Ian Williams will be among the hot favourites to win this year’s Argo Group Gold Cup.And it’s not difficult to see just why as the 34-year-old Englishman has been in sparkling form on this year’s World Match Racing Tour (WMRT).Williams and his Team GAC Pindar team mates already have two Tour wins under their belts and if all goes accordingly they hope to make it three when next month’s Argo Group Gold Cup rolls around.Yet while two-time WMRT champion Williams has expressed optimism over his chances of winning a second King Edward Gold Cup this year he is also cognisant that he and team mates have their work cut out for them in Bermuda.“I think that all nine Tour Card holders are attending plus Bjorn Hansen, who has also been a regular on the Tour this year, so it will be another very tough year,” Williams told The Royal Gazette. “The level on the Tour goes up every year so we need to keep moving our game forward in order to be competitive.”By their own lofty standards Team GAC Pindar did not enjoy the best of times during last year’s Gold Cup as they failed to reach the quarter finals. But Williams hopes his team’s fortunes will take a turn for the better this time around.“The format of the Bermuda Gold Cup means that you need to have a bit of luck early on to get into the quarter finals. Hopefully the luck will be more on our side this year,” he said.If they are to mount a strong bid for a second Gold Cup and first since 2006 Team GAC Pindar will have to quickly acclimatise themselves to the sailing characteristics of the International One Design (IOD) racing sloop as well as sailing in Bermuda’s notorious shifty breezes.It’s a challenge Williams relishes.“I really enjoy the challenge that the IOD poses as it is very different to any other boat on the Tour,” he said. “I have two Extreme 40 events immediately adjacent to the Gold Cup and the IODs are about as far from an Extreme 40 as is possible, so it will be an additional challenge for me this year adjusting to a boat which is much more about momentum.“Hamilton Harbour provides a great “stadium” for us to sail in, but it certainly does throw up its challenges as the winds are very shifty there. But I think that the unstable conditions provide for exciting racing as there are often opportunities to catch up for the trailing boat, so no race is ever over until the end.”Williams’ two wins on this year’s WMRT arrived at the Portimao Portugal Match Cup and Stena Match Cup in Sweden.He also finished third at the Korea Match Cup and St Moritz Match Race in Switzerland to underline his consistent form this year.Williams will arrive in Bermuda next month as the current WMRT points leader and top ranked match racing skipper in the ISAF Open Rankings.* Kiwi skipper Laurie Jury won the Open Division at last week’s ISAF Nations Cup Grand Final held at Lake Michigan, USA.Jury is making his Argo Group Gold Cup debut this year along with Canadian skipper Terry McLaughlin won last week’s New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup in Newport, Rhode Island.