January’s season opener to the 2025 World Match Racing Tour season at the inaugural Macao Match Cup was a masterclass in match racing from Great Britain’s Ian Williams and his Pindar by Manuport Logistics team of Gerry Mitchell, Richard Sydenham and Jon Gundersen.
After five days of intense racing, Williams and crew secured the first Macao Match Cup title defeating New Zealand’s Nick Egnot-Johnson 3-1 in the final. USA’s Chris Poole’s Riptide Racing team finished third after defeating Gavin Brady/ True Blue Racing 2-0 in the Petit-final.
Fresh from their 2024 WMRT Final win in Shenzhen which crowned Williams as eight-time match racing world champion, it was a quick turn-around for the 12 teams to head to Macao for the inaugural WMRT Macao Match Cup from 8-12 January, hosted as part of the annual MGM International Macao Regatta.
As is the unique format of the World Match Racing Tour, teams had just a few hours to practise in the event-supplied Far East 28 match racing boats before heading into racing on the Macao course in front of the impressive MGM Casino.
Joining Williams in the skipper line-up for the event was current #1 world ranked match racer Chris Poole from the USA and his Riptide Racing team, as well as 2022 Match Racing World Champion Nick Egnot-Johnson/ Knots Racing from New Zealand. Former America’s Cup skipper Gavin Brady also joined the entry list with his True Blue USA Racing team.
World #1 ranked women’s match racer Pauline Courtois from France was one of four French teams competing at the event with her all-female Match in Pink Normandy Elite Team, recently crowned 2024 Women’s Match Racing World Champions in Jeddah in December. Fellow French skippers Tom Foucher, Maxime Mesnil and Martin Allix made up the strong contingent of French teams.
24 year old Oscar Engström from Sweden also joined the event with his Team Liros. Engström was recently helm for the Swedish Challenge for the Youth America’s Cup in Barcelona last summer. Completing the line-up was Australia’s Zac West (Sail+Racing), Max Paul (Bombora Racing) and Italy’s Rocco Attili (RBYS Racing).
Daily Highlights
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Image Gallery
For full Event Gallery of the 2025 Macao Match Cup, visit the WMRT Image Gallery
ABOUT WORLD MATCH RACING TOUR
Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The WMRT is awarded ‘Special Event’ status by the sport’s world governing body –World Sailing – and the winner of the WMRT each year is crowned World Sailing Match Racing World Champion. Since 2000, theWorld Match Racing Tour and its events have awarded over USD24million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors. www.wmrt.com