2026 Rolex Middle Sea Race: Black Jack 100, The Joy of Winning, the Passion to Return
For Remon Vos, Black Jack 100’s Monohull Line Honours victory at the 47th Rolex Middle Sea Race was another triumph in a race that has become a regular fixture in his sailing calendar. Yet, despite the familiarity of the course and the team's growing collection of offshore successes, the emotion of winning remains undiminished.
Black Jack 100, skippered by Tristan Le Brun, completed the 2026 edition of the 606-nautical-mile race in an elapsed time of two days, three hours and 51 minutes. Crossing the finish line in Marsamxett Harbour, home to the Royal Malta Yacht Club, at 15:51 CEST on Monday 19 October, the 100-footer delivered an outstanding performance, and a milestone for the boat, recording the fastest Rolex Middle Sea Race in the yacht's 21-year history.
"Winning line honours in this year’s Rolex Middle Sea Race is fantastic, and that joy is not really about the past or the future," said Vos. "This is just a unique experience with this boat and the team on board."
This year’s race has delivered a remarkable contrast in conditions for Black Jack 100. Picture perfect sailing characterised much of the opening two days, before the final open water legs south of Sicily delivered winds hitting 28 knots and a punchy, steep sea. Vos enjoyed both sides of the experience, although not necessarily in equal measure. "Towards the end it was pretty tough, honestly, it was primitive," he admitted, laughing about the difficulty of simply making a coffee or getting something to eat while the boat was crashing through huge waves.
And yet, this is precisely the experience that keeps bringing Vos back. "Well, I always think, why do I do this, I'm not going to ever do this again, but I've said this before, and I keep coming back." For Vos, the attraction goes well beyond the competition. "You're completely disconnected. You're away from everything. You're with the water, the wind. We had a beautiful moon, the stars, animals, dolphins, and we even had a bird on board for a while—a hitchhiker."
Equally important is the opportunity to share these experiences with an international crew spanning different generations and backgrounds. Vos spoke warmly of the friendships, professionalism and commitment aboard Black Jack 100. "It's inspirational to see a team like that work so well," he said. "It's a beautiful group of people with a lot of experience, young and old."
Measuring up
Skipper Tristan Le Brun was equally proud of the performance that had delivered victory. Within a few hours of exiting Grand Harbour, Black Jack 100 was into her stride building an advantage that grew substantially around the course. " We were straight into it, and we think we did a very good job overall. We didn't make any big mistakes," said Le Brun, who identified the opening reaching leg to Messina as one of the team's strongest performances. " We were at max-speed all the way to Messina. We got through the strait very, very quickly this year, full downwind. It was windy all the way through."
The checkpoint figures underline the performance. Just 12 minutes ahead of her closest rivals, Django 7X and Balthasar, at Capo Passero, Black Jack 100 had extended her advantage to more than 90 minutes at Messina. By Stromboli, the lead was approaching one hour and 40 minutes. The next significant gain came along Sicily's northern coast. Le Brun credited consistent boat speed, even when conditions became lighter. "The whole leg north of Sicily was very good, very consistent speed through the light. We were constantly doing 10 to 14 knots of boat speed. We were really sailing well."
By Favignana at the northwest corner of the course, Black Jack 100 had extended her advantage to almost three and a half hours, maintaining her momentum through the leg past Pantelleria and on to Lampedusa, before the final demanding beat back to Malta.
There were challenges. An awkward headsail change in rough conditions cost time, with the crew having to bear away to protect the rig. Le Brun, however, was satisfied that the team had extracted almost everything possible from the conditions. The achievement was especially satisfying given the yacht's history. Launched in 2005 and substantially modified over the years, Black Jack 100 has now bettered the yacht’s previous fastest Rolex Middle Sea Race passage of 54 hours, 52 minutes and 32 seconds, set in 2010 as Esimit Europa 2. "We are super proud of it," said Le Brun. "It's a big statement about our own performance and development of the boat, and how we use Black Jack."
Black Jack Looking ahead
Remon Vos is already contemplating another return for Black Jack 100 to Malta, with the race's 60th anniversary in 2028 particularly appealing. "We want to come back for the 60th anniversary. Let's try and win that. That would be nice!" For a man who repeatedly vows never to put himself through another offshore race, the attraction of the Rolex Middle Sea Race remains irresistible. And for Black Jack 100, another memorable chapter has been written in an extraordinary racing history.
