightly compressed, racing at full tilt.
In AC1 Jolt 3 set the early pace, leading around the first top mark with a two-minute corrected time advantage over Max Klink's Botin 52 Caro, with Beau Geste in third. A split unfolded on the downwind leg: Caro, Beau Geste and Black Pearl gybed early, while Jolt 3 held course, eventually crossing the fleet, appearing to make gains. As the race progressed, Gordon Ketelby's TP52 Zen emerged as a threat, coming within three minutes of Jolt 3 on corrected time.
In the later part of the race, nearly the entire AC1 fleet converged in a high-speed charge under strengthening westerlies. The leaderboard was changing dramatically, taking into account IRC time correction. First to cross the line was Black Pearl with Jolt 3 just behind, followed by Rán. After IRC time correction, Jolt 3 was the winner by 29 seconds from Gordon Ketelbey's TP52 Zen with Django WR51 in third, just 24 seconds ahead of ROST Van Uden, skippered by Gerd-Jan Poortman.
Andy Green is navigator on Jolt 3: "When we saw the course for Race Two, the first task was to map out the roundings and expected wind angles so the crew was clear. I also had to decide if we'd need our masthead zero - it's a big call because it's costly to get wrong. We loaded in GRIB files, ran quick weather models, and started plotting. The tide was going slack around 1500, so aligning our strategy with tidal shifts was critical. Early on, we didn't fully leverage the pin bias but controlled our lane and got a great shift out in the middle of the course. That gave us the early jump. Downwind, we stayed committed to our side, riding a pressure vein while others gybed early - we gained big there. This regatta is relentless; you have to switch from offshore mode to tight, tactical inshore racing. There's nothing like it. I'm stoked to be part of this team."
AC2 was also a tactical chess match. Chris Frost's Carkeek 42 AMP-lifi, Beau Ideal, Back 2 Black and Baraka GP all made early moves, but Callisto surged down the rhumb line to lead at the top mark. Despite a downwind compression that saw the front runners bunch together, Callisto retained the on-the-water lead. However, after IRC time correction, it was Beau Ideal who claimed the lead with Nola second and Callisto in third. As the skies darkened and the wind built, the fleet powered on—Solent racing at its most electrifying. The final part of the race was held in 20 knots with the skies clearing. Beau Ideal was match-racing with Callisto for the on-the-water lead having put a good distance on the chasing pack, led by Jolt 6. At a speed in excess of 20 knots, Beau Ideal pulled ahead of Callisto in a ball of spray to take the gun, just four seconds ahead of Callisto. After IRC time correction Callisto was the winner by 70 seconds from Beau Ideal Beau Ideal. The battle for third was just as intense with Back to Black taking it by three seconds after time correction from Jolt 6.
Navigator on Niklas Zennstrom's Rán is Steve Hayles, who knows the Solent like the back of his hand. Rán is lying fourth for the series in AC1 after three races.
"It was a classic Solent day, complex and ever-changing. The forecast promised a north-westerly, great for sea breeze, but then came clouds, rain, embedded showers - total chaos. We saw everything from 10 to 25 knots and wind shifts of 60 degrees. It made sail calls difficult and the racing even harder. We didn't start well in either race which cost us but we clawed back a lot - especially in the round-the-cans race where we were doing really well until we missed a shift at the top. These boats are fast, and you're punished immediately for small mistakes. But what's great is how involved the whole crew has to be - triple-headed downwind rigs, constant trimming, rapid transitions. It's physically and mentally relentless. We're improving every day, and that's what this event demands. Honestly, it's as competitive and exciting as any racing I can remember. We are fired up for what's to come."
With three races now completed for the Admiral's Cup, Yacht Club de Monaco leads the series by one point from the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. Tied on points for third place are the Royal New Zealand Yacht Club and the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda.
For full provisional results and more about the Admiral's Cup visit admiralscup.rorc.org