Provezza and Platoon will fight for the title of the 52 SUPER SERIES 2023 in Puerto Portals

The spectacular marina of Puerto Portals, in Mallorca, hosted the official presentation of the Puerto Portals 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week, fifth and final race of the season, which will decide from the 18th to 23rd of September the identity of the champion of the 52 SUPER SERIES 2023.

The event will feature eleven teams of eight nationalities, and presents an intense duel between Turkey's Provezza and Germany's Platoon, top contenders for the title after having shared the victories in the previous four events. It will be the eighth visit of the circuit to Puerto Portals, the most faithful venue in the history of the 52 SUPER SERIES.

The Puerto Portals 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week will serve as the grand finale of a season that began in May in Saint Tropez and visited Scarlino (Italy), Menorca and Barcelona before setting course for Puerto Portals, fixed venue of the circuit since 2015. Eleven teams of eight nationalities and four continents will compete in the waters of the Bay of Palma, driven by 150 crew members from more than 20 countries.

During the official presentation of the event, the general manager of Puerto Portals, Corinna Graf, said.

"We are proud that this regatta is being held here, in Mallorca and in Puerto Portals. It is a class that we are very fond of. They are the best sailors, many are Olympians, and to have them here is a source of pride".

Graf stressed the importance of the regatta being held in September as this fact helps to deseasonalize tourism outside the strongest summer months. Puerto Portals, as part of its Blue Marina sustainability project, will measure the emissions generated by the regatta in order to reduce its impact on the environment.

In his speech, Agustín Zulueta, general director of 52 SUPER SERIES, recalled that this will be the eighth consecutive visit of the circuit to Puerto Portals and wanted to highlight the quality of this venue and its importance within the circuit's program:

"Coming to Puerto Portals is always coming back to our home. This year, more than 600 people from all over the world will pass through here, attracted by the reputation of this marina and the great organization of this regatta. They will be future ambassadors of Mallorca for sure".

Maximum tension between Provezza and Platoon

On the sporting side, the Puerto Portals 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week will unfold one of the most exciting title clashes in the history of the 52 SUPER SERIES. Turkey's Provezza (leader and winner of two of the four events held this year) and Germany's Platoon (recently proclaimed TP52 world champion and winner of the last two races held) are the main contenders and will be the protagonists of an exciting duel for the 2023 crown. Both already know what it is to win in Puerto Portals: Provezza won in 2017 and Platoon lifted in the Mallorcan marina the title of world champion in 2019.
Ergin Imre's Provezza, helmed by John Cutler and with the tactics of Hamish Pepper, is 18 points ahead of the provisional lead, but the leader of the circuit will not have it easy. The German Platoon, armed and helmed by Harm Müller-Spreer, and with the tactics of the Italian ace Vasco Vascotto, is on the lookout after a spectacular progression from seventh place at the start of the season.

Nacho Postigo, Provezza's navigator, acknowledges that they are in good shape:

"We feel confident. It's a shame to have lost the world championship title, we had it in our pocket until the last race. But they didn't win by chance, they pushed hard, sailed well and won. And we would rather have left Barcelona with an 18-point lead and lost the world title than have the world title and a ten-point lead".

Winner of the last two events, and recently proclaimed TP52 world champion, Platoon is in great form. His tactician, Vasco Vascotto, confesses that the odds are stacked against him:

"Provezza has a big lead, but winning the world title has given us new strength and reminded us what we can do, that we can still do good things. And this circuit has consistently shown that no lead is safe, that you can never give anything up. In Platoon we will fight to the end, every race has gone to the last races of the last day, and I think this one will be the same. It will depend a lot on the weather conditions. It's still very hot in the Mediterranean and we'll see what effect it has."

The battle for third place is very close between defending champions Doug DeVos' Quantum Racing powered by American Magic and Tony Langley's Gladiator, separated by just one point after four events and 36 races.

Updates

The grand finale of the season will show interesting changes in several teams. Takashi Okura's American Sled (circuit and world champion in 2021) has Italian Francesco Bruni, helmsman of Luna Rossa in the America's Cup, back on the afterguard; Frenchman Jean Luc Petihuguenin's Paprec will have triple world match racing champion Pauline Courtois at the helm; and eighth-time round the world sailor Bouwe Bekking will take Alpha+ for the Hong Kong team's debut in the Bay of Palma.

The program of the Puerto Portals 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week starts on Monday, September 18th, with the official training day (not scoring). The distribution of points will take place in a maximum of ten races between Tuesday, September 19th and Saturday, September 23rd. On that day, Puerto Portals will host the awaited final awards ceremony where the absolute champion of the 52 SUPER SERIES 2023 will be crowned.