Fit to be Tied at Palma Melges 40 Grand Prix

Day three in Palma was, to say the least, the most intense yet of the event, if not the entire season. The battle continues between event leader Alessandro Rombelli's STIG with tactician Francesco Bruni in first place overall on countback, and his most major opponent, Japan's Yukihiro Ishida's SIKON with Manu Weiller on tactics sits in second with equal points.

Two additional races were held at the 2017 Melges 40 Grand Prix hosted by Real Club Nautico de Palma with Rombelli and Ishida grabbing a bullet each, leaving race fans and spectators on the edge of their seats for the start of racing on Saturday - the final Palma showdown.

Rombelli championed Race Six with a wire-to-wire performance to win. Ishida was hot on his heels for the duration of the heat followed closely by Valentin Zavadnikov's DYNAMIQ SYNERGY SAILING TEAM with Ed Baird serving as tactician.

For the final race of the day, Race Seven, Ishida delivered a relentless samurai stride to grab the lead, chased hard by Richard Goransson's INGA and tactician Cameron Appleton. In the end, Ishida earned a very important win while Rombelli suffered his worst finish yet on the circuit.

One thing is for certain, tomorrow's final day of competition will be a heated one. With a virtual tie for first place, it will be equally intense for the Palma Grand Prix Trophy hangs in the balance.

The Melges 40 Grand Prix is proudly supported by Helly Hansen, Garmin Marine, Barracuda Communication and North Sails.

FULL RESULTS (PRELIMINARY, After Seven Races)
1.) Alessandro Rombelli/Francesco Bruni; STIG; 1-3-3-2-1-1-[5/DNF] = 11
2.) Yukihiro Ishida/Manuel Weiller SIKON; [3]-2-1-3-2-2-1 = 11
3.) Richard Goransson/Cameron Appleton; INGA; [4]-1-4-1-3-4-2 = 15
4.) Valentin Zavadnikov/Ed Baird; DYNAMIQ SYNERGY SAILING TEAM; 2-4-2-4-4-3-3 = 18