The 2025 Rolex TP52 World Championship wrapped up in Cascais last week with Doug DeVos' American Magic Quantum Racing claiming a title won by the narrowest of margins. The US squad, which pairs veterans like Terry Hutchinson with 24-year-old helm Harry Melges IV and trailblazing navigator Sara Stone, secured their eighth world championship by a single point over a resurgent Paprec. Loïck Peyron's French crew kept the heat on right to the final leg of the deciding race, while Takashi Okura's Sled completed the podium. Now, with Cascais behind them, the TP52 fleet gathers for the fourth stop of the five-regatta season at Puerto Portals 52 SUPER SERIES 2025.
The Bay of Palma needs little introduction to this fleet. Since 2015, Puerto Portals has featured on the calendar every year, and Mallorca's upscale marina has developed a genuine familiarity for crews who return to its reliable sea breeze season after season. Where Cascais dealt out gusty Atlantic conditions, Palma tends toward steadier sailing that rewards precision over raw boat speed. From 18 to 23 August, twelve boats representing nine nations will contest the regatta, each with their own reasons to push hard.
American Magic Quantum Racing carry the most obvious motivation: they have won the last two regattas and arrive in Mallorca sitting 29 points clear at the top of the overall standings. Strategist Victor Diaz de Leon is not getting ahead of himself, though.
"There are 12 boats out there and so the way I see it our odds of winning are 1 in 12 — no better than that," Diaz de Leon says. "I'm focused on improving my communications with Terry and being the team-mate he needs me to be. I really like it on the Bay of Palma. Yes, it can be a little one-sided and that can make it hard to get back through the fleet, but it really puts the emphasis on getting a good start and the first shift right."
Tony Langley's Gladiator arrive as defending Puerto Portals champions, though without the burden of chasing the overall series title. Trimmer Simon Fry suggests that freedom might actually sharpen their focus.
"If we sail as well as we did in Portals last year, as well as we did in Saint Tropez, we will be in the mix," Fry says. "Portals is not a gear-changing race track — you can often set the boat up for the week and that suits us. A particular strength we have is how we set up the rig for particular breezes, and not having done Baiona means we come in with a bunch of new sails in the range needed for Palma."
Fry also names Platoon Aviation, Alegre and Provezza as boats to watch. Alegre has made a notable crew change, bringing in 2008 Olympic gold medallist Paul Goodison as tactician alongside a series of technical refinements. Project manager Sebastian Tenghage describes Goodison's arrival as bringing "a fresh set of eyes and new energy", with the team having worked on its setup for the lighter conditions Palma may well provide.
Provezza has been chasing a turnaround following a difficult Cascais. Navigator Nacho Postigo is a Palma resident who knows the Bay well, and he senses opportunity in how closely matched the current fleet has become.
"We are always so welcome at Portals, we feel at home," Postigo says. "The fleet is so close in terms of speeds — I've never seen it so even. Even new teams are doing well. It is completely open, which can be good for us."
Platoon Aviation have their own strong Puerto Portals record, having finished runners-up there in 2015 and taken outright victory in 2019. Owner-driver Harm Müller-Spreer is back on the helm with Jordi Calafat returning as strategist, and runner trimmer Victor Mariño says the squad is eager to put a difficult run behind them.
"Puerto Portals has always been a good venue for Platoon," Mariño says. "We're really looking forward to it, because after a bad start to the season and some bad luck in the World Championship, we're keen to get back into it."
Two boats that sat out Cascais also rejoin the fleet in Mallorca. The Brazilian Crioula and France's Teasing Machine both return to add further depth to the competition, while Provezza has been completing preparation work in Valencia ahead of the event.
The Puerto Portals roll of honour illustrates just how unpredictable this venue can be. Gladiator won in 2024, Phoenix took back-to-back victories in 2022 and 2023, Sled won in 2021, Platoon in 2019, Provezza in 2017, and Quantum Racing in 2016 and 2018. That spread of winners across multiple campaigns and nationalities backs up what Postigo and others are saying: no single team has this venue locked down.
The standings heading into Puerto Portals, after three events:
American Magic Quantum Racing, USA — 93
Sled, USA — 122
Paprec, FRA — 129.5
Alkedo Vitamina, ITA — 138
Platoon Aviation, GER — 143
Vayu, THA — 160
Alpha+, HKG — 160.5
Alegre, GBR — 163
Provezza, TUR — 175
Phoenix, RSA — 177
Gladiator, GBR — 195
Teasing Machine, FRA — 241
Crioula, BRA — 268
The official practice race takes place on Monday 18 August, with points racing running from Tuesday 19 through to Saturday 23 August.
