Admiral's Cup 2025: Team Django claims podium finish in a high-performance campaign
by Django Team 30 Jul 15:27 UTC
Admiral's Cup 2025: Team Django claims podium finish © Mark Lloyd / Lloyd Images
The 2025 edition of the Admiral's Cup has officially come to an end today, marking its long-awaited return to the racing calendar after more than twenty years.
Team Django can proudly look back on its third-place overall finish, a solid performance resulting from a well-structured campaign. The Italian team, representing the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and led by Giovanni Lombardi Stronati, faced off against some of the world's top offshore sailors in one of the most complete and challenging team regattas in international sailing.
With the wallyrocket51 Django in Admiral Class 1 and the JPK 1180 Django in Admiral Class 2, the team closed in third place overall, behind Yacht Club de Monaco (first) and Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club (second). As tradition dictates, the celebrated Rolex Fastnet Race played a decisive role, 695 miles across the English Channel and Celtic Sea, finishing in Cherbourg.
In unusually light and variable conditions for the area, including stretches of calm, Team Django adapted with grit and tactical intelligence. The JPK took an excellent third place in its class after leading the corrected time rankings at several points and missing out on second place by only 14 minutes, a performance that confirmed the boat's strong offshore capabilities.
The wallyrocket51 finished eighth in the Rolex Fastnet Race and third in Class 1 in the Admiral's Cup overall standings, losing some ground during the long upwind leg to Fastnet Rock. Despite a solid comeback on the downwind stretch to Cherbourg, the conditions didn't allow the Italian boat to fully capitalize on its potential.
"The Admiral's Cup is a dream for every sailor. To take part in the first edition after more than two decades and step onto the podium, among top-tier teams with Olympic, oceanic, and America's Cup-level sailors, is a source of great satisfaction. I want to thank the entire team for their dedication and spirit throughout this long campaign", said Giovanni Lombardi Stronati, owner and team leader of Team Django.
Guillermo Parada, strategist aboard the wallyrocket51, described the Fastnet as follows: "It was quite a challenging race, not the toughest, but as expected, a long windward-leeward course. In the first half of the upwind, we struggled a bit against the faster boats. We knew we had to stay as close as possible to have a shot downwind. The thing is, halfway through the downwind, we hit a major thunder squall. It was a complete stop, a real parking lot, and the whole fleet compressed. From there, we basically had to restart. We were in a difficult position and battled until the final moments with Jolt and Beau Geste, who were our direct rivals in the Admiral's Cup 1 standings. In the end, we lost to Jolt by just 50 seconds in corrected time and beat Beau Geste by around 1 minute and 30. It turned out to be a 700-mile match race against them. It was tough, demanding, fun... a shame we didn't quite make it in the end, but finishing third in our class is definitely not a result to complain about. We did a great job, and we should be proud".
Tactician Vasco Vascotto added: "It was a unique experience for me, for the crew, for Giovanni, and for everyone involved in the project, ashore and at sea, everyone, truly everyone. I must say, it was even a surprise for us. We had a fantastic week: we won the Channel Race and the inshore races, in what was the true baptism of fire for this boat. We took on the Fastnet with a boat that no one thought would be suitable. We're happy, proud, and satisfied with the result. If you're not happy with a podium...".
"It was a very long upwind to the rock, with a mix of very different conditions. At the start, we had light breeze, then stronger winds outside the Solent. After two and a half days, we finally reached the Fastnet Rock and from there started a long downwind and reaching leg. We fought for two days with the other JPKs, which were very strong downwind with their spinnaker poles. It was tough—on the first night we had 18-24 knots and rain, pitch black. Steering was difficult with waves from every direction; it was hard to keep control. Finally, we reached the tidal gate, but unfortunately we hit it with the current against us. That had a huge impact on the final result, we could have finished three hours earlier without that tide. But that's part of the game. We're still happy with how we finished and the spirit onboard. Ten of us lived together for four days on a small boat, but everything went perfectly," said Michele Ivaldi, tactician and skipper of Django JPK.
Andrea Recordati, Commodore of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, commented: "On behalf of the YCCS, I wish to express our warmest congratulations to our member Giovanni Lombardi Stronati and his outstanding Team Django for the prestigious third place at the Admiral's Cup, one of the most challenging and competitive regattas internationally. It is a source of great pride to see how passion, determination, and professionalism have contributed to this major achievement, pursued with commitment, teamwork, and that authentic sense of joy that gives true meaning to sailing and sport. The result reflects a perfect balance between competitiveness and the pleasure of sailing and stands as an example for us all. A success that brings prestige to our Club and reinforces our sense of belonging to the sailing community".
The final outcome is that of a cohesive and well-prepared team that delivered at the highest level across all phases of the program: inshore races, coastal races, and offshore challenges. A podium finish that confirms the strength of the Django project and reignites Italy's offshore sailing ambitions on the international stage.
Full results: sailracehq.com