The Riva 88' Folgore: When Italian Design Meets 38-Knot Reality
Riva's 88' Folgore redefines the sportfly: twin MTU 16V 2000s for a 38 kt top and a 32 kt cruise, full-beam owner's suite, hydraulic transom…
Read the articleThe Riva Sportfly Series
The whole Sportfly line — 66' Ribelle, 76' Perseo Super and 88' Folgore, 67'10" to 88'4", and 38 knots at the top
A flybridge normally costs you speed. Riva's Sportfly division exists because a certain kind of owner refuses to accept that trade, and it is the smallest and most consistent of the yard's three ranges: three boats, one idea, and no filler between them.
The idea is a planing hull with the power to stay on it, and an upper deck cut low enough that the profile still reads as an express cruiser rather than a floating apartment block. Every Sportfly gets a proper helm up top and a real seating area, but none of them gets the height that usually comes with it.
This is the one Riva range we cover completely. All three models are here: the 66' Ribelle at 67'10", the 76' Perseo Super at 76'3", and the 88' Folgore at 88'4", which at 38 knots is the fastest big boat Riva builds.
The Sportfly Lineup, Smallest to Largest
Every Riva Sportfly model we review in depth, in the order owners step up through the series.
Photo credit Riva.
The 66' Ribelle is the smallest Riva Sportfly — twin MAN V12-1550s on V-drives for 37 knots, three cabins below and a flydeck that keeps the profile low.
The 76' Perseo Super sits in the middle of Riva's Sportfly line — twin MAN V12s to 37 knots on the 1,800 hp option, three en-suite cabins and 315 nm of range either way.
The 88' Folgore is the Sportfly flagship and the fastest big boat Riva builds — twin MTU 16V 2000s on V-drives for 38 knots, four cabins and two crew cabins.
Don't see the Sportfly model you're after — or a brand-new launch? Request specs through Yacht Specs Direct.
Moving Up the Sportfly Series
The 66' Ribelle is the entry point and the simplest boat in the range to shop, because Riva offers one engine option and publishes one set of figures for it. Twin MAN V12-1550s on V-drives give 37 knots flat out and a 33-knot cruise with 250 nautical miles of range. It is 67'10" on a 17'4" beam, 87,083 lbs unladen, with three cabins, three bathrooms and a crew cabin with its own head. Twelve aboard, 1,004 gallons of fuel. Note that 37-knot top speed: the smallest Sportfly is quicker than the middle one.
The 76' Perseo Super adds nine feet, 28,000 lbs and a choice. Twin MAN V12-1550s give 32 knots and a 28-knot cruise; the optional V12-1800s give 37 and 32. Riva puts the range at 315 nautical miles either way, which is the unusual part — the faster engine costs you nothing in reach. Three cabins and three bathrooms again, plus crew, but sixteen aboard rather than twelve and 1,479 gallons of fuel. It is the same accommodation as the Ribelle in a substantially bigger boat, which tells you it is bought for the space around the cabins rather than the cabins themselves.
The 88' Folgore is the flagship and the only Sportfly on MTU power. Twin 16V 2000 M96s at 2,435 hp a side give 36 knots and a 30-knot cruise with 350 nautical miles; the M96L at 2,638 hp gives 38 and 32 with 340. It is 88'4" on a 20'8" beam, 154,324 lbs unladen, with four cabins and — the real change — two crew cabins. Twenty aboard, 2,113 gallons.
The progression is not linear on speed, and that is worth knowing before you shop. The 66' Ribelle and the top-engine 88' Folgore both run 37–38 knots; the 76' Perseo Super on standard power runs 32. What actually grows through the range is range itself — 250 to 315 to 350 nautical miles — and crew provision, which goes from one cabin to one to two. You are buying endurance and staff, not pace.
Our Take
Sportfly is the range I would point most buyers at, and the reason is the one people find least romantic: it is the only Riva line where the whole lineup is covered here, so you can actually compare three boats against each other on the yard's own figures instead of comparing one boat against a brochure.
Do that and the first thing you find is counter-intuitive. The smallest boat is one of the fastest. The 66' Ribelle runs 37 knots; the 76' Perseo Super on standard engines runs 32. If you walk in assuming bigger means quicker in this range you will end up disappointed by the middle boat for no good reason — it is not slow, it is carrying nine more feet and four more people.
The 76' Perseo Super has the most interesting option in the range and almost nobody frames it correctly. Riva publishes 315 nautical miles of range on both engine packages. On most boats the bigger engine is a range penalty you accept for speed; here there is no penalty at all. Four knots of cruise, same reach. If you are buying a Perseo Super and you are on the fence, that is the whole argument and it points one way.
On the Folgore: 38 knots on an 88-foot boat is a genuinely rare thing, and Riva earns it with two crew cabins and a hull built to take the power. What Riva does not publish for any of these three is fuel burn. Ask for observed gallons-per-hour at cruise in writing, on the engine package you are actually buying, and do not accept a figure that arrives without a source.
Tony Smith, Founder — Minted Yachts
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much crew does a Riva Sportfly need?
Riva fits one crew cabin on the 66' Ribelle and the 76' Perseo Super, and two on the 88' Folgore. That is the single most useful number in the range for working out what a season will cost, and it moves at the Folgore rather than gradually. The Flybridge range above continues the pattern, stepping from two crew cabins to three and then four.
What is Riva's Sportfly range?
Three boats — the 66' Ribelle, 76' Perseo Super and 88' Folgore — built around a planing hull with an upper deck cut low enough that the profile still reads as an express cruiser. Each gets a proper flybridge helm and seating without the height that usually comes with it. This is the one Riva range covered completely on this site, so all three can be compared on the yard's own published figures.
Which Riva Sportfly is the fastest?
The 88' Folgore at 38 knots on the MTU 16V 2000 M96L. But the progression is not what most buyers expect: the smallest boat, the 66' Ribelle, runs 37 knots, while the middle boat, the 76' Perseo Super, runs 32 on standard power and 37 on the optional 1,800 hp MANs. Size does not track speed in this range — what grows steadily is range, from 250 to 315 to 350 nautical miles.
Which Sportfly Fits Your Life?
Tell us how you plan to use the boat — guests, range, crew or no crew — and we'll give you the straight story on where in the Sportfly series you belong, new or brokerage.
Explore All Riva ModelsOr reach Tony directly: TS@MintedYachts.com · +1 (404) 805-9819