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| MATEUSZ KUSZNIEREWICZ/BRUNO PRADA CREATE BACARDI CUP HISTORY AS FIRST SAME TEAM PARTNERSHIP TO CLAIM THREE BACK-TO-BACK VICTORIES FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (March 12, 2022) – The weather front that was expected to sweep through Biscayne Bay after racing on Saturday, March 12, arrived early, with the strong wind forcing racing to be cancelled for all classes at 0900 hours this morning. Each day the weather has unfolded as per the forecast, so with 30+ knots of breeze expected the different course PROs took their decision based on each class and were unanimous to keep safe racing conditions and cancel all racing. Superb winds for the preceding days delivered five neck and neck races for the Star Class, with an equally intense six race series for the J/70, Melges 24, Viper 640, VX One, and twelve races for the 69F. The overnight scoreboards are final and class podiums decided. The Bacardi Cup and Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta wrapped up in fine style with the awards presentation at Shake-A-Leg Miami, accompanied by Bacardi rum and hospitality “Thank you to the sailors, thank you to the host clubs, thank you to our volunteers on the water and ashore, and thank you to everyone who has been following this fantastic event from around the world,” expressed Eddie Cutillas of Bacardi USA. “The Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta supports our vision of the world’s best sailors racing together and leaves the best possible imprint; a turnout of inspirational sailors, exceptional racing and after parties that make sure the fun continues long after the finish line. “Our regatta is an ‘invitational’ in respect of the ‘invited’ one-design classes participating, but sailors from around the world need no invitation to join us here on Biscayne Bay in our annual celebration of sailing – you are all welcome. Save the date for 2023.” The tradition of camaraderie and high-level competition are embedded in the Bacardi Cup and Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta, guaranteeing the world’s sailors want to compete. 2022 featured more than 600 sailors, with the crew line-up from over 22 nations Save the date for next year at the 96th Bacardi Cup and Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta taking place March 5-11, 2023.  95th Bacardi Cup winners – Mateusz Kusznierewicz/Bruno PradaStar ClassFor nearly one century, the Bacardi Cup has continued to attract the world’s top sailors and fans with its popularity and intrigue. In 2022, the Bacardi Cup celebrated its 95th anniversary on Biscayne Bay, its home for the past 61 years. In the fifty-eight-boat line-up were eleven previous Bacardi Cup winners and twelve World Champions – competition doesn’t get tougher than that. The stars of the show were unequivocally Mateusz Kusznierewicz (POL) and Bruno Prada (BRA), who showed themselves as most prepared for the physicality, intensity and tactics of racing in waves and a breeze which never dropped below 12 knots. Many sailors have won multiple Bacardi Cup titles – the legendary Ding Schoonmaker scooped eight victories, seven to Mark Reynolds, and some renowned partnerships have two wins – but Bacardi Cup history is written for Kusznierewicz/Prada who go down as the first same team partnership to win three back-to-back titles. Second overall to Eric Doyle/Payson Infelise (USA) who were the 2019 Bacardi Cup winners, and third to Italy’s Diego Negri/Sergio Lambertenghi who won in 2018, with a tiebreak for 4th and 5th. Although victory was secure, Kusznierewicz/Prada had every intention of competing in the final race, before the excessive winds scuppered plans. “Firstly, we love this sport,” said Kusznierewicz this morning. “Secondly, what could I do today? Golf, shopping, staying on shore, going to the restaurant – no, not my style. I love sailing and I think today maybe upwinds are not going to be such great fun, because of the strong winds and physical work, but reaching is going to be awesome. We also have a lot of respect, and we want to show this respect to the regatta organizers and the other sailors.” With racing cancelled Kusznierewicz/Prada embraced their victory, celebrated their remarkable achievement and prepared to sip Bacardi rum from the iconic Bacardi Cup and Tito Bacardi Cup trophies  95th Bacardi Cup winners – Mateusz Kusznierewicz/Bruno Prada“I am not sure if we are the fastest, but we are the most consistent team,” said Prada. “I think the advantage is we have been sailing for a couple of years together and we have a good chemistry sailing together.” Kusznierewicz added, “We did it again, we are very happy, very satisfied. This week was great from many perspectives. It wasn’t easy, it was hard actually, physically and we had to focus a lot on racing, but we liked it. After two years of pandemic, not everyone could show up in previous years, but this year it’s impressive,” he said, in reference to the twelve Star World Champions competing. “So, it is an even bigger pleasure for us to win this regatta and for the third time in a row, it is kind of history in the books. For me, it is a great honour to be here. To win it, wow I am in the skies!” Prada continued,“I feel super happy. Every Championship we win in the Star Class, especially Bacardi Cup, Europeans and the Worlds, are special events, so we need to be very proud of ourselves and enjoy the victory. We are in the top 5 fastest boats and, in the end, we proved that our sailing was better than the others.” On what’s next, Prada continued, “We are planning to sail the Worlds in Marblehead and it will be our next regatta together. Meanwhile I am going to sail a couple of regattas with Augie Diaz, to keep in shape and arrive at the Worlds on a high level.” “The week was great,” reflected 2nd placed Eric Doyle.“It was epic Miami conditions, so much fun, great fleet, great sailing, great battles with everyone. It is the best sailing you can do anywhere I think. We changed boats this year and it took a little bit getting adjusted to that, especially downwind. We really wanted to win, and we made a few mistakes that cost us some points, but clearly Mateusz and Bruno are the gold standard right now.” Prizes were presented to the top five boats, and also to winners in the age divisions: Master (skippers aged 50 through 59) – Eric Doyle/Payson Infelise Grand Master (skippers aged 60+) – Paul Cayard/Frithjof KleenExalted Grand Master (skippers aged 70+) – Stefan Lehnert/Marc Pickel In 6th overall, Jack Jennings (USA) and Pedro Trouche (BRA) were awarded The Tammy Rubin Rice Trophy, a well-deserved accolade for the pair’s standout performance, including two race wins. The Star Class sailors will renew their on-water rivalry at the 100th anniversary of the Star Class World Championships in Marblehead, USA from September 8-17, 2022, which is undoubtedly going to draw a global line-up for this remarkable celebration. Final Top 5 Results 1. Mateusz Kusznierewicz/Bruno Prada (POL 8548) – 6 pts 2. Eric Doyle/Payson Infelise (USA 8423) – 12 pts 3. Diego Negri/Sergio Lambertenghi (ITA 8567) – 14 pts 4. Peter O’Leary/Robert O’Leary (IRL 8465) – 21 pts 5. Eivind Melleby/Joshua Revkin (NOR 8543) – 21 pts |