After over 30 hours of racing at speeds approaching 40 knots, MOD70 Zoulou (FRA) sailed by Erik Maris, won multihull line honours by just 11 seconds. Giovanni Soldini’s Multi70 Maserati (ITA) endured the pain of coming second again in a photo finish. Zoulou crew includes Maris, Ned Collier Wakefield, Thierry Fouchier, Loick Peyron, Bruno Jeanjean, Bruno Mourniac, and Thomas Le Breton.
“That was an incredible race with such a close finish,” said Maris. “We were ahead until midnight on the first day, but we lost Maserati when they were very fast on their foils going down to Guadeloupe. Maserati sailed really well on the second day but on the penultimate leg (Barbuda to Redonda) they lost themselves under a cloud. We came back together and the lead changed many times on the leg to Redonda. The last leg was really tough, but we managed to pass them on the one that counts. It was as close as it gets: an incredible finish and great fun.”
