To Each Their Own Drheam Cup

The Drheam Cup, the final major event of the summer before the Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe, brings together an exceptionally strong fleet. For some, April's Trin'40 already served as a dress rehearsal, allowing them to regain their solo rhythm ahead of this far more demanding test.

The line-up is as strong as it gets. Douguet, Tréhin, Delahaye, Pirouelle, Nebout, Rosetti, Costa, Le Nabour and Lipinski will all be on the start line in Cherbourg on Sunday.

Two Alexises making their Class40 debut

Two newcomers will be making their first appearance in the Class40 fleet. And they have more in common than just their first name. Alexis Loison and Alexis Thomas both arrive from the Figaro Beneteau circuit. Loison won the Solitaire du Figaro Paprec in 2025, while Thomas finished runner-up this year. Their sailing credentials are already well established.

The next challenge is learning to master their new machines. Alexis Loison has only just launched his Lift V3, while Alexis Thomas has been selected by Michel Desjoyeaux to skipper the promising Agité 40 prototype.

"It's a brand-new boat with plenty of potential and real speed," says Alexis Thomas. "But there's still a lot to learn. I need to get familiar with how she behaves. I don't have any result-oriented goals for this race. It's all about learning and building confidence racing in a fleet aboard a demanding boat."

Many will no doubt try to predict the outcome, but with such a deep fleet and a 1,000-mile course where anything can happen, picking a favourite would be a risky exercise.

1,000 miles to make the difference

A lot can happen over 1,000 miles. The first gaps could appear as soon as the fleet crosses the English Channel. From there, the boats will sail along the English coast to Wolf Rock, round the Fastnet, then head south towards the Rochebonne Plateau waypoint before returning to Lorient. A course that demands commitment at every stage… while never losing sight of the need to protect the boat.

In such a competitive fleet, not everyone is targeting the podium. For many, the Drheam Cup is first and foremost an opportunity to secure qualification for the Route du Rhum. Finishing the race is essential, but so is regaining solo confidence, fine-tuning the boat, sailing cleanly, making the right tactical choices, maintaining good pace and measuring themselves against an increasingly competitive fleet.

That is certainly the case for Jonas Gerckens (187 – Belgium Ocean Racing – Curium), who returns to solo racing after spending almost a year focused on a fully crewed round-the-world project.

"This will be my first solo race on this boat and my first solo event in four years," explains the Belgian skipper. "I'll need to find my own rhythm again, both in terms of sailing and manoeuvres. My goals are to qualify for the Route du Rhum, assess both myself and the boat's preparation, avoid taking unnecessary risks, keep the boat in one piece and see where I stand against a fleet whose level has risen even further."

Jean-Baptiste Ternon (177 – MIC Odyssey) has a similar approach, having taken delivery of his Pogo S4 just two weeks ago."My first objective is to qualify and continue getting to know the boat. The Drheam Cup will be a real test run, both for me as I discover the boat and for my partners, who are also discovering the Class40 class and offshore racing."

Sasha Lanièce (186 – Alderan), on the other hand, can hardly hide her excitement."I just can't wait! The boat is ready, I'm feeling great. It hasn't always been that way, but right now I'm absolutely fired up!"And if there's one thing she's especially looking forward to, it's finally seeing the Fastnet."I've never actually managed to see the Fastnet. Maybe this is the moment — solo, aboard my Class40."

A dense fleet, a wide range of ambitions and just as many personal challenges... To each their own Drheam Cup. The sea will provide the answers.

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