Published On: February 1st, 2025Last Updated: February 1st, 20254.9 min read

IFC Captain’s Cup Sailfish Tournament 2025

Eleven days after fishing the 2025 Fish for Holly Sailfish Tournament in Islamorada, Team Main Attraction was back at it again! This time, it was to fish the Islamorada Fishing Club tournament which is the second leg of the Florida Keys Gold Cup Series.

On the morning of Wednesday, January 15, 2025 the team woke up to a chilly morning and a set of sporty conditions. Team Main Attraction would consist of Captain Marty Lewis, Ben Zdan, Alex Lewis, Mike Cangemi, Robbie Hiro, Danny Lombardo, and our star angler, Mark Busch. The Main One left Marathon, especially early, to head towards Islamorada.

Team Main One / Main Attraction getting ready on the morning of the tournament.

Team Main One / Main Attraction getting ready on the morning of the tournament. (no morning picture of Danny).

The crew caught some extra bait to add to their already loaded wells and got into position for lines at 8 am. By 8:49 am, Angler Ben released the team’s first Sailfish, putting Main Attraction on the board. At this point, Five boats had released one fish, so it was neck and neck. Within an hour, Danny and Mark released a Sailfish each, giving the Main One a good chance to pull away from the competition. A few other fish were missed along the way, but the guys kept grinding and stayed focused.

Sailfish Tournament

Danny Lombardo (left) and Mike Cangemi (right) on the bow of the Main One.

Captain Marty texted his wife Katie at 10:07 am, and it said, “Pray, got a double on.” So that’s exactly what she did! It’s a good thing, too, because they needed it! Mark and Ben were each hooked up to a Sailfish, traveling at high speed in opposite directions!

Double Header

Ben Zdan (left) and Mark Busch (right) both hooked up to a Sailfish.

While Ben’s fish was heading north, Mark’s fish was heading south. Making things even worse, Mark’s fish got his line getting wrapped around a buoy. Captain Marty yelled to loosen Ben’s drag, to let the fish swim while he went after Mark’s fish, to allow the crew to carefully get the line around the buoy, without losing the fish.

Doubleheader

Professional photographer Jon Watler captured both Sailfish tailwalking at the same time.

Once they sorted out Mark’s fish, Captain Marty spun the boat in the opposite direction and gunned it after Ben’s fish. What a crazy few minutes! At 10:17 am, Mark released his fish at 10:19 am, and Ben released the second half of their doubleheader. Katie sighed in relief when she saw the live scoring page update, followed by a congrats text to Captain Marty.They were now sitting in second place and had a real shot at placing.

Mark and Marty

Captain Marty Lewis (left) and experienced angler Mark Busch (right).

Later in the afternoon, the bite slowed down, so they moved a couple miles to the west, where some other boats had been picking away at them here and there. After a while they picked up and moved again. Captain Marty says the key is to find the action and not to stick around where there isn’t any.

Captain Marty spotted a Sailfish chasing a flying fish, so with the kites still out, the crew hung the baits from the kite lines and Marty ran to where he saw the fish. As soon as the Main One slowed down, down came the baits. The fish swam up on one of the kite baits and that turned into a caught fish.

Afternoon Bite

The crew hustles all afternoon to convert any bites to fish.

The crew kept fishing the same area and at 1:37pm Main One advanced to first place with 8 fish. They had one more bite and a shot at another fish, however bad luck happened, and the angler pulled the hook. It happens to the best of us.

At 3:42pm (lines out were at 4 pm), Marty texted his wife, “Going to be a long 18 minutes,” and boy, was it ever. Shortly after, Captain Marty heard the second-place team “Back In Business” radio that they were hooked to a double. They ended up catching both fish, giving them that ninth fish they needed to clinch the first-place winning spot. It was heartbreaking to miss 1st place by the skin of their teeth, but the Main One crew  was proud of what they had done.

The Main One crew raises eight Sailfish release flags to fly on the way home.

The Main One team was officially the IFC Overall 2nd Place Winner, and we could not be prouder!  Funnily enough, the Main Attraction team won 2nd place in the same tournament the previous year! One difference this year was that Angler Mark Busch clinched Top Angler overall. Last year, Mark won a respectable 2nd place Angler trophy, but this was a welcome upgrade for him!

2nd place overall winners

The Main One / Main Attraction team accepting 2nd place overall.

The team worked their butts off, keeping fresh baits on the lines, scouting, and working those kites all day long. A huge congratulations goes out to the Back In Business team on first place, and Team Kalex with 3rd. And congratulations to our tournament team, We were so fortunate to have the very talented Jon Watler, who captured amazing photos and videos. We hope you enjoyed the video! If you are interested in a tournament or private charter, give us a call at (305)-289-0071 or visit our contact page!

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