{"id":209,"date":"2025-07-28T14:43:05","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T14:43:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/?p=209"},"modified":"2025-07-28T14:43:05","modified_gmt":"2025-07-28T14:43:05","slug":"rolex-fastnet-race-svr-lazartigue-first-to-finish-after-35-knot-run-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/?p=209","title":{"rendered":"Rolex Fastnet Race: SVR-Lazartigue first to finish after 35-knot run home"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Ultime SVR-Lazartigue is first to finish in the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race, winning multihull line honours after a blistering run back from the Fastnet Rock. We catch up with Tom Laperche, Armel Le Cl\u00e9ac’h, Pete Burling and Sam Goodchild at the finish
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"
SVR Lazartigue arrival into Cherbourg at the Finish of the 2025 Rolex Fastnet race<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The first boat to finish the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race<\/a> is the Ultime<\/a>\u00a0SVR-Lazartigue<\/em><\/a>, which won multihull line honours this morning, Monday 28 July, crossing the line at 0438 (BST) this morning after 1 day, 17 hours, 18 minutes and 4 seconds of racing.<\/p>\n

Less than hour later, at 0523, Banque Populaire XI<\/em><\/a>, skippered by Armel Le Cl\u00e9ac\u2019h, finished in second.<\/p>\n

On the dock in Cherbourg, the two crews were visibly drained, the race having been both mentally taxing and physically demanding for the six and seven-man teams on the 100ft trimarans.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think all of us are quite tired from grinding with a lot of manoeuvres,\u201d said Kiwi America\u2019s Cup helmsman Pete Burling, who had joined SVR-Lazartigue<\/em> for the race, with typical understatement.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything is obviously quite big as well. It takes a lot of work, but it was an awesome ride.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\n

SVR Lazartigue celebrate arriving into Cherbourg as multihull line honours winners in the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race. Photo: Paul Wyeth\/RORC<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

SVR-Lazartigue Fastnet double winner<\/h2>\n

For SVR-Lazartigue<\/em> this is an impressive back-to-back victory, having also taken line honours in 2023.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s team was made up of co-skippers Tom Laperche and Franck Cammas, sailing with Am\u00e9lie Grassi, Antoine Gautier, Emilien Lavigne, as well as Burling.<\/p>\n

In 2023 the blue foiling trimaran set a new course record of 1 day, 8 hours, 38 minutes, and 27 seconds. This year conditions were considerably slower, and even the foiling Ultimes were \u2013 relatively speaking at least \u2013 crawling upwind at sub-10 knots on the approach to the Fastnet Rock.<\/p>\n

However, once the Ultimes rounded the Fastnet Rock \u2013 SVR-Lazartigue<\/em> at 1622 (BST) on Sunday 27 July, second-placed Banque Populaire XI<\/em> just over an hour later \u2013 they were able to hit warp speed, immediately bearing away at speeds of 35-37 knots.<\/p>\n

\"\"\n

SVR Lazartigue skipper Tom Laperche talks to the media in Cherbourg at the finish of the Rolex Fastnet Race 2025. Photo: Paul Wyeth\/RORC<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

First home in record fleet<\/h2>\n

Four Ultime trimarans were among the 444 boats which made up a record sized fleet to start the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race on Saturday, 26 July.<\/p>\n

With a larger than ever fleet, and a start area packed with spectator craft, negotiating a safe exit of the Solent was critical.<\/p>\n

\u201cFranck and Tom did a really good job getting us to the start line nicely. We didn\u2019t have too many boats to interact with on the way out to Solent, but a lot of tacks,\u201d explained Burling.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything takes a lot of energy to do. We peeled from J1 to J2 to make the tacks a little bit easier and then had a really good trip out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t count, but we did lots of manoeuvres,\u201d recalls Laperche. \u201cA lot of tacks, lots of board up, board down, foils, sail changes too.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the Solent, we only have, I don\u2019t know, seven minutes between two tacks. We are six onboard and with a very good crew, so it was okay. But one tack is at least 10 minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\n

