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52 SUPER SERIES Season 2026 - EP02 - ROLEX TP52 WORLDS 52 SUPER SERIES 2026
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00:00C'est parti !
00:40C'est parti !
01:03C'est parti !
01:04In any season, the Rolex TP52 World Championship is the big one.
01:09The season championship title, of course, rewards supreme consistency
01:14across five regattas over six months of the year and up to 50 races.
01:22But a world title, everyone wants to be a world champion.
01:26It's one regatta, winner takes all.
01:31It's the Formula One of the sailing, so for all of us to win the World Championship is a dream.
01:38If you could choose one event to win, it's the World Championships.
01:41To win it in this caliber of flight, it means a lot.
01:45You hike a little harder, you work a little harder, this is the one you want.
01:50It's a statement win, and the team that wins it is the best mono-hole sailing team in the world.
01:55It's as simple as that, because you're beating the best in the world to lift that trophy.
02:00It's massive. It's the biggest event that you do.
02:08It's the second event on the 52 Super Series season, arriving less than a month since Porta Portales,
02:13where Takashi Okura's sled won the first regatta of the season.
02:17Crossing the line in third, it's sled. Congratulations to the team.
02:25That first event highlighted just how close the fleet is.
02:29Sled clinched the title in the last race of the last day.
02:37It's a great feeling to come away from the first event with a win.
02:40It's super tough, obviously, because of the extra boats,
02:43but we've got 50 races, and I think we've done nine.
02:47So, we've got a long way to go.
02:54The Rolex TP52 World Championship 2026 takes place in beautiful Sardinia,
03:01at the yacht club Costa Smeralda.
03:04It's one of the most renowned exclusive yacht clubs in the world,
03:08set on the edge of a stunning island archipelago
03:11with emerald blue waters, towering rocky mountains,
03:15and on the race course in June, sunshine and a great variety of wins.
03:21To have the world championship in Italy, in Sardinia, in Costa Smeralda, in Porto Cervo,
03:26is a privilege.
03:28It's something that is unbelievable.
03:31but if I sit down and think about what I'm doing, I get scared.
03:35Sometimes I get excited, so there's nothing better.
03:38It's really a home feeling here.
03:43Every race day is different, and it tests you in a different way.
03:47Every day, you have to adapt your mindset quickly,
03:50and whilst you're doing that, there's 14 other boats trying to pinch the spot off you.
03:54So, it's a variable race course that tests you, sort of, tactically, mentally, more than anything.
04:01This world championship will be the biggest ever.
04:04A record 15 boats competing, representing 11 different nations.
04:09The bigger number of boats is making a, definitely, a strategic difference around the marks.
04:15The risk of losing many places is always behind the corner.
04:21Stakes are high. Pressure is high.
04:24There's at least six teams that could win the world championship,
04:27and you wouldn't be surprised at any of them.
04:31Three teams competing in Sardinia have won the world title before.
04:36Hartmüller Speer's German-flagged Platoon Aviation have actually won it three times.
04:41In 2017 in Scarlino, 2019 in Porto Portales, and 2023 in Barcelona.
04:49We won three times, and we're coming here to try to win the world championship game.
04:53Being able to win one time is already a big success.
04:57Win the second time, hmm, but the third time is something unbelievable, obviously.
05:02You need to try to avoid the big mistakes, so to try to arrive to the last days with a
05:08chance to win.
05:09Let's try to have more if the other things give us something.
05:14SLED won in 2021 in Palma.
05:19We won the world championship once with the SLED, and we really hope that this is going to be our
05:26second time.
05:27To win the world championship will mean an awful lot to me and also our team, because I feel it's
05:33the pinnacle of the season.
05:36Tony Langley's Gladiator won in the USA in Newport in 2024.
05:42To win the TP52 Worlds, you have to be close to perfect for ten races in a row. It's that
05:48simple.
05:49You have to be very well prepared. You have to have chemistry between the players. You have to have speed,
05:54good boat handling.
05:55And then there's no doubt that you'll have to have a little bit of luck that particular week, because many
06:01teams are well prepared.
06:04New to the fleet for the first time ever is the Italian boat Voodoo, competing in the 52 Super Series
06:10for their very first time.
