MAGIC CARPET CUBED Victorious at Giorgio Armani Superyacht Regatta

After four days of jam-packed back-to-back racing, the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda’s (YCCS) 2022 Giorgio Armani Superyacht Regatta drew to a close on the weekend, revealing the winners of its 15th edition. 

Wally Yachts’ 30.48m WallyCento Magic Carpet Cubed, owned by YCCS member Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones and assisted by tactician Jochen Schuemann, was victorious in the competitive Superyacht division, whilst the overall winner in the Multihull category was 25m Allegra, owned by Adrian Keller and tactically assisted by Paul Larsen. Alongside taking home the Silver Jubilee Cup, Sir Owen-Jones received the YCCS Trophy for the best result among club members, as well as the Pantaenius Trophy for the best starts. 

Jochen Schuemann commented on Magic Carpet Cubed's win: ‘We are happy; this win shows that we have made good progress after a slower than expected start to the season. Here we had an extra element to deal with because when starting last and then passing the fleet, you have to respect the safety rule and maintain a minimum distance of 40 metres from the other yachts, which was not easy. On the other hand, the wind offered us many tactical options, so we had a few more opportunities.’ 

Paul Larsen, tactician onboard Allegra added: 'This is a perfect place for multihull sailing, really special, it’s right in the mix of loading these boats up and on the edge of flying hulls, and then you look at the scenery and just go whizzing past and try and not be distracted by it. Racing with our opponent was always tight, today we lost the race by a minute, probably because we had a little too much weight on board. Every detail can make the difference, from gusts to the speed of manoeuvres, that's why we updated the boat with faster winches, and you can see the results. It's beautiful, it was amazing.'

Held in the challenging waters of Sardinia’s La Maddalena archipelago, this year’s races saw breezy, overcast weather conditions, with the Race Committee opting for a southerly course. The starting line was located off of Porto Cervo, with both divisions rounding the island of Soffi before heading to the Bisce pass and finally the finish line. The Multihull division kicked off the races, soon followed by the staggered starts of the superyachts. 

After a competitive duel between multihulls 25m Allegra and 21m Highland Fling XVII which saw Allegra take the win, competition continued throughout the remaining races. Magic Carpet Cubed remained victorious following on from her initial lead in day one, with 28.3m Bullitt finishing in second place and 28.52m Magic Blue finishing in third: resulting in a trio of Wally Yachts claiming the trophies.  

Michael Illbruck, Commodore of YCCS remarked: ‘I'm delighted with the success, both at sea and ashore, of our regatta dedicated to superyachts. I'd like to thank Giorgio Armani for having chosen the YCCS and the Superyacht Regatta. We have a lot of values in common and our Piazza Azzurra was busier than ever. On behalf of the YCCS, I'd like to thank the owners that return year after year with their yachts, who are the stars of this event. The Race Committee did a great job handling the conditions, choosing the best course each day in this idyllic setting. My thanks go to them, the International Jury and the entire YCCS staff who organised an excellent event.’

The 16th edition of the Giorgio Armani Superyacht Regatta will be taking place in 2023. The next events due to take place at the YCCS is the Italia Yachts Sailing Week from the 15th to the 18th of June, and the ORC World Championship from the 22nd to the 30th June.