able to cast aside the bridesmaid tag as he at last captured the Omega Gold Cup championship after being runner-up on two occasions.

As it turned out Davis actually won the title on Saturday, and with it the right hold aloft the King Edward VII Gold Cup after yesterday's racing was cancelled due to the unkind intervention of a gale storm.

Winds upwards to 30 knots turned Hamilton Harbour into a churning sea of whitecaps, leaving the race committee little choice but to call off any action at 2.45 p.m yesterday.

Still for Davis -- who also collected $30,000 and a gold Omega watch -- the victory was no more tarnished by the decision, especially after the way in which the match racer, ranked number two in the world, had decimated opponents all week long, losing just once in 13 outings.

"We're pretty happy with the way we sailed all the way through the regatta,'' said Davis, who had high praise for his three-man crew of Glenn Bourke, Mike Mottle and Alan Smith. "We only lost one race in this regatta and that was to Roy Heiner.

"Yesterday (Saturday) was a really good day for us and being able to win three races straight up told the tale.

"It's nice to do it, because I've gotten second twice, so it's really nice to get this one done in a good style.

"Regattas are regattas and unfortunately after we leave this regatta, winning this one doesn't buy us any races in the future, so we know we'll have to face these guys again and we'll just have to do our job again, but it's really nice to put this one away.'' Davis, set to helm America's Cup challenger One Australia next year, admitted to being somewhat surprised by the manner of victory, where he was able to roll through such a classy field.

Great boat speed, which he credited to endless hours of his team working to upgrade their strong wind tactics, was key for the Aussie.

"I was a little bit (surprised). You get on a roll in this game and it's pretty hard to stop a team that's on a roll and we got on a roll quite early and were able to keep the momentum going,'' added Davis, later doused with champagne by trimmer Mottle, the recipient of most of Davis' ire during their time on the water.

Saturday had seen the transplanted American -- Davis was born in the United States, but now claims Australia as his home -- able to adapt to similar adverse conditions and defeat Holland's Roy Heiner in one semi-final to set up the Magnus Holmberg clash.

Davis had, in fact, won the initial race of the semis on Friday afternoon, only to lose the second the next morning. However, a swift rebound had the expert skipper cross the finish line first the next two times out, laying the Dutchman to rest.

Meanwhile, the other bracket witnessed a much tougher battle where Holmberg was able to knock-off Peter Gilmour, the world's number one match racer, but it took all of the five-race series to decide, with the former winding up a 3-2 victor.

Holmberg took an early 2-0 lead, the second a fortuitous triumph as Gilmour's boat suffered a broken boom during the first leeward leg while leading handily. Gilmour's crew fought gallantly to stay ahead, but the burden proved to great to bear and in the end lost by a mere nine seconds.

What followed was typical of the strapping Aussie, who clawed his way back into the contest, beating Holmberg by 17 seconds in race three and forcing his opponent into a DNF -- did not finish -- in the next outing.

Nevertheless, his luck would fade for the crucial and deciding fifth race, with Holmberg rolling to an easy 47 second win and into the final.

Then came the clash of titans and, at least for this year, Holmberg had to be satisfied with being second best but could take some solace in a $16,000 runners-up cheque.

"It was a bit disappointing not to be able to finish the final in seven races, but on the other hand I think we should be really pleased with the way we sailed this week. We've done really well and certainly compared to other years here in Bermuda, where we seem to have had a little bit of problem with handling the boat, this year we really sailed well and should be pleased with the result,'' said Holmberg, who will now concentrate on his 1996 Olympic soling campaign.

As for his opponent, the Swede was amazed by his form throughout the regatta, suggesting there was not much he could do to counter Davis' charge.

"It's really impressive, only losing one race in such a long period and, I don't know, it seemed like when we sailed against him yesterday it was like they were a little bit better on different things. That added up to a whole lot actually, they had little better starts, a little better boat speed and played the shifts and tactics better,'' added Holmberg.

"On the other hand we had a tough semi-final, five races against Peter Gilmour (and) you're really tired after that, because he's really aggressive and is going for it all the time. So he (Davis) only sailed four races, could get in and have a break, which could have made some difference as well.'' CHAMPAGNE TOAST -- Gold Cup winner Rod Davis gets a dousing of bubbly from crew member Mike Mottle.