Skipper Alec Cutler and crew of Hedgehog stood proudly on the podium at the 2012 Melges 32 World Championships in Newport, Rhode Island, USA, at the weekend.The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club (RBYC) sailor finished runner-up in the formidable 33-boat fleet to cap his best showing to date at the Championships.He completed the 10-race series 10 points adrift of champion John Kilroy (USA) who proved to be the most consistent skipper throughout the five-day event.Stephen Howe (USA) rounded off the podium finishers.The trio were locked in a three-way battle for the championship entering Saturday’s final race. But in the end it was Kilroy and the crew of Samba Pa Ti that came out on top.“In sailing there is a saying ‘speed kills’ and Samba proved that true,” Cutler said. “Hats off to Samba . . . they were fast in the conditions and didn’t make many mistakes after day one.”Cutler and his team-mates trailed Kilroy by five points going into the final race but was unable to make up precious ground when it mattered most.“Our gameplay was to match race Samba during the four minute pre-start, force them into a poor starting position and then win the favoured end of the line,” Cutler said. “We accomplished that in the first start, which was recalled owing to too many boats being over the line early.“We succeeded in doing the same thing in the restart. However, Samba was able to find a slot of clean air after a few minutes and two tacks. Being in the front row battling next to Warpath (Howe) we were unable to tack with them.“A one-mile drag race ensued and Samba flat out showed superior speed in the 16 knot flat water conditions. We spent the rest of the 10 mile race trying to pass them and they spent their time staying between us and the goal-line.”Cutler managed a remarkable nine top 10 finishes throughout the regatta with a best showing of second in the third race. The RBYC sailor finished no lower than 11th and at one stage led the fleet at the Newport regatta hosted by New York Yacht Club.