49er & 49erFX and Nacra 17 World Championships at Cagliari, Spain Day 4
by Andy Rice 11 Oct 07:21 BST
7-12 October 2025
SailGP stars do a "Max Verstappen" to take control of the 49er Worlds
Olympic and SailGP champions Diego Botin and Florian Trittel return to the skiff circuit and are proving dominant in Cagliari...
From SailGP to skiff supremacy: Spain's Diego Botín and Florian Trittel jumped to the top of the leaderboard at the 2025 49er World Championship in Cagliari after a commanding day on the water. The reigning SailGP champions returned to the 49er class this week and looked every bit as sharp as they did in the professional league — echoing Max Verstappen's "fun run" in GP3 last week, where the Formula 1 star reminded everyone what elite feels like.
Chasing Their Missing Title: Despite their Olympic gold medal and SailGP triumphs, a 49er World Championship crown has eluded the Spanish duo. Twice runners-up, they've never sealed the deal. A victory here would etch their names into class history — because in 49er lore, you're not truly immortal until you've won the Worlds.
Defending Champs Stumble: France's Erwan Fischer and Clément Pequin looked poised to strike back, winning Race 11 and leading most of Race 12 — until a false start (UFD) disqualified them. That misstep likely ends their title hopes, a brutal reminder of how thin the line is at the top.
Mixed Conditions, Maximum Stress: The day delivered a cocktail of weather — fluky 6-knot lulls early, gusts strong enough for double trapezing by day's end. Only two teams managed three top-10 finishes: Botín/Trittel (ESP) and Wiebrand de Vos & Steingast (NED), underlining just how volatile the racing has been.
Fallen Leaders, Still Smiling: Overnight leaders Jack Ferguson and Jack Hildebrand (AUS) suffered a rough outing, clocking three deep finishes. Still, they'll savour the memory of wearing yellow jerseys on the world stage — a rare feat in itself for the young pair.
For Botín and Trittel Paul, this return to the fleet feels less like a comeback and more like a reminder — that pure racing, stripped of payrolls and investors, still holds the spark. Like Verstappen dropping back into the GP3's, they're proving that sometimes, stepping down a level is the most powerful flex of all.
49erFX: Bobeck with Berntsson (SWE) extend lead over women's skiff fleet
Only two races were possible for the 49erFX Gold fleet in a challenging wind situation on day 4, but the Swedish leaders were able to sail two solid races and pull a few points ahead of the Lewin-LaFrance sisters of Canada.
Vilma Bobeck is the 2023 World Champion and Paris 2024 Silver medallist but has only recently begun sailing with Ebba Berntsson with the retirement of her former crew Rebecca Netzler. The pair has only trained since mid-summer onwards, but seem to be a good fit and are seizing the moment in Cagliari to continue the leadership position the Swedes have been enjoying.
Paolo Barcelo and Maria Cantero (ESP) remain in third overall with a contrasting day of a 24, 2, one race second from last and the next race a second place.
Racing continues on Day 5 with the 49erFX to be featured on the broadcast racecourse.
Nacra 17: Group of Seven Emerges in Contention for the 2025 World Championship Title
Local favourites Gianluigi Ugolini and Maria Giubilei continued to impress at the 2025 Nacra 17 World Championship, extending their lead early with a win in the first race of the day, making it three-in-a-row for the top-20 Gold Fleet phase of the six-day competition. But even the dominant Italians couldn't escape the volatility of Sardinia's shifting breezes, slipping with a couple of uncharacteristic mid-fleet scores later on.
Behind them, the fight is heating up. Just 17 points separate the top seven teams, with four races remaining before the final-day showdown. Sweden's Emil Järudd and Hanna Jonsson had one of the standout performances, posting a 2-1-14 to vault up the standings to fourth overall, while Britain's John Gimson and Anna Burnet delivered a steady 4-7-4 to hold firm in second. Australia's Brin Liddell and Rhiannan Brown also impressed with an 8-2-7 in the tricky conditions. This takes them to sixth overall.
It was a day that tested patience and adaptability, with winds swinging from barely five knots to full-foiling speed as a storm system brewed east of the island. Teams cycled through every mode imaginable, demanding sharp transitions and composure in one of the most unpredictable days yet. With the leaderboard tightening and the weather forecast promising more drama, the World Championship title is still very much up for grabs.