Kiwi super maxi and winner of last year's Sydney to Hobart classic, Alfa Romeo, will attempt to win the Fastnet Race on August 10.
Her skipper, New Zealander Neville Crichton, believes the yacht can cope with whatever the Atlantic Ocean dishes up in the way of weather.
What threatens Alfa Romeo'sclean sweep of yachting's big prizes in the last eight months is the lineup of yachts competing in the race, one of the world's largest and most famous yachting regattas - the Royal Cowes Regatta.
"The Fastnet is a difficult, unpredictable event, with conditions ranging from ideal sailing to some of the most dangerous seas in the world," Crichton said. "It is one of the toughest tests of yacht and crew, and, therefore, very hard to make predictions.
"That said, we believe we have the ideal yacht and crew to not just win the race, but to also challenge the race record.
"Alfa Romeo was built to win the Sydney to Hobart, the only race that comes close to the diverse and difficult sailing conditions of the Fastnet event."
Alfa Romeo has won the Sydney to Hobart, the Mediterranean Classic, the Rolex Giraglia Cup and more than 50 other races since her launch last year.