06:12This is a challenge, and I like challenges in life. It's the first time we are competing on what you
06:19can say the best in the world.
06:20We have no hopes, we have determination. We have to win.
06:23Surely not this time, but we want to grow along with new people, with the teams and with the other
06:29people and get into the competition.
06:30We don't like to be spectators.
06:40The Costa Smeralda scenery is an imposing backdrop to the race arena, one of the most stunning venues in the
06:47world.
06:50For some of the top pro sailors, it's a great chance to get out and enjoy the scenery and nature.
06:57Cycling has become an important regime for many, many sailors. It maintains fitness and keeps body weight down.
07:04The cycling in the morning has now become a tradition for many of the TP52 sailors on board of different
07:12boats.
07:12And the sled team has been growing his group very well.
07:19It's fun. It's fun. It's a very good way of starting the day.
07:23We don't take it too seriously, but we always have a coffee midway and try to socialize more.
07:30And it's making our group, I think, a little bit tighter.
07:33So it's good for the physical health and mental health. They go very close together.
07:40So it's definitely good for that.
07:43Cycling with teammates and friends strengthens the bonds in the team.
07:47And of course, it's great for the mind, switching off from the stresses and strains of sailing.
07:53And of course, for the Italians, coffee culture is almost a religion.
07:57It really is everything.
08:02Well, we cannot start today without a good coffee and having it in between two sessions of riding is the
08:09best.
08:09It's got the best flavor.
08:16The sailors love the scenery, the beautiful blue waters and the nature.
08:20But not many 52 Super Series sailors are privileged enough to live overlooking an actual race arena.
08:27The 2026 Worlds are a home regatta for Matteo De Luca in every sense.
08:32We are actually here in Capo d'Orso, just front up to the Viche island.
08:39It is actually where we were sailing this week.
08:43Racing a TP 52 World Championship, having a win-win-win-win-win right in front of my place was
08:49a kind of a dream.
08:50The Bauman and project manager for the Italian team Al-Quedo lives life to the full at home in Sardinia.
08:59Life in Sardinia is great because of the nature you have around yourself.
09:05Like every day I'm driving from my place to here.
09:08Sometimes I find Lamborghinis or Ferrari, they're inviting their special customers from all over the world.
09:16Only for giving them the opportunity of driving once the road that I'm driving every day.
09:23So when I'm not on board and salty, we are sitting together in our place with our laptop and working
09:29on.
09:29We really enjoy this time because we can look at each other and see the beautiful day with the nature.
09:38We take a walk of one hour, we charge the batteries and we come back.
09:43I like to think that this makes my job better, more productive.
09:48This is what I like to think is my office.
09:52It's where some of the things happen, where I plan the season and the racing.
09:59And watching the nature, I can be focused.
10:04And then when I see the trees moving means that the wind is coming, that is blowing.
10:09And so I walk down to the beach for a wing foil session or just swimming just to feel the
10:15salt water.
10:19I love to be in the sea and we can walk.
10:22We are 300 meters from the beach where we were sailing just in front today.
10:28When I drop my head under water, even if it's freezing cold, it's, I don't know, I'm thinking more to
10:36myself.
10:37I get answers to some questions that are running around my mind since a while.
10:44One of the real strengths, the assets for the Al-Qaeda team is they have a super strong bond, a
10:49great chemistry all the way through the crew.
10:51It is different for me sailing in my own place because I can go home and I can relax and
10:59quit a little bit more than if you are in a hotel or if you meet your guys on the
11:04walking back.
11:05But actually, I don't want because in this project, I really want to leave the full 24 hours for this
11:12eight to nine days really close to them.
11:15So actually, I'm sleeping in the hotel in here. I'm not going back home this week.
11:20I really want to don't miss any single minute of this, of this dream because it is a dream comes
11:27true.
11:28After a debut season in 2025, which saw them on the podium in Bayona and narrowly missing third place overall
11:34for the season, for sure, Andrea Lacortz, Al-Qaeda are title contenders.
11:39At the end of the season, what I felt very deeply is that it's going to be very difficult this
11:45year to repeat the success of the last year.
