Veloce 4, skippered by Phil Simpfendorfer, has claimed a commanding line honours victory in the Cock of the Bay race, the traditional precursor to the Melbourne to Hobart.
The lightweight carbon fibre Melges 40 needed just one hour 44 minutes and 10 seconds to complete the 21-nautical mile journey on Port Phillip Bay.
Race director Martin Vaughan made life jackets mandatory on Tuesday after a strong wind warning was issued.
The race committee issued individual recalls for Oohbleck, skippered by Jim Leckey; Raku, skippered by Matthew Ross; and Mrs Overnewton, skippered by Leslie Norton, for breaking the start at Port Melbourne.
Veloce 4 got off to a flying start, rounding the opening mark first and continued to set the pace throughout.
Alex Team Macadie, skippered by Jock Macadie and sailing fully crewed for this race, finished second in 1:51.48 while Ari Abrahams sailed his Melges IC37, Fargo, into third place.
Veloce 4 will be among the 82-strong fleet for the Melbourne-Hobart bluewater classic, which begins at Portsea Pier at 1pm AEDT on Wednesday.
