The official training day of the Marina Rubicón Lanzarote 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week provided a good appetizer for what awaits the fleet on its first visit to the Canary Islands. The combination of northerly wind in the 15 to 25 knot range and a tough short chop tested the crews' ability to find the balance between getting the most out of their TP52s and returning to Marina Rubicón undamaged.
The program for this first 52 SUPER SERIES dress rehearsal in Lanzarote waters consisted of two starts and two short two-leg races, but ultimately only one race was completed. Ergin Imre's Turkish-owned Provezza, with John Cutler at the helm, led for a good part of the course, but it was Andy Soriano's British-owned Alegre, skippered by himself, that scored the first non-scoring victory in Canarian waters after guessing correctly on the left side of the downwind leg. They were followed to the finish by Hong Kong's Alpha Plus and Provezza.
On the way back to the 52 SUPER SERIES base in Marina Rubicón, Pablo Arrarte, Alegre's trimmer, explained: “It was a very uncomfortable course, with a short chop from the side, very gusty wind, shifts… But a good course. The downwinds with this chop and this wind intensity are not easy, especially with the current in this area of the island. I think we guessed right going to the left, and that’s what allowed us to win the race.”
Wind all week
With the official training day resolved, all eyes are now on the five sessions to be held between Tuesday and Saturday, a program consisting of up to ten scoring races. The forecast indicates that Lanzarote will live up to its reputation as an excellent race course, marked by reliable trade winds throughout the championship. This was explained by local expert Gustavo Martínez Doreste from the Canary Islands, who sails on Alegre: “The forecast is for moderate to strong wind all week. It will depend on how it enters La Bocaina, the channel between Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. These are the typical trade winds of the Canary Islands, and once the Azores High is in place, the northerly wind settles in. That is guaranteed: it’s what we have 80% of the year.”
According to Martínez Doreste, the Regatta Committee led by María Torrijo from Alicante has a wide range of options to locate the optimal area each day to establish the race course: “It will depend on where you place it: downwind of the wind, like Playa Blanca, the breeze tends to enter the channel through Papagayo or Pechiguera. There is a significant current parallel to the channel, with its small turns at the two mouths of the channel; today, for example, we had a strong current from the south. It is an important factor, and the waves are very varied, which is why it is such an interesting place to train in all kinds of conditions. You can have large swell if you go east and southeast, closer to Lobos, where there is a depth change and meeting of currents; choppy if you go closer to Papagayo and to the east coast of the island, the same in Montaña Roja; and if you leave Pechiguera, it is a more oceanic wave. In front of the channel you have flat seas, shifts, and pressure differences… The options are many. It is a super interesting place to race”.
The 11 Spaniards
The third scoring event for the 52 SUPER SERIES 2026 will once again feature a strong Spanish representation: 11 sailors on board six boats. In addition to Pablo Arrarte from Cantabria, Manu Weiller from the Balearic Islands competes as tactician for the Thai Vayu, Pablo Torrado from Galicia as pitman for the Italian Alkedo Vitamina, and Pedro Mas from the Balearic Islands as bowman for the Hong Kong-based Alpha Plus. The German Platoon Aviation is once again the most “Spanish,” with Catalan navigator Juan Vila, Balearic strategist Jordi Calafat, Cantabrian trimmer Javi Plaza, and Galician jib trimmer Víctor Mariño. And the Turkish Provezza again relies on Cantabrian navigator Nacho Postigo, bowman Joan Fullana, and grinder Matthew Barber, both from the Balearic Islands.
Third title of the season
The historic first visit of 52 SUPER SERIES to the Canary Islands puts the third title of the 2026 season into play. After winning the events in Puerto Portals and Porto Cervo, Takashi Okura's Sled arrives in Lanzarote as the solid leader of the provisional standings, with a 15-point lead over Harm Müller-Spreer's Platoon Aviation and 25 over Andrea Lacorte's Alkedo Vitamina. But this dominance in the standings contrasts with the equality among the largest fleet in the history of the 52 SUPER SERIES: Since the season opener in Majorcan waters last May, nine of the 13 boats competing in Lanzarote have already managed to score partial victories in one of the 18 races held. Both Alkedo Vitamina and the Swedish Trinity Racing have three first places, but this circuit rewards consistency over the number of victories, and Sled has been the most reliable at the start of this season.
Spanish Broadcast
The races of the Marina Rubicón Lanzarote 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week will be broadcast live through the official 52 SUPER SERIES platforms. In addition to the traditional English coverage, Marina Rubicón will debut a Spanish-language video channel that will strengthen the circuit's communication for the rest of the season.
The first 52 SUPER SERIES event in Lanzarote will take place on Tuesday starting at 12:00 PM (local time, 1:00 PM in mainland Spain).
Entrants Marina Rubicón Lanzarote 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week
Alegre (GBR), Andy Soriano
Alpha + (HKG), Shawn and Tina Kang
Alkedo Vitamina (ITA), Andrea Lacorte
Crioula (BRA), Eduardo and Renato Plass
Gladiator (GBR), Tony Langley
No Way Back (NED), Pieter Heerema
Paprec (FRA), Jean-Luc Petithuguenin
Platoon Aviation (GER), Harm Müller-Spreer
Provezza (TUR), Ergin Imre
Sled, Takashi Okura
Teasing Machine (FRA), Eric de Turckheim
Trinity Racing (SWE), Joakim Sundberg
Vayu (THA), Whitcraft family
Provisional Standings 52 SUPER SERIES 2026
1. Sled, Takashi Okura, 42+47 = 89 points
2. Platoon Aviation (GER), Harm Müller-Spreer, 51+53 = 104
3. Alkedo Vitamina (ITA), Andrea Lacorte, 58+56 = 114
4. No Way Back (NED), Pieter Heerema, 52+69 = 121
5. Trinity Racing (SWE), Joakim Sundberg, 73+49 = 122
6. Alpha + (HKG), Shawn & Tina Kang, 67+55 = 122
7. Provezza (TUR), Ergin Imre, 56+71 = 127
8. Paprec (FRA), Jean-Luc Petithuguenin, 72+61 = 133
9. Crioula (BRA), Eduardo & Renato Plass, 59+76 = 135
10. Gladiator (GBR), Tony Langley, 59+88 = 147
11. Vayu (THA), Whitcraft family, 86+73 = 159
12. Alegre (GBR), Andy Soriano, 90+72 = 162
13. Teasing Machine (FRA), Eric de Turckheim, 83+82 = 165
14. Caballo Loco (BRA), Mauro Dottori & Fabio Cotrim, 100+102 = 202
15. Vudu (ITA), Mauro Gestri, 135+126 = 261