Top gun racing Tita-Rubagotti-Pilati wins, Young Azzurra second-placed

Gargnano, Lake Garda, Italy, August 19th, 2020 – Never give up, even if you’re defeated and end up in the lower part of the table, even if at the beginning of the crucial race of selection you capsize, even if in the final your principal opponent starts like a rocket.

Never give up especially if you’re Ruggero Tita, Francesco Rubagotti or Matteo Pilati and you name your team – with the right irony – “Top Gun Racing”, because at the end you win with honor the Persico 69F Revolution FCL.

Three crucial races in one day, this morning, with an amazing wind from North: Top Gun Racing needed two flight (one of them started with a capsize), both finished with the second place behind Young Azzurra, to get to the final. Waiting for them, fresh and rested, Zeta Racing and Dutch Sail Janssen de Jong, qualified yesterday thanks to a direct path in the upper part of the table. 

At the start the Dutch, favorite after winning the first Revolution last week, got a great advantage but then completely lost it with the wrong decision to go left after the first buoy. Top Gun Racing gybed after the first buoy and it was the first one to get the best gusts in the stern, increasing the speed until they got the lead and defending until the finish line the gap built with great determination. 

What to say about Young Azzurra? Even here, never give up: the Italian challenge for the Youth America’s Cup was officially announced by Yacht Club Costa Smeralda just one week ago and the chosen team went immediately on water, they lose the first race in Day 1 but they never gave up until they won two races today and finishing second-placed in the final, that position shows how much you’re promising, with great margins and potential, and it also gives you the starting points to improve. When the apprentice surpasses master – coach Zennaro, third-placed with his Zeta Racing - the competition, enthusiasm, and revenge can only increase.

Returning to the winners: “We had a lot of fun – said the tireless Ruggero Tita – they were beautiful races and the satisfaction today is great. Now we stay friends but we’ll go on separate ways”. Tita jokes, but the racing season divides the team: “We all do different things, and it’s for this it’s great to meet on this boat; each of us puts their skills and it’s the perfect mix of ingredients”. Suitcase already ready: Tita will continue the Olympic Campaign, Pilati will be the coach in 49er FX and Rubagotti will continue to contribute to the success of Persico 69F and to race offshore.

For Young Azzurra the program is strictly drawn up: “Great satisfaction today - says Ettore Botticini - after losing the first race we learned to do the simple things and to focus on the essential things: we freed ourselves from pressure and the emotion to start a project so big and important. We focused on the tactic and it got better and better. The team works very well, with Francesca Bergamo at the mainsail and Federico Colannino controlling the foil we started to create automation, we’re in the game. We just have to train, already from next week, because the road just started”.

The young Francesca Bergamo has done both the revolution in different roles: “Last week I was at the helm and in Young Azzurra I was at the mainsail, two very different roles but one thing remains the same: this boat is so cool”.

With the results of today, the leaderboard overall is completed, which takes into account the placings combined of the participation to both the Revolution; the victory goes to Dutch Sail Janssen de Jong, followed by RHKYC Team Agiplast and FP Sailing.

Revolution finished and arrives the comment of the organizers, assigned to Dede De Luca: “What the Revolution taught us is that these boats and this formula reward the tenacity. We saw continuous changes in the board, surpasses, capsizes, protest: the victory was assigned to who has always believed in it until the end, who never gave up, who took the opportunity to catch up. And I really like this, because our formula has to put on a show, entertain the competitors keeping everyone in the game until the end. Thanks to the wind from north we learned that these boats are solid and safe: in training, we went out with 25 knots and waves, and everything has worked. The teams are used to go faster than 20 knots, the boat is solid and reliable and the feedback we get from water is more than positive”.

In the following days, the Persico 69F will be used for a series of training by the teams that compete in the Youth America’s Cup and then they will be at the start line in Gorla Trophy and in “100 Foils”, the version for flying boats of the classic Centomiglia. Then they will be back with Persico 69F Cup, in Malcesine, for the second of four Grand Prix in program for the middle of September.