First boat home in the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race, the Ultime SVR Lazartigue, rounds the Fastnet Rock. Photo: Kurt Arrigo\/Rolex<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

2025 Fastnet Multihull winner<\/h2>\n

SVR-Lazartigue<\/em> got the best start of the giant multihulls, though it was the smaller MOD70 Argo<\/em> who initially led out past the Needles. Approaching Lyme Bay on the first evening, by taking a more inshore line SVR Lazartigue<\/em> claimed the advantage, didn\u2019t relinquish it.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe took a good decision to go to the shore, to go close to the England Coast,\u201d explained Laperche. \u201cSo we managed to cross on starboard with the north-west wind in front of [Banque Populaire].<\/p>\n

\u201cWe took a small advantage at this time and after that we managed to stay in front. It was difficult because for the longer [run] coming back from Fastnet to Scillies, the wind was better for them, stronger behind. So they came back, they reduced the gap.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the TSS (Traffic Separation Scheme) at the Scilly Isles, the Ultime fleet headed north, sailing east of the rhumb-line in order to play the angles for optimum speed, before the final upwind approach to the Fastnet Rock.<\/p>\n

After flying around the Rock in a building north-westerly, with flat seas, yesterday afternoon the leading multihulls again able to speed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe trip back, really showed what these boats can do. The average speed would have been 30, 35 knots, something like that. Yeah, it was really good fun and cool,\u201d said Burling.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had between 15 to 20 knots, very flat water \u2013 like we don\u2019t see every day. And the boat flying at 35 knots!\u201d commented Laperche.<\/p>\n

\"\"\n

Second boat home in the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race was Banque Populaire XI. Photo: Nicolas Touz\u00e9\/RORC<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Second boat home<\/h2>\n

Second placed Banque Populaire XI<\/em>, skippered by Armel Le Cl\u00e9ac\u2019h, chased hard \u2013 splitting away from SVR-Lazartigue<\/em> to round to the north of Alderney on the final approach to the finish.\u00a0 But in the end, Banque Populaire XI<\/em> finished 45 minutes behind.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter a light wind start in the Solent \u2013 with way too many boats around for these things! \u2013 we managed to get out unscathed,\u201d said Sam Goodhild, who\u2019d joined the Banque Populaire XI<\/em> crew for the race.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then as we left the Solent, I did my first upwind flight, going 30 knots upwind at 50 true, which I didn\u2019t think was actually possible!<\/p>\n

\u201cThen we made the big mistake of the race. After Portland, we went offshore and paid hard to the boats that were inshore and basically played catch up from there on in. We had light winds all the way across Celtic Sea with some nasty clouds stopping us. And then a lovely run all the way home going 35 knots average since the Rock.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cThe run back was great. I was driving last night when the sun was going down. They\u2019re just amazing boats to drive when you get them all locked in and going \u2013 it takes a lot of winding to get there! \u2013 but once you\u2019re there, it\u2019s good fun and you\u2019re going 35 plus knots downwind. I think we were over 40 at one stage on a reach.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, a good race. Good fun. A shame we lost so much in Lyme Bay, but that\u2019s the game. And well done to SVR<\/em>,\u201d Goodchild added.<\/p>\n

Third was Actual Ultim 4<\/em>, with Sodebo<\/em> fourth to cross the finish line.<\/p>\n

The post Rolex Fastnet Race: SVR-Lazartigue first to finish after 35-knot run home<\/a> appeared first on Yachting World<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Ultime SVR-Lazartigue is first to finish in the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race, winning multihull line honours after a blistering run back from the Fastnet Rock. We catch up with Tom Laperche, Armel Le Cl\u00e9ac’h, Pete Burling and Sam Goodchild at the finish SVR Lazartigue arrival into Cherbourg at the Finish of the 2025 Rolex…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":210,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=209"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/210"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=209"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=209"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yachtersworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=209"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}