On the 23rd of October at 22.54 58” local time (20.54 UTC), Maserati Multi 70 crossed in first place the finish line of the 39th Rolex Middle Sea Race, covering the 606 miles of the historical Maltese regatta in 2 days, 11 hours, 54 minutes and 58 seconds. PowerPlay, its direct rival, arrived second in 2 days, 13 hours, 36 minutes and 48 seconds.
Giovanni Soldini and Maserati Multi 70 crossed the start line in the Grand Harbour in Malta on Saturday October 20th at 11.00 local time (09.00 UTC) with a 15 knots wind from North-East and headed right away towards Sicily.
After passing Capo Passero, during the tacking race with PowerPlay, Maserati Multi 70 had to face a damage to the main sheet’s hydraulic piston, which was solved right away by the crew.
Just an hour later, sailing close-hauled, the right-side rudder’s fitting broke.
A key moment of the regatta was the decision, took by Giovanni and Vittorio Bissaro, to approach the Strait of Messina from East, letting Maserati Multi 70 obtain a discrete advantage over PowerPlay.
Monday October 22nd was then very hard for Giovanni Soldini and his crew: PowerPlay gained back most of its delay, right before the last lap beam reach from Lampedusa to Malta, the most critical for Maserati Multi 70 considering the damage to the right-side rudder.
Aboard Maserati Multi 70, with skipper Giovanni Soldini, there are 7 professional sailors: Italians Vittorio Bissaro (tactician), Guido Broggi (mainsail trimmer), Nico Malingri and Matteo Soldini (both grinder and trimmer); Spanish Carlo Hernandez Robayna (trimmer) and Oliver Herrera Perez (bowman) and French François Robert (pitman).
Maserati Multi 70’s next athletic appointment will be the RORC Transatlantic Race, starting on November 24th, 2018 from Lanzarote, in the Canary Islands.
The challenge is supported by Maserati, the main sponsor that gives the name to the trimaran and Aon as co-sponsor, along with the official supplier for the clothing, Ermenegildo Zegna.
A special thanks also to Boero Bartolomeo S.p.A. and Garmin Marine.
