Racing Roundup

Happy Wednesday everyone...

In today's newsletter:

American Magic declines to challenge for 38th America's Cup
IMOCAs Charal and MACIF Santé Prévoyance tussle for transatlantic lead
Transat Café L’OR: Press Pause / Press Play
Maxi Edmond de Rothschild: A new chapter of offshore flight
Quiz Question...

American Magic declines to challenge for 38th America's Cup

US challenger American Magic has confirmed it will not compete in the 38th edition of the America’s Cup.

The decision follows a comprehensive review of the event’s current Protocol and Partnership Agreement and their alignment with the team’s long-term sporting and strategic objectives.

“After extensive engagement with the Defender, Challenger of Record, and fellow teams, we’ve concluded that the present structure does not provide the framework for American Magic to operate a highly competitive and financially sustainable campaign for the 38th America’s Cup”, said Doug DeVos, Team Principal of American Magic.

“We care deeply about the America’s Cup and what it represents. However, for a team committed to long-term excellence, alignment around financial viability and competitive performance is essential. At this time, we don’t believe those conditions are in place for American Magic to challenge.”

While American Magic will not take part in the next edition of the America’s Cup, the team remains fully committed to its founding purpose: building a high-performance American sailing platform that competes and wins on the global stage...

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IMOCAs Charal and MACIF Santé Prévoyance tussle for transatlantic lead

After an action-packed first two days in the Transat Café L’OR, the lead is being disputed by four of the top sailors in the IMOCA Class while the fleet has also seen its first big split.

Up at the front, after a tough start in the English Channel and then a tricky light airs ridge in the Bay of Biscay, the Charal skipper Jérémie Beyou, sailing with Morgan Lagravière, is just ahead of early leaders Sam Goodchild and Loïs Berrehar on MACIF Sante Prévoyance.

The two crews are at the head of a tight group of four boats – the other two are Allagrande MAPEI and 11th Hour Racing – who have sailed away from the chasing pack, some 70 miles behind them.

At lunchtime today the front runners were off Cape Finisterre on the northwest corner of Spain and starting to come under the influence of a big low pressure system centred near the Azores which will dominate the race for the next few days.

Forty-nine year old Beyou says it has been non-stop action on board his red and black foiler as he and Lagravière – who is looking for his third win in succession in this race – have kept up the chase on MACIF Santé Prévoyance.

“It’s been a lot of transitions – going through the breeze, then some pretty full-on reaching in rough seas, hitting speeds of up to 35 knots, with a few sail changes on the way,” said the three-time Figaro champion and four-time Vendée Globe competitor. “We’re managing to grab naps here and there, but there hasn't been a long steady stretch where we could rest for very long...

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Transat Café L’OR: Press Pause / Press Play

The Class40 fleet on the Transat Café L’OR are filing into La Coruña, led this morning by Corentin Douguet and Axel Tréhin (SNSM, Faites un don ) at a little after 0800hrs UTC. By mid afternoon nearly half of the 42 boat fleet had crossed the line, all happy to be taking mandatory shelter from an incoming storm.

In the Ocean Fifty class there was a change of lead this morning as Basile Bourgnon and Emmanuel Le Roch (Edenred 5) outsmarted their rivals on Wewise momentarily at the Canary Islands. But Pierre Quiroga and Gaston Morvan, long time leaders, were back ahead this afternoon only by less than one nautical mile.

The new pacesetter in the IMOCA class is Jérémie Beyou and Morgan Lagravière (Charal) who have grown their margin today, as had Tom Laperche and Franck Cammas who were making 40 knots in the lead of the ULTIM race on SVR Lazartigue passing west of the Canaries at the same time as the Ocean Fiftys were passing to the east.

CLASS 40

Corentin Douguet and Axel Tréhin (SNSM, Faites un don!), winners of the Normandy Channel Race and the Rolex Fastnet this year on their new Lombard Lift 3 design, narrowly pipped Guillaume Pirouelle and Cedric Chateau (Seafrigo-Sogestran) to the line by a matter of 21 minutes.

About the same distance behind was Achille Nebout and Gildas Mahé (Amarris). Douguet was pleased to be in first, "Overall no damage to the boat, we won, what more could you ask for? I'm delighted to be in La Coruña; I have nothing but good memories here, from my first Bay of Biscay cruise when I was very young to being in here first to this port I came to almost 20 years ago now."

His co-skipper Tréhin said: "The first 24 hours were tough; we weren't used to the sea yet. These conditions really take you by surprise. It will be much easier to leave from here for the Caribbean than it was to leave from up there."

In fourth were the Spanish duo on VSF Sports, Pep Costa and Pablo Santurde. Costa said: “Fourth is correct for us, we know there is a group of five or six boat which really want to win this race and so we were in this pack and happy to be able to fight this group. It is not easy and we will be trying hard to do even better to Martinique. The first part of the English Channel was not as we expected and we had some little issues. Our option was not as good as we had wanted and so we paid a little but we were super good on Biscay, we had a good attitude on there and were going fast.”

IMOCA

The IMOCA lead changed last night as Charal’s strategy entering the downwind conditions on the west side of a low pressure paid off.

Beyou and Lagravière were 16 nautical miles ahead of Italian flagged Allagrande MAPEI of Ambrogio Beccaria and Thomas Ruyant, with Sam Goodhild and Loïs Berrehar a further eight miles behind on MACIF Santé Prévoyance

The leading four have set up in two pairs, to the east Charal and MAPEI and 30 miles to the west MACIF and Frankie Clapcich and Will Harris (11th Hour Racing).

