Having now covered over half of the 608 miles of the Rolex Middle Sea Race route, including a spectacular passage past the Stromboli volcano at first light and with the Aeolian Islands now in her wake, Maserati Multi70 has just caught up with Phaedo3, which had been leading the fleet since the start, and the duo are locked in a heated battle for first position.
The Italian trimaran made up the ground thanks to a tactical decision by Giovanni Soldini to stay offshore to look for wind. With San Vito Lo Capo behind them, the trimarans will run into the Sirocco (SE) which will fresh to a maximum of 25 knots. Maserati Multi70 and Phaedo3, will have to beat all the way to the finish-line at Malta, which is now under 300 miles away. They are separated by a tiny distance and are making similar speeds of between 12 and 20 knots. The two trimarans should cross the finish-line off Malta’s Grand Harbour in the late morning or early afternoon of tomorrow.
“Racing within sight of Phaedo3 has kept us on high alert,” commented Giovanni Soldini via satellite. “There was a gap of about 20 miles between us but we completely made that up by looking for wind offshore. We’re now trying to defend that position by beating from San Vito Lo Capo to Malta. All is good aboard. Morale is high –
despite the fact that we were more affected by the lack of wind than Phaedo3, the boat is responding perfectly. We made a tactical choice that is now paying off and we’re really giving it our all”.
credit@Francesco Malingri