11:47It's going to be more difficult in terms of results, but that's the beauty of this sport. You can win
11:53a race, you can be last in another one.
11:56A big challenge in the national water is our own place, our own port, let me say, because we are
12:02Italian.
12:03There is no way to decrease the focus one centimeter, because if you've just decreased as much, you may be
12:09last in a few seconds.
12:11Every mistake is paid so heavily here that you cannot relax on the successes at all.
12:21Welcome to the Rolex TP52 World Championships 2026 here in Porto Tervo.
12:27With 15 boats on the start line, all so evenly matched, this crown will be extremely difficult to win.
12:33It is going to be really hard.
12:35And racing proves just as hard as everyone expected.
12:38The French team on Teasing Machine leads race one until the second mark rounding.
12:43Spinnaker is in the water, there's big trouble on board Teasing Machine, and Al-Qaeda is closing fast.
12:50And that is a big win, a statement of intent.
12:53Andrea Lacorte's Al-Qaeda finish first, highlighting their drive to win on home waters in Italy.
13:01Sled starting at the pin on port, that is a bold move.
13:05Can they cross the fleet? Unbelievable!
13:07They've taken control of this race with both hands.
13:10That start to race two by 2021 world champion Sled launched them into the regatta lead after day one.
13:16Obviously that second race will be remembered for all of us.
13:20Great start on port at the pin.
13:23It was well planned and well executed at the right time.
13:28And Alpha Plus wins race four.
13:30Second in race three, now this. What a turnaround for Hong Kong.
13:34Two twelfths on day one, and look at them now.
13:37It is consistency. Avoiding bad results and keeping near the top of the fleet in each and every race which
13:44wins championships.
13:45Especially in a fleet which is so closely matched with light wins every day.
13:51In fact, after six races, three times world champions platoon aviation from Germany are third with every one of their
13:58races scoring inside the top ten.
14:00Takashi Akura's 2021 world champion Sled are second.
14:05But remarkably, Alpha Plus are the top boat two days in a row.
14:09Alpha Plus clear ahead. That's win number two.
14:13Sharp, staying out of trouble.
14:15Alpha Plus growing in confidence all the time.
14:17We just kept things simple, followed our plan, stuck to our process, didn't take risks, and just worked hard.
14:24Yeah, and that's all it took.
14:25Well, it's going quick.
14:26It's very quick. We're, yeah, we're fast.
14:30This year, Alpha Plus have clearly stepped up their program.
14:33They are sailing well, the boat is properly prepared, and clearly, they have fast sails.
14:41In Grand Prix sailboat racing, sails are designed and developed for very specific wind and sea conditions.
14:47They can really be compared to how different tires on a Formula One racing car are from those on a
14:53family car.
14:55Fundamentally, the sails are everything on a race boat.
14:58They're the driving force. They give us the power, the speed, the direction.
15:03So, with the increased numbers on the start line, you have to hold lanes for longer, so the ability to
15:08continue on a given tack, the ability to roll into leeward of someone downwind, establish an overlap and make gains
15:14at the bottom mark.
15:15A couple of millimetres here and there in the 52 Super Series fleet is the difference between success and failure.
15:23Winning championship titles is all about perfect preparation.
15:26You have to have the right sails for the expected wind range at a regatta venue, and in Porto Chervo
15:33in June, it's likely to be light sea breezes or a strong mistral.
15:37That's a good position. Too late for anybody to tack up to us.
15:42Good start.
15:43Your expectation here is 6 to 12 knots or 20 to 35 knots.
15:50You know, we want specific shapes. We want our new sails to be within those wind categories so that when
15:56it blows and if it's light or heavy, we're going to be on the pace.
16:00Just like in Formula One where there are strict limits set in the number of tires you can use, in
16:05Grand Prix sailboat racing, the number of new sails is strictly limited.
16:09Each new sail has to have an official button.
16:12The sail button system enables us to have 14 sails for the year, to keep the expenditure down, to equalise
16:19the playing field or level the playing field.
16:21Every year the class decides the number of buttons.
16:25Button is a sticker I put on the sail. When they want to declare a new sail, they have to
16:29call me, I go there, I check the sail, and then I put a specific sticker on that sail.
