HAMPSHIRE match racing superstar Ian Williams will have to compete in more than twice the number of events in his bid for an historic sixth World Match Racing Tour title.

Fives times world champ Williams, the only sailor ever to achieve that many tour wins, will face his opponents at sixteen events this year after tour bosses expanded the series.

Historically the World Match Racing Tou– which sees top international sailing teams compete in head-to-head races – has comprised of between six to eight events.

But this year the tour will boast as many as 20 separate stages, with each team's best five results counting towards the world championship.

Williams, from Lymington, will line up against seven top skippers including arch rival Bjorn Hansen from Sweden.

Guest teams will also be invited to compete as the tour goes on.

James Pleasance, director of the World Match Racing Tour, said: "The tour has always focused on growing sailing and match racing around the world.

"By increasing the number of events that award points to the championship leaderboard, more sailors will have the opportunity to participate on the tour and work their way towards the World Championship.”

Williams, 37, and his GAC Pindar team won the 2014 World Match Racing Tour last month, sealing overall victory with a win at the Monsoon Cup in Malaysia.

The result makes Williams the greatest match racer in the history of the tour.

The 2015 tour kicks off with the Congressional Cup in Long Beach, California, in May.