Two surprises emerged from the weekend's Bermuda Match Race Sailing Championships, with the unlikely spectres of Dave Juleff and Nicky Lewin qualifying to fly the local flag at the upcoming Colorcraft Gold Cup.

Irronically each earned a berth despite not placing in either of the first two spots, which are guaranteed places as the Bacardi sponsored entries, with Juleff third and Lewin fourth.

Adam Barboza actually won the regatta, defeating Peter Bromby 3-0 in the final. But Barboza is unavailable for the main event due to prior commitments, while Bromby has already secured a spot as an invited unseeded skipper.

Thus Juleff and elder statesman, Lewin, better known as the patriarch of the Lewin sailing clan that includes daughters Paula and Peta and son Andreas and who was reportedly competing in his first ever match race competition, were granted passage.

"I'm really excited about it, it's a dream come true," said Juleff, who defeated Lewin 2-1 in the petit final. "I tried last year and didn't make it on my own ticket and Glenn Astwood picked up most of my crew to sail in the Gold Cup, but this year we get to go on our own ticket which is a lot nicer.

"We'll definitely be up against top competition that does more match racing than we do, but we know the boats better and I feel that my crew has gelled really well in the last few days."

Juleff will carry the same crew of Peter Watt, Simon Thompson and Jonathan White to the Gold Cup, which gets underway in a little less than two weeks' time.

Meanwhile, Saturday saw Barboza emerge as the top skipper following the round robin phase, winning all seven races, with Bromby second with six wins, Lewin third (four) and Juleff fourth (four).

Barboza downed Lewin 3-0 to win one semi-final, while Bromby likewise dispatched Juleff in the other semi on Sunday, but by then the issue of who would qualify had been set.