Allegra makes history as the Multihull Cup celebrates ten years of speed, competition and a very different kind of regatta

There are faster boats. There are bigger regattas. There are events with larger fleets. But after ten years at Porto Adriano, the Multihull Cup has developed an identity all of its own.

The 2026 edition brought together five different high-performance multihulls for three days of racing off Mallorca, from 25–27 September. On the water, the competition was intense. Ashore, owners and crews shared the same dock, the same prize-givings and the same parties. For some, this was familiar territory. For others, it was their first taste of racing in this fleet.

Adrian Keller’s Irens 84 Allegra emerged as overall winner, claiming a record fourth Multihull Cup title. The team also became the first in the event’s history to defend the trophy successfully.

Zachary Plavsic’s Morelli & Melvin 65 Gaea finished second, one point ahead of Irvine Laidlaw’s VPLP Custom 80 Highland Fling XVIII. Andrew and Anne Nisbet’s Gunboat 72 Layla and the 60-foot Frers-designed Ocean Explorer Cool Beauty II completed the fleet. Each represented a different interpretation of the performance-cruising multihull. That diversity is precisely the point.

Three days around Mallorca

Race Day 1, sponsored by Gunboat, began with an 18.5-mile coastal course. In light Mediterranean conditions, finding pressure was as important as finding the shortest route. Highland Fling XVIII took line honours and victory after ORCmh correction. Allegra finished second, while Gaea took third after another close battle with Layla.

Saturday brought a complete change of character. At the request of the owners, racing moved into the Bay of Palma for the second day of racing sponsored by GT Rigging. After waiting for Palma’s sea breeze to establish itself, the fleet completed two windward-leeward races. Allegra won both.

In the first, Gaea finished second on corrected time, with Highland Fling XVIII only eight seconds behind and Layla another six seconds back. Second to fourth were separated by just 14 seconds. The second race brought a more established sea breeze and another victory for Allegra, setting up the final-day showdown.

Sunday’s North Sails Race Day provided another test. The race team waited for conditions before starting a short windward-leeward race in 7–8.5 knots. Highland Fling XVIII was first on the water but was subsequently disqualified following a protest by Gaea.

After ORCmh correction, Allegra took her third race win of the regatta, with Gaea just 13 seconds behind on corrected time and Layla third. The result gave Allegra the title, with Gaea securing second overall by a single point from Highland Fling XVIII.

For Inés Cabrer and the race team, the weekend required flexibility and patience. Each day brought a different challenge, from Friday’s coastal race to Saturday’s Bay of Palma courses and Sunday’s light-wind contest. Ashore, regatta manager Claire Tibbott and her team coordinated the event and its social programme.

Competitive racing, family spirit

The Multihull Cup began because there were not enough opportunities for these boats to race against each other. “When we started, there were few multihulls and there were no events,” explained founder and Allegra owner Adrian Keller. “So the only chance we got to race against each other was by doing it ourselves.”

The concept has remained straightforward: create serious competition for performance multihulls while building an event around the owners and crews who sail them.

For Allegra captain and regatta organiser Rob Grimm, that shared interest is fundamental. “It’s special because it is just for multihulls,” he explained. “It’s still quite a small community, so everyone really knows each other well. There’s mixing between boats occasionally, so it’s more a family.”

That family is becoming increasingly competitive. Grimm points out that the Multihull Cup may once have resembled “gentlemen’s racing”, but the standard has moved on considerably. The first protest in the event’s history came this year, illustrating how seriously the teams take the racing.

What happened afterwards perhaps says more about the Multihull Cup. “As soon as that protest was over, the guys that were involved were at a dinner table together,” said Grimm. Competitive on the water. Convivial ashore.

The development of ORCmh is helping different multihulls race closely on corrected time. Saturday’s 14-second spread between second and fourth illustrated that potential. Keller describes it as “eye-to-eye racing”: different boats and concepts brought together in meaningful competition.

The newest boat in the fleet offered another illustration of the regatta’s approach. Cool Beauty II arrived at Port Adriano having never competed in a regatta. Her owner and crew wanted to discover what it was like to put their 60-foot performance cruiser on the start line.

Skipper Simon Laight said the team had been fully integrated into the Multihull Cup family. Racing alongside established boats accelerated their understanding of Cool Beauty II and provided information about future sail requirements. That knowledge would benefit the yacht on the racecourse and when cruising.

Based in Andratx, Cool Beauty II was designed to combine performance with comfortable cruising. The event allowed her owner and crew to discover another dimension to the boat.

At the final prize-giving, Keller marked their first Multihull Cup by presenting the owner with a magnum of Champagne. A welcome for newcomers, the gesture captured the regatta’s emphasis on community.

For Grimm, Port Adriano’s proximity to open water is a practical advantage. Large performance multihulls also require suitable berthing and technical facilities. With restaurants and waterfront spaces nearby, racing and shoreside activities can take place within a compact area.

For Keller, Mallorca’s accessibility is equally important. Crews arrive from across Europe and further afield, and efficiency matters during a three-day regatta. Boats can leave their berths and quickly reach the racing area. Once back ashore, everybody is together again.

Friday’s racing flowed into the Gunboat Paella Party. Saturday’s GT Rigging Race Day ended with the Gala Dinner overlooking the fleet at Coast by East. Daily prize-givings brought everybody together immediately after racing.

After Sunday’s final prize-giving, Gaea owner Zachary Plavsic invited the fleet’s owners and crews to the team villa for sundowners and entertainment. The social programme is part of the event’s identity.

The boats themselves explain much of the rest. These are performance multihulls capable of crossing oceans, exploring coastlines and carrying their owners in comfort. Then the cruising gear can be stowed, the race sails brought out and the same boats pushed hard around a racecourse.

The crews included Olympians, America’s Cup winners, round-the-world sailors, professional yacht crew and accomplished multihull specialists. They raced alongside owners who simply love sailing fast boats.

The organisers want to retain the event’s compact scale while encouraging more owners of suitable performance multihulls to experience it.

Keller points to an owner who visited before deciding to compete. “One owner did exactly that two years ago. Now he is racing his own boat at the Multihull Cup. It is exciting, it is fun,” said Keller. “We are almost a family of owners, and we care about the sport.”

Ten years after the first Multihull Cup, perhaps that is the best description of all. Fast boats. Serious racing. Owners and crews who enjoy doing it together, with room in the family for a few more.

Multihull Cup 2027

The Multihull Cup is scheduled to return to Port Adriano, Mallorca, from 23–26 September 2027. For more information, please contact Regatta Manager Claire Tibbott at info@multihullcup.com