16:33And they cannot race without that sticker.
16:37The performance profile of every sail undergoes constant digital analysis every time it's used.
16:44Yeah, well, we do a lot of pictures, and then we measure the pictures, so draft, camber, all those things.
16:49We're measuring the, in the engine terms, we're measuring the displacement of the cylinders.
16:56So we're doing a main change, guys?
16:58We've got about 100 sensors on the boat, and they produce about 40 million points a day or a day.
17:04And then we go and crunch those and decide, well, you know, if we'd done this, we'd be a little
17:09faster, or, yeah, we were good today.
17:13The actual sail shapes are being constantly tweaked by the team's sailmakers according to the performance data and the wind
17:19forecasts.
17:22When it comes to having to do recuts, it's really, we're tuning the engine.
17:27You know, we're trying to make it the most efficient shape that we can, and the most smooth shape.
17:34The sailmakers are key in any team. It's critical to how the team functions.
17:38He's like the guy in the pit lane. He's there when we pull into the pits.
17:42He takes his job list. He takes it super seriously. He's skilled. He's diligent.
17:47Unfortunately, he probably has to work 25 hours a day.
17:49Sometimes, um, no good team can function without an amazing sailmaker.
17:58The penultimate day of racing is a real acid test.
18:01The stakes are starting to creep in, and they really are punished in this big fleet.
18:06Some teams score big.
18:10Keeping it very simple and sticking to a similar game plan each day continues to work for the new Swedish
18:16team on Trinity Racing.
18:19After a third in race number seven, their first race win of the world's, and only their second race win
18:25ever, takes them up to third and right into contention to win the world title.
18:30Trinity Racing remains super cool and stuck with their game plan, so they're leading down this final run.
18:35That win takes Jerkim Sundberg and his team to third overall.
18:40Both Alpha Plus and Sled have a tough day, fighting in the traffic in the middle of the fleet.
18:45But for the underdogs from Hong Kong, Alpha Plus finishing with one boat between them and main rivals Sled in
18:51race A means they go into the final day with a leap of a single point.
19:00Alpha Plus from Hong Kong is a team mixing youth and experience.
19:04They joined the circuit in 2023 and really have improved year on year.
19:09They finished fourth at the World Championship in 2024 in Newport, Rhode Island, and then last year, they finished on
19:17the podium at a regatta in Puerto Portals.
19:21Happy birthday, John!
19:23Owners Sean and Tina Kang are ambitious but maintain a real family atmosphere among their crew.
19:28We do feel like a bit of a family. We have each other's backs. We love each other. We all
19:32are driven by this shared goal to win, to be the best, to learn together, to help each other.
19:37You know, we feel like we can achieve great things with this team.
19:41Sean and Tina, I think, are some of the most inspirational owners I've ever sailed for and best people I've
19:47ever worked for.
19:48They've shown this immense drive to be the best and they very much lead by example.
19:53Tina is making sure everyone is ready to go. She'll walk around the container every morning making sure everyone's had
19:58their vitamins.
19:59And Sean, he's so supportive. They're always up for listening. They're always looking for new ideas and they're always trying
20:05to make sure that as a unit,
20:07we can achieve great things together.
20:13So at the top of the table going into the final day is Alpha Plus on 43 points.
20:18Second, one point behind is Sled on 44.
20:22And third, Trinity from Sweden on 48 points.
20:29And the big finale, the last day of the World Championship.
20:32There's only very light winds. It looks increasingly light.
20:35The wind right now is not playing ball. And the later in the day it gets, the higher the stakes
20:40because it's looking more and more likely that we've got one race, one final shootout.
20:46In fact, racing is delayed and there is only one race maximising the pressure on all the contenders.
20:53This is maximum pressure off this start line. Who is prepared to risk the most for this world title?
20:59So it's all on on the start. Sled make their best start of the week. Closest to the right hand
21:03side is a drag race to the right.
21:05Trinity are solid building speed from the middle of the line. The World Championship leaders, Alpha Plus, a little bit
21:12too conservative.
21:12They don't have the best position. Sled gets stronger as their bow eases out in front. They go faster and
21:19they break into clear air.
