Mariano Navone of Argentina defeated Italy's Mattia Bellucci 7-5, 6-4 in the men's singles final of the Copa Cap Cana ATP Challenger in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. The match featured a protest by Bellucci over a time violation and a heat-related suspension. Navone secured his ninth Challenger title and became the first to win Challenger 175-level events on both clay and hard courts.
High drama unfolded in the men's singles final of the second edition of the Copa Cap Cana ATP Challenger tournament held in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. The matchup pitted Italy’s Mattia Bellucci against Argentina’s Mariano Navone, the sixth seed and tournament favorite. It was their first encounter on court, with Navone ranked World No. 79 entering the final. The first set reached 5-5, where Navone held two break points at 15-40 on Bellucci's serve. A phone ringing in the stands prompted Bellucci to pause, leading to a second time violation from the chair umpire. Bellucci protested the call, explaining the distraction, but the umpire upheld the decision. He walked off the court in refusal to continue, halting play and summoning the supervisor. The supervisor sided with the umpire, directing the 25-year-old Italian to resume. Bellucci returned, saved the two break points, but a double fault allowed Navone to break and lead 6-5. Serving for the set after a pause, further discussion between officials led to a temporary match suspension due to excessively high temperatures. Navone argued against the decision, but after over 30 minutes, play resumed with Navone holding serve comfortably to claim the first set 7-5. In the second set, Navone broke Bellucci's serve twice early for a 4-0 lead. Bellucci responded by breaking back and holding to narrow it to 5-4, but Navone held firm to win 6-4. This victory marked Navone's first title of 2026 and his ninth Challenger crown overall. A tweet from @