Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

RBC Brewin Dolphin proudly supporting Afloat and Irish Boating

RORC Caribbean 600 Set For Antigua Start (Preview Video)

23rd February 2026
“Niklas
Niklas Zennstrom's Carkeek CF 520 Ran that will compete in the 2026 Caribbean 600 with Cork's Justin Slattery onboard Credit: Carlo Borlenghi

The 17th edition of the RORC Caribbean 600 begins off Fort Charlotte, Antigua, on Monday 23 February 2026.

A fleet of 56 boats with 500 sailors will race 600 nautical miles around 11 Caribbean islands, starting and finishing in English Harbour.

The first warning signal is scheduled for 1050 Atlantic Standard Time (1500 UTC), with the opening start at 1100 AST.

The race will take the fleet north to the Anguilla Channel and south to Les Saintes off Guadeloupe. Boats will pass Barbuda, Nevis, St Kitts, Saba, St Barth’s, Montserrat and Redonda in a non-stop offshore challenge.

A preview video released by the Royal Ocean Racing Club features interviews with competitors and race officials, onboard and drone footage, and scenes from the dockside build-up in Antigua.

Chris Jackson, Race Director, appears in the opening segment alongside leading competitors including Rocco Falcone (Falcon), Tristan Le Brun (Black Jack 100), Dee Caffari and Annemieke Bes (WaveWalker), and Jon Desmond (Final Final – Zoulou).

The proposed start sequence begins at 1100 AST for IRC Two and CSA Only, followed by IRC One at 1110, IRC Zero and Class40 at 1120, IRC Super Zero at 1130, and Multihulls at 1140.

Race fans can follow the fleet via the official race tracker and live updates throughout the event.

Watch the preview video below

Published in Caribbean 600

Caribbean 600 Race Live Tracker 2026

Track the progress of the 2026 Caribbean 600 Race fleet on the live tracker above 

The 17th edition of the 600-mile race organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club starts on Monday, February 23rd from Antigua.

 

Afloat.ie Team

About The Author

Afloat.ie Team

Email The Author

Afloat.ie is Ireland's dedicated marine journalism team.

Have you got a story for our reporters? Email us here.

We've got a favour to ask

More people are reading Afloat.ie than ever thanks to the power of the internet but we're in stormy seas because advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news sites, we haven't put up a paywall because we want to keep our marine journalism open.

Afloat.ie is Ireland's only full-time marine journalism team and it takes time, money and hard work to produce our content.

So you can see why we need to ask for your help.

If everyone chipped in, we can enhance our coverage and our future would be more secure. You can help us through a small donation. Thank you.

Direct Donation to Afloat button

RORC's Caribbean 600 Race

The 14th edition of the RORC Caribbean 600 will start from Antigua on Tuesday, 14th February 2023.

The 600nm course circumnavigates 11 Caribbean Islands starting from Fort Charlotte, English Harbour, Antigua and heads north as far as St Martin and south to Guadeloupe taking in Barbuda, Nevis, St Kitts, Saba and St Barth's

PAST WINNERS: RORC CARIBBEAN 600 TROPHY - IRC OVERALL: (Best corrected time under IRC)

2020 - Tilmar Hansen, Outsider, TP52 (GER)
2019 - David and Peter Askew, Wizard, Volvo 70 (USA)
2018 - George David, Rambler 88, Maxi (USA)
2017 - Hap Fauth, Bella Mente, JV72 (USA)
2016 - George Sakellaris, Maxi 72, Proteus (USA)
2015 - Hap Fauth, JV72, Bella Mente (USA)
2014 - George Sakellaris, RP72, Shockwave (USA)
2013 - Ron O'Hanley, Privateer, Cookson 50 (USA)
2012 - Niklas Zennström's JV72, Rán (GBR)
2011 - George David, Rambler 100, JK 100 (USA)
2010 - Karl C L Kwok, Beau Geste, Farr 80 (HKG)
2009 - Adrian Lee, Lee Overlay Partners, Cookson 50 (IRL)

RACE RECORDS:

Multihull record (2019): Giovanni Soldini, Maserati, Multi 70 (ITA) - 30 hours, 49 minutes, 00 seconds
(I day 6 hrs 49 mins 0 secs)

Monohull record (2018): George David, Rambler 88, Maxi (USA) - 37 hours, 41 minutes, 45 seconds
(1 day 13 hrs 41 mins 45 secs)

At a Glance - RORC Caribbean 600 2026

The 17th anniversary edition of the RORC Caribbean 600 starts in Antigua on Monday, 23rd February 2026.

Featured Sailing School

INSS sidebutton

Featured Clubs

dbsc mainbutton
Howth Yacht Club
Kinsale Yacht Club
National Yacht Club
Royal Cork Yacht Club
Royal Irish Yacht club

Featured Brokers

leinster sidebutton

Featured Webcams

Featured Associations

ISA sidebutton
ICRA
isora sidebutton

Featured Marinas

dlmarina sidebutton

Featured Chandleries

CHMarine Afloat logo
https://afloat.ie/resources/marine-industry-news/viking-marine

Featured Sailmakers

northsails sidebutton
uksails sidebutton
watson sidebutton

Featured Blogs

W M Nixon - Sailing on Saturday
podcast sidebutton
BSB sidebutton
wavelengths sidebutton
 

Please show your support for Afloat by donating