21:20Super confident from Sled. Starting to the right of their rivals and definitely going to get to that game feature
21:26first.
21:26So at the first turning mark, it's Platoon, the three times world champions leading. Sled are second, Alkado in third,
21:33Trinity in fourth and Alpha Plus are in fifth.
21:37On the first downwind Sled and Trinity really looks strong and getting stronger all the time.
21:44Meantime, Alpha Plus are slow. They get into bad air from Paprik. It's looking really difficult for the team which
21:50were leading going into this race.
21:52Trinity round in front at the Leward Gate. That's a huge gain downwind.
21:56Trinity really staking their claim to this podium.
21:59Through the Leward Gate, it's actually the newcomers to the circuit this year through in first, second, Platoon, third are
22:05Sled.
22:06And Alpha Plus are way down in 15th. The dream of winning the World Championship might be over for the
22:12team from Hong Kong.
22:13The underdogs really struggling.
22:15Alpha Plus getting stuck in a pack and there is nowhere to go. It's not looking good for them right
22:20now.
22:20Through the finishing line, it's a big win for Trinity, the team from Sweden.
22:25Incredible considering it's only their first year on the circuit.
22:29Through second, opportunity of age from the three times world champions, staking a late claim to the podium.
22:35But coming through the line in third are Sled, securing their second world title.
22:40Sled are the World Champions 2026.
22:43And this is enough. They've done it. Sled are World Champions. Five years after the win in Palma, they are
22:50back on top of the world.
22:52Congratulations to Sled.
22:57Super, super, super happy. It's been a great week. We had some ups and downs, but we have been solid.
23:03And as always, we reacted very well to our problems. It feels that this team is getting stronger and stronger,
23:10as you can see.
23:11We never took too many risks. And the only risk we took was on a beautiful start.
23:20I think it's big for any team to win a World Championships, especially with such a tight regatta.
23:25I mean, it was five or six boats that went in today with the opportunity to win the event.
23:29And there was a lot of pressure on today. And we managed to just do a little bit better than
23:34some of the other teams.
23:35The late charge from the Swedes on Trinity Racing, rookies on the circuit, but winning the last two races gives
23:42them second place.
23:43Joachim Sundberg is crowned best owner driver at the World Championship.
23:47He finishes absolutely exhausted, but elated.
23:50It's been a long day, very warm. But also, we finished in the best possible way, winning the race, and
23:57finishing second in the Rolex World Championship. So, that's great.
24:01None of us can believe that this is happening. You know, to have our third race win in this early
24:06season, and to finish, you know, strong like we did here at this event.
24:11Fantastic. The guys are just over the moon.
24:13For the German team platoon aviation, it's too little, too late. We have to settle for third this time.
24:18That's all what we could achieve after a really bad day yesterday, and only one race today, and we had
24:23a gap of eight points. That's almost impossible. So, I'm happy with the result.
24:27For Alpha Plus having led into that final race, it's a big disappointment to even miss out on the podium.
24:33It's so tough in this fleet, and everyone pushes so hard. But, you know, if you came to us at
24:38the end of the first day and said we'd finish in fourth, we probably wouldn't believe you.
24:41So, we're disappointed that it didn't come together, but we're proud of how we sailed, and, you know, we can
24:47only look up from here.
24:48It's a mountain to climb, mate, and we're halfway up.
24:50The 2026 Rolex TP52 World Champions are sled. Takashi Okura's team finishing on 47 points.
24:58Second, Joachim Sundberg's Trinity Racing finishing on 49 points.
25:02And in third, a good result for platoon aviation, Harmuller Spurs' team finishing on 53 points.
25:09Grazie mille. Porto Cervo. Thank you. Over and out.
25:13This World Championship in Porto Cervo has been the most competitive ever with a record fleet.
25:18It's been so close because the winds have been very similar every day, quite light, flat water.
25:24Winning the world title in Costas Minalda, it's the second win in a row in the 2026 circuit for sled.
25:31Now the circuit heads to Lanzarote and the Canary Islands. Bigger winds there, big waves.
25:36Who can break sled's winning run?
25:40Yeah!