Puerto Calero
The last day served to confirm that Team Aqua was the best of
the entire championship and wants to win the World Circuit again as
it did two seasons ago at the premiere of this class.
Chris Bake's Dubai boat arrived on the final day with a comfortable lead in the overall standings, although it still reaffirmed itself and signed a second and a third, which meant that no one could take the victory away from it.
Artemis of the Swede Torbjorn Tornqvist and Dean Baker tried, who made a fifth and a first, but could only aspire to be second in the final overall and third was one of the great surprises, the Polish Team Organika of Maciej Nawrocki and Karol Jablonski, helmsman of the Spanish Challenge in the America's Cup, who went from less to more and after a spectacular final with a second in the coastal race, led on the last day two fourth places that lifted him to the final podium.
The Ceeref that had brilliantly won the match race tests could only be fourth in the fleet. The Islas Canarias Puerto Calero 1 of José Juan Calero and José María Ponce improved its classification with respect to its debut in the Gold Cup in December and closed the day winning the penultimate round and with a sixth in the last. The Canarian boat has won two of the eight fleet races held, finishing fifth just six points from the podium.
Another of the Spanish skippers, Daniel Calero at the controls of the BMW-Oracle of Russell Coutts finished sixth overall and the Islas Canarias Puerto Calero 2 of Carlos Morales and Luis Doreste, who today had HRH Princess Alexia of Greece as a crew member, has finally been eighth behind the Dutch No Way Back.
Three races were scheduled for the last day, but finally the drop in wind at around two in the afternoon caused the Race Committee, when the fleet had mounted the windward buoy, to decide to cancel the race as it dropped from 5 knots to 1, which practically made navigation impossible.
The next regatta of the RC 44 World Circuit and in which the
Islas Canarias Puerto Calero of José Juan Calero and José María Ponce will participate will be the Cagliari RC 44 Cup in Sardinia (Italy) from April 22 to 26, 2009.
FLEET CLASSIFICATION
1 Team Aqua (UAE), Chris Bake, 3-6-1-3-2-0-2-3, 21 points
2 Artemis (SWE), Torbjorn Tornqvist, 4-2-2-2-4-4-5-1, 27 points
3 Team Organika (POL), Maciej Nawrocki, 8-5-7-7-1-2-4-4, 40 points
4 Ceeref (SLO), Igor Lah, 2-3-6-4-6-5-8-3-5, 42 points
5 Puerto Calero Islas Canarias 1, José Juan Calero, 5-1-4-5-8-10-1-6, 46
points
6 BMW-Oracle (USA), Daniel Calero, 1-4-5-8-7-6-8-7, 50 points
7 No Way Back (NED) ,Pieter Heerema, 7-7-8-1-5-14-7-2, 59 points
8 Islas Canarias Puerto Calero 2, Carlos Morales, 6-8-3-7-7-1-12-6-8, 60
points
FINAL MATCH RACE CLASSIFICATION
1 Ceeref (SLO), Sebastien Col, 7 wins/0 losses
2 Team Aqua (UAE), Cameron Appleton, 5 wins/2 losses
3 BMW-Oracle (USA), Russell Coutts, 5 wins/2 losses
4 Artemis (SWE), Dean Barker, 4 wins/3 losses
5 No Way Back (NED), Philippe Presti, 4 wins/3 losses
6 Islas Canarias Puerto Calero 2 (ESP), Luis Doreste, 1 win/6 losses
7 Team Organika (POL), Karol Jablonski, 1 win/6 losses
8 Islas Canarias Puerto Calero 1 (ESP), José María Ponce, 1 win/6
losses