TP52 Program

The 52 SUPER SERIES professionalised the TP52 circuit, bringing together the world’s best grand prix sailing teams in a structured inshore championship. Farr-designed hulls competed at the highest level of the series across multiple seasons. The combination of the Farr team’s deep understanding of the box rule and their experience building race-winning designs at every length gave owners a proven platform for professional-level competition.

TP52 box rule — Farr Yacht Design

Thomas Blixt’s Farr TP52 dominated the Scandinavian offshore circuit, taking 1st at the AF Offshore Race and 2nd at the ORC International World Championship in Finland. Flash Pro Sailing placed 3rd at the ORCi European Championships in Sweden. The campaigns proved the Farr TP52 was as fast under ORC rating as it was under IRC.

TP52 (Design #495) — Farr Yacht Design

Nigel Passmore’s Apollo swept the RORC Mainseries with four wins from four starts: 1st IRC Overall at the De Guingand Bowl, 1st IRC at the Cervantes Trophy, 1st IRC at RORC Mainseries, and 1st IRC at the Myth of Malham. The Farr TP52 proved unbeatable on the Solent circuit.

Apollo — TP52 (Design #495) — Farr Yacht Design

Patrick Kelly’s Panthera ran a sustained multi-year campaign across the UK and Caribbean circuits. Highlights included 1st at Antigua Sailing Week, 1st at the IRC National Championships, 1st at the Round the Island Race, 1st at Cork Week, and 1st at the Red Funnel Easter Challenge in consecutive years. The IRM Class National Championship and multiple Cowes Week podiums rounded out one of the most prolific TP52 racing records of the era.

Panthera — TP52 (Design #495) — Farr Yacht Design

Karl Kwok’s Beau Geste was one of the first Farr TP52s to campaign internationally, placing 1st PHRF A at the Puerto Vallarta Race, 3rd at the Rolex TP52 Global Championship, and racing competitively at the Big Boat Series in San Francisco. The boat demonstrated that the Farr TP52 platform was fast across the full range of grand prix formats.

Beau Geste — TP52 (Design #495) — Farr Yacht Design

When the TP52 rule was first formalised, Farr Yacht Design was among the first major offices to commit to it. The decision reflected the office’s belief that the box rule would attract serious owners and eventually define a generation of grand prix racing — a prediction that proved correct. The early Farr TP52 designs established the office’s reputation in the class and created the customer relationships that would sustain more than two decades of commissions.

TP52 design #495 and beyond — Farr Yacht Design

Running parallel to the TP52 custom program, the Farr-designed Cookson 50 became one of the most successful production grand prix designs of the era. More than thirty hulls were built by Cookson Boats in Auckland, racing in the Sydney to Hobart, Fastnet, and offshore circuits across Australia, New Zealand, Europe, and the United States. The Cookson 50 proved that Farr’s grand prix performance could be made accessible at production-boat scale.

Cookson 50 — 30+ hulls — Farr Yacht Design