Goodchild reported this afternoon: “It is all going fairly well, obviously we are not leading any more which is not ideal but we are not far behind. There was a lot of manoeuvres going around this depression off the coast of Portugal, trying to get as close to it without falling into the no wind zone in the middle but still trying to reduce the distance sailed and to get to windshift first.

"So the sea state was not too bad but it is building now. We lost a few miles which is frustrating and our big downwind sail fell in the water which meant we were stopped for 40 minutes, not ideal, so we had to get that going.

"But, all good, we have to fix the halyard at the top of the rig when we get a minute when it is light. The next 24 hours is heading south, we have set up to the west of MAPEI and Charal – or they set up to the east of us…so we are heading south to get to the next high pressure ridge at the Canaries before heading across the Atlantic. So, generally, wind dropping sea state dropping and we will be trying to pick our way through the next ridge.”

ULTIM

Passing west of the Canaries today, it seems like every time the ULTIMs get to unleash their fearsome speeds they are soon slowed again by light winds and transitions.

That will certainly be the case for the foreseeable future even if Tom Laperche the young skipper of SVR Lazartigue was rejoicing at doing 40 knots with a beautiful sunrise and much more favourable temperatures.

Laperche and Franck Cammas have 35 miles in hand over Thomas Coville and Benjamin Schwarz on Sodebo Ultim 3. Armel Le Cléac'h and Seb Josse have made up nearly 90 miles on the leaders on Banque Populaire XI and will get the chance to reduce their 188 miles deficit more when the leading ULTIMS slow in the next ridge.

OCEAN FIFTY

Lighter winds to the east of the Canaries have slowed the march of the Ocean Fifty leaders and now there is less than 12 miles between leaders Wewise and third-placed Thibault Vauchel Camus and Damien Seguin on Solidaires en Peloton.

Maxi Edmond de Rothschild: A new chapter of offshore flight

This December, the five-arrow fleet will welcome a new flagship: Gitana 18, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild. Conceived from the outset to sustain flight, this next-generation trimaran is the result of more than two years of design, construction and creative collaboration.

At 32 metres long and 23 metres wide, she combines cutting-edge technology with a bold artistic identity, ushering in a new era for offshore racing — just as her predecessor, Gitana 17, did when the team pioneered the development of offshore flight.

A Boat Born to Fly Offshore

Gitana 18 is not an upgrade but a complete re-invention. Every element - from foils and appendages to structure and onboard systems - has been redesigned to deliver stability, reliability and endurance at high speeds.

More than 50,000 hours of study and 200,000 hours of construction have been dedicated to creating a platform where, as Sébastien Sainson, Head of the Gitana Design Office explains: "The boat will fly 100% of the time — we didn't just adapt an existing concept; we reinvented it."

Building on this vision, Cyril Dardashti, Managing Director of the five-arrow team, highlights the scale of the challenge: "Thousands of hours of modelling and simulation pushed us to challenge every assumption. The result is a maxi-trimaran built from the keel up for sustained offshore foiling, with the potential to redefine ocean racing. Our team principal, Ariane de Rothschild, set us an ambitious goal and a clear roadmap when she decided to build a new boat. It's a formidable challenge, but one that inspires us at Gitana Team, where a culture of innovation and pushing limits defines the way we work."

Excellence Takes Time

Originally scheduled for launch earlier this year, the unveiling was deliberately postponed to ensure the boat met the team's exacting standards. For Gitana, time is an investment in performance.

Charles Caudrelier, skipper of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, is clear on the value of patience: "To race around the world at 40 knots, you need complete trust in your machine. Taking the extra months to refine Gitana 18 is not a delay but a commitment. What we will reveal in December is not just a boat, but a finely tuned ecosystem designed for speed, resilience and victory."

Beyond performance, Gitana 18 is also a canvas for contemporary creation. In collaboration with the Palais de Tokyo, artists Florian and Michael Quistrebert have brought to life a bold artistic vision, presented on the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild by Jean-Baptiste Epron. Across nearly 2,000m2 of hull and sailcloth, five faces emerge from the sea - a symbol of family, heritage and imagination woven into the fabric of this machine.

"For nearly 150 years, every boat in the Gitana saga has had her own unique story to tell." said Ariane de Rothschild, CEO Edmond de Rothschild Group and owner of Gitana. "For a long time, I wanted to invite a contemporary artist to express themselves on one of our multihulls. My ambition went beyond the aesthetic gesture: I wanted to bring about a merging of worlds. When I decided to launch another large trimaran, Gitana 18, it was only natural to continue the collaboration with the Palais de Tokyo. For the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, they've created an expanding wave of faces. A wave which, like an intimate echo, reveals the features of my daughters. To whom I dedicate this new boat."

Expertise Without Borders

While the project is firmly rooted in Lorient, Brittany, it has drawn on a global network of specialists. From the vision of naval architect Guillaume Verdier to the skills of foil builders and composite experts across Europe, Gitana 18 reflects international excellence brought together under one roof. To share this process with the public, the team has produced the "G18 NDA" video series, offering rare behind-the-scenes access to the conception, construction and artistic identity of the new boat - a narrative that highlights both the global expertise involved and the collaborative spirit of the Gitana project.

A Living Saga

Gitana 18 arrives one year after Gitana 17's landmark solo victory in the Arkea Ultim Challenge, a defining achievement for offshore sailing. As Gitana 17 begins a new chapter with Team Actual, Gitana 18 takes her place as the 28th boat in the Rothschild lineage, extending a story that spans nearly 150 years — a legacy that will be celebrated in 2026 with the 150th anniversary of the very first Gitana.

The unveiling is planned for December 2025, when the trimaran will be presented to the public before embarking on a new sporting chapter, with major offshore races and record attempts ahead — including the next Route du Rhum, where the team will line up to defend its title.