(Palma Mallorca, Spain)– The 33rd Copa del Rey MAPFRE finished in Palma
de Mallorca this past weekend on a high note. The bay of Palma
reaffirmed its reputation with good wind conditions throughout the week,
and only added a little bit more excitement on the final day with an
irregular wind that reduced the sailing schedule to a single race. The
winners were decided in the last race of the championship.The J/80 champion of the 33rd Copa del Rey MAPFRE is “Noticia”. Skipper “Pichu” Torcida was presented the trophy by The King of Spain, H.R.M. King Felipe- who presided at the official prize giving ceremony for all fleets on Palma.
José María “Pichu” Torcida’s NOTICIA won in an overwhelming way in the Herbalife J/80 Class. Torcida, a double J/80 World Champion in the class (2007 and 2010), led the fleet from the third day of racing, and completed the regatta with a difference of 20 points over his nearest rival. NOTICIA won six out of the 12 races sailed and scored just 22 pts total.
Carlos Martinez’s MOVISTAR (another J/80 World Champion) finished in second place, winning just two races and getting black flagged in race #3. They barely hung on to second place with a 4-4-9 in the last three races to score 42 pts total. They were followed by Javier Padrón’s HERBALIFE that closed with a 3-2 for a total of 46 pts. As a result, they won the tie-breaker over Marc De Antonio’s BRIBON-MOVISTAR also on 46 pts. Fifth was current J/80 World Champion Hugo Rocha (a Portuguese sailor) sailing with an international team that includes Russian owner Alexey Semenov; they were just four points back and their closing 3-5-1-11 was close enough for them to have scored a 2nd or 3rd in the regatta (you could hear them say, “if it were not for that last race!!!”). For more J/80 Copa del Rey sailing information
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