GP42 Global Cup, Roma in trionfo
GP 42Level ClassVela 17 Ottobre 2009 Zerogradinord 0
[singlepic id=4366 w=300 h=204 float=left]GP42 Global Cup – Puerto Calero – Si è da poco conclusa a Puerto Calero la GP42 Global Cup, appuntamento che gli specialisti della classe GP42 valutano alla stregua di un Mondiale. A imporsi, confermando quanto di buono fatto vedere nel corso dell’evento, è stato Roma.
L’equipaggio di Paolo Cian e Gabriele Benussi, al comando sin dalla seconda giornata, ha tenuto testa al ritorno di Islas Canarias Puerto Calero (oggi 2-1-2), messo sotto pressione dagli attacchi del terzo classificato Caser Endesa. Forte del vantaggio accumulato nei giorni precedenti, il team italiano ha potuto regatare di rimessa, accontenendosi di conquistare una piazza all’interno del gruppo di testa. Un atteggiamento valso due terzi e un secondo, che ha permesso all’equipaggio di Roma di prendersi la rivincita dopo la bruciante sconfitta patita nel circuito Audi MedCup proprio per mano del team di José Maria Ponce.
Si è invece fermato ai piedi del podio il sogno di Turismo Madrid, leader della prima ora. Alle spalle dello scafo di José Maria van der Ploeg si sono piazzati i portoghesi di Quebramar Xacobeo 2010 e il secondo equipaggio italiano, impegnato a bordo di Airis.
Si conclude così un evento che sfruttando il favore delle condizioni meteo, davvero eccellenti durante tutta la settimana, si è articolato su dodici prove, tutte valide ai fini della classifica generale.
Puerto Calero GP42 Global Cup
1. Roma, P.Cian, 4-2-3-1-2-2-1-3-1-3-2-3, pt. 27
2. Islas Canarias Puerto Calero, J.M. Ponce, 5-5-1-3-1-3-6-1-3-2-1-2, pt. 33
3. Caser Endesa, J.L Paez, 7-4-2-2-3-1-3-2-5-1-3-1, pt. 34
4. Turismo Madrid, J.M. van der Ploeg, 2-1-4-5-5-4-5-4-4-6-4-4, pt. 48
5. Quebramar, F.Regojo, 1-7-5-4-4-5-2-5-6-4-7-5, pt. 55
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VIVA ITALIA! ROMA WINS THE WAR
[Source GP42 Global Cup] In the first race, for example, the two front-runners found themselves tangled up with each other and Team Nordic, all fighting for a pin-end start as the fasted path to the favored left side of the course. Aggressive maneuvers between the three resulted in flags, shouting from the teams, and a whistle from the on-water jury before the three disentangled and set off for the left corner. Keeping clear of the fight with an perfectly-timed start in the middle of the line, Javier Goizueta’s Caser-Endesa (ESP) took and held the lead for their second win of the series. Roma’s third place and Islas Canarias Puerto Calero’s second place in this race closed the point gap down to eight, but there were still two races left.
In the second race, Team Nordic was this time nowhere to be found, having dropped out for an unrepairable gear failure on their deckhouse, yet somehow Roma and Islas Canarias Puerto Calero got tangled up, fighting yet again for the pin. The Italian team won the fight this time, forcing the Canarians to tack away and duck the rest of the fleet coming off the line on starboard tack, but Roma paid the price of being slow and barely able to clear the pin end.
Yet this power of the pin kicked in further up the leg, allowing Roma to stay close and hang on as the breeze built and Islas Canarias Puerto Calero found a favorable lane on the right side and put her awesome boatspeed in these conditions to work and take the lead. With Caser-Endesa having to fight off a late charge made by Jose Maria van der Ploeg’s Turismo Madrid, and the two finishing overlapped with Caser-Endesa in the lead by a mere metre, Roma was able to go into the final race with a strong position: a 7-point gap now with the local Canarias team and only one race left.
In this race Caser-Endesa this time took the pin for themselves, and in a playbook now very familiar after four days of racing, they led to the left corner, crossed everyone close to the layline, led around the top mark and offset, and simply continued to lead around the track to extend to victory. Islas Canarias Puerto Calero had tried repeatedly to get into a passing lane, and for a while Caser-Endesa would make aggressive covering manouevers to prevent this, but the 3-point gap needed to fill with other boats to take the runner-up position from the local favorites just couldn’t be overcome, so Caser-Endesa, with owner Javier Goizueta on board as a guest, had to settle for being third overall but satisfied as winner of the day on scores of 1-3-1, their best day of the series and second time being champions for the day.
So, Bravo! to Faruffini, Cian, and all the members of the victorious Roma team: Gabriele Benussi (ITA), Paolo Bottari (ITA), Santino Brizzi (ITA), Pierluigi Formelli (ITA), Fabio Montefusco (ITA), Salvatore Pavoni (ITA), Matis Picornell (ESP), and Enrico Zennaro (ITA).
This is the final event of the GP42 season, after an impressive debut in this year’s Audi MedCup’s five stages, an Owner-Driver Championship in Cascais, and this spectacular Global Cup finale in Lanzarote.
The next event for the GP42 class will be at next year’s Audi MedCup Circuit Stage One in May, 2010 in Portugal.
Puerto Calero GP42 Global Cup
1. Roma, P.Cian, 4-2-3-1-2-2-1-3-1-3-2-3, pt. 27
2. Islas Canarias Puerto Calero, J.M. Ponce, 5-5-1-3-1-3-6-1-3-2-1-2, pt. 33
3. Caser Endesa, J.L Paez, 7-4-2-2-3-1-3-2-5-1-3-1, pt. 34
4. Turismo Madrid, J.M. van der Ploeg, 2-1-4-5-5-4-5-4-4-6-4-4, pt. 48
5. Quebramar, F.Regojo, 1-7-5-4-4-5-2-5-6-4-7-5, pt. 55
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