| Top performance | Winner of the 2009 Mini Transat |
|---|---|
| Joined Imoca on | 2026 |
| Team | Team Francesca Clapcich Powered By 11th Hour Racing |
| Base | Lorient (FRANCE) |
In 2026, Alberto Bona joins Francesca Clapcich’s team and the IMOCA Class as co-skipper and performance manager.
Born in Turin and holding a degree in philosophy, Alberto Bona discovered the sea at a very young age aboard his family’s boat. At eight, he started sailing dinghies, and at 19, he crossed the Tyrrhenian Sea alone on a dinghy he had built himself, laying the foundation for a career as a solo sailor.
During his studies, he joined Stormvogel, a historic ULDB, with which he won the Panerai Trophy and crossed the Atlantic, winning the ARC alongside a New Zealand crew. These experiences helped him develop a versatile and skilled profile, combining one-design racing with ocean navigation.
At 27, he competed in the Mini Transat, a solo ocean race on Mini 6.50 boats, finishing 5th in Guadeloupe—one of the best Italian results in this category. He continued racing in the Mini 6.50 class, winning the Italian Championship in 2015 and finishing second in the Les Sables d’Olonne – Azores – Les Sables race with Promostudi La Spezia, while dominating the Mediterranean Mini circuit.
In 2017, Alberto moved up to Class40, with the support of Giovanni Soldini, taking part in the Transat Jacques Vabre. In 2019, he joined the crew of the Maserati Multi 70, a foiling trimaran, sailing at speeds exceeding 40 knots during crossings between Asia and the Pacific. In 2020, he raced in the Figaro Beneteau 3, became Italian champion, and won the European Mixed Doubles Championship in 2021.
With support from the IBSA Group, Alberto Bona acquired a Class40 from 2022. That same year, he finished 8th in the Route du Rhum, and in 2023, he claimed the Class40 Championship title with his crew, achieving numerous victories in the RORC Caribbean 600, Les Sables-Horta-Les Sables, the Défi Atlantique, and the Transat Jacques Vabre.
In 2026, he joins the IMOCA Class with Francesca Clapcich’s team, where he will serve as co-skipper and be responsible for performance.
2025: CIC Med Channel Race – 1st (Crédit Mutuel, co-skipper Ian Lipinski)
2024: CIC Normandy Channel Race – 3rd (IBSA Group, co-skipper Alberto Riva)
2024: Transat Québec Saint-Malo – 7th (IBSA Group, co-skipper Pablo Santurde del Arco & Luca Rosetti)
2024: The Transat CIC – 5th (IBSA, solo)
2024: Spi Ouest France BPGO – 4th (IBSA Group, crew: Ludovic Aglaor, Pierre-Edouard Regaud, Loick Laffont, Mathieu Groleau)
2023: Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre – 3rd (IBSA Group, co-skipper Pablo Santurde del Arco)
2023: Rolex Fastnet Race – 8th (IBSA Group, solo)
2023: Les Sables – Horta, overall – 1st (IBSA Group, co-skipper Pablo Santurde del Arco)
2023: Les Sables – Horta, leg 1 – 1st (IBSA Group, co-skipper Pablo Santurde del Arco)
2023: Les Sables – Horta, leg 2 – 3rd (IBSA Group, co-skipper Pablo Santurde del Arco)
2023: CIC Normandy Channel Race – 6th (IBSA Group, co-skipper Pablo Santurde del Arco)
| Name | 11TH HOUR RACING |
|---|---|
| Sail number | USA 171 |
| Architect | VPLP |
| Construction | 2022, Multiplast |
| Former names | MALIZIA - SEA EXPLORER |
| Length | 18,28 m |
| Beam | NC |
| Draught | 4,5 m |
| Weight | NC |
| Mast height | 29 m |
| Mast type | Wing mast |
| Foils | Yes |
| Sail area max. | |
| Upwind | 270 m2 |
| Downwind | 550 m2 |
Super stoked to announce that Italian offshore sailor Alberto Bona has joined our team as Co-Skipper and Sailing Performance Manager, strengthening the technical and sporting leadership of the campaign.
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