Three consecutive victories. That is the measure of American Magic Quantum Racing right now, and their triumph at Puerto Portals, the third regatta win in a row on the 2025 52 Super Series, made their dominance impossible to ignore. Doug DeVos' US-flagged campaign closed out a demanding week in the Bay of Palma with 38 points, finishing 12 clear of nearest rival Sled and underlining a consistency that sets them apart from every other team in the fleet.
Tactician Terry Hutchinson, strategist Victor Diaz de Leon, navigator Sara Stone, and helmsman Harry Melges IV worked through a week of punishing competition to convert average starts into a winning scoreline. Not a blowout. Grinding, precise, and hard-earned.
“WE DID NOT PUT OUR BEST FOOT FORWARD AT TIMES TODAY. BUT AFTER THE STARTS, WE SAILED REALLY WELL. IT IS A GOOD RESULT, AND ALWAYS SOMETHING WE CAN IMPROVE ON.”
The regatta opened not with American Magic in charge but with a genuine shock. Andy Soriano's Alegre, guided by Olympic gold medallist Paul Goodison on tactics, took Race 1 in confident style. Takashi Okura's Sled answered on Day 2 with textbook upwind authority, and American Magic sat in the mix looking quick but not yet decisive. The fleet was wide open, and several teams had credible claims on the overall lead.
Day 4 changed the picture. A marathon session of three races tested every crew's nerve, and it was Hutchinson and his team who kept theirs while others slipped. Alpha+, steered by Kiwi Nick Egnot-Johnson, put together a run of steady top-five results that briefly moved them into second overall. Alkedo Vitamina, Gladiator, and a resurgent Platoon Aviation each claimed race victories, reinforcing just how competitive the fleet had become across the board.
Through all of it, American Magic stayed in the hunt in every race and took full advantage when rivals stumbled. Staying out of trouble while capitalising on opportunity proved to be the combination that mattered most.
New Zealand sailors shaped a significant portion of the week's story. Egnot-Johnston drove Alpha+ to their first ever Super Series podium, the Hong Kong-flagged team finishing third overall on 54 points. With tactician Adrian Stead and navigator Ian Moore alongside him, the crew blended youthful energy with measured experience in a performance that drew real attention.
“THE TEAM IS REALLY GETTING TO GRIPS WITH THE BOAT AND THE CLASS. WE BOUNCED BACK AFTER SETBACKS AND EARNED THIS PODIUM. IT’S FANTASTIC.”
Don Cowie, trimming for Sled, was central to their second-place finish on 50 points. The Kiwi veteran summed up what it took to stay in contention across a week as competitive as this one.
“TO FINISH SECOND IS GREAT. WE’D LOVE BIG MISTRAL BREEZE IN PORTO CERVO, BUT FOR NOW WE’LL TAKE THIS RESULT.”
John Cutler and Hamish Pepper raced aboard Provezza, the Turkish team working through the mid-fleet pack to finish eighth overall on 70 points. Their week featured some of the tightest boat-on-boat racing of the regatta, and their presence gave New Zealand a strong thread running through the entire fleet.
The final day brought 10 to 12 knots of sea breeze, flat water, and the kind of relentless pressure the Bay of Palma delivers at its best. Platoon Aviation had endured a difficult midweek, suffering a collision and penalties that threatened to derail their campaign entirely. On the final day they bounced back with a race win and a second, their most convincing back-to-back results of the season so far. Owner-helm Harm Müller-Spreer did not hide his relief.
“FINALLY WE HAVE THE BOAT GOING. WE’VE MADE SO MANY CHANGES, AND TODAY IT CLICKED.”
Sled claimed a race win of their own on the final day, keeping the pressure on until the last possible moment. Alpha+ secured their podium with a close second in the finale, confirming that their week had been no fluke.
American Magic came over the start line early in Race 9, a penalty that could have unravelled a lesser team's composure. Instead they clawed their way back to fifth. Speed, tactical clarity, and an ability to stay composed when things go wrong proved to be the package no one else could match this week.
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Three straight regatta wins, Baiona, Cascais, and now Palma, represent a level of consistency that is reshaping the 2025 season. Hutchinson, though, is not treating it as a moment to ease off.
“WE WON HERE, YES, BUT THERE’S STILL ROOM TO BE BETTER. WE’RE ALWAYS CHASING THAT ONE PERCENT.”
Behind American Magic, Sled continue to deliver podium-level sailing with quiet reliability. Alpha+'s third place may prove to be a turning point in how they approach the rest of the series, a breakthrough rather than a one-off result. For the Kiwi sailors scattered through the fleet, the week offered both highlights and hard lessons, though their influence on proceedings was felt from the front of the fleet to the middle of the pack.
Puerto Portals once again earned its place as a cornerstone of the Super Series calendar. The Bay of Palma delivered steady breezes, tactical complexity, and a finish that stayed uncertain deep into the final day. A regatta remembered not only for who stood on top at the end, but for how fiercely every team competed for every point along the way.
