Tim Webb’s Luna wins IRC One at the Morgan Cup

The start of the Morgan Cup Race was a breathtaking spectacle, with over 100 boats beating upwind through the Western Solent for the fourth race in the Cowes Offshore Racing Series and the 11th event in the 2025 RORC Season’s Points Championship—the world’s largest offshore racing series. The fleet was truly international, with a strong showing from the UK and France, alongside teams from Estonia, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, and the USA.

Tim Webb’s Swan 42 Luna claimed overall victory in the Morgan Cup under IRC. Finishing second was Tom Kneen’s JPK 1180 Sunrise IV, and rounding out the podium was Taavet Hinrikus’ MAT 1220 Nola, helmed by Margus Uudam and crewed by a joint Estonian-Finnish team.

“I’m still in a bit of shock, but so proud of what we’ve accomplished,” said Luna's skipper Tim Webb. “Our crew has sailed together for a few years now. We haven’t done much offshore racing, but we always believed we had potential. To win in such a competitive fleet feels incredible.”

“The start was wild—very windy—and we managed to exit the Solent early. Luna is a solid, dependable boat, which really helped. But the turning point came near Alderney and Guernsey, where the wind started to fade. Many boats got stuck in windless patches, but we managed to avoid them, and that made all the difference.”

“We had a serious battle with Sunrise and Darkwood (Michael O’Donnell’s J/121). At one stage we were 45 minutes ahead of Sunrise, but in the closing miles they surged forward and it turned into a thrilling boat-for-boat sprint to the finish.”

“We’re just a group of amateurs from Lymington—not professionals—so to go up against some of the top teams and come out on top means everything to us.”

The Morgan Cup will be awarded to Tim Webb and Luna at the Royal Thames Yacht Club prizegiving. As a club member during its 250th anniversary celebrations, the moment will be especially meaningful. “It’s a fantastic evening,” said Tim with a smile. “You don’t get to take the trophies home—but you do get to drink champagne from them. We’ll remember that forever.”

Luna, Morgan Cup (Photo Credit: Paul Wyeth)