The 34 edition of the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup was fired with a spectacular day of competition after a frustrating week of extreme weather conditions on the Esmeralda Coast that reduced the program planned... the Leopard 3 of Joost Schuijff, with the Spanish Guillermo Altadill and Pablo Torrado on board, was proclaimed world champion in the first edition of the Rolex IMA Maxi 1 World Championship

The Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup is one of the most impressive events of the international nautical calendar and synonymous with excellence. The race and its organizer, the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, have been Rolex partners since the mid-1980s.

Three of the five days of race were lost because of the extreme winds, and had to wait for the final day to enjoy perfect conditions on the Esmeralda Coast. The Dutch Farr 100 Leopard 3 of Joost Schuijff was awarded the first Rolex IMA Maxi 1 World Championship, the IRC72 Proteus of Americans George and Christina Sakellaris was imposed in Maxi 2, the Millius 65 Oscar 3 of Italian Aldo Parisotto in Maxi 3 and the Vallicelli 78 H2O of Italian also Riccardo di Michele in Maxi 4.

Among the imposing Supermaxi, little separates in age the Moat and Sveabotados in 2016 and 2017 respectively, but there is a world of difference in design and style between the Swan 115 of 35 meters (115 feet) and the J Class of 43.6 meters (143 feet). In the end, the victory corresponded to the precious Svea by winning the last race of the series. In the Multihull category, Gaetana's victory was more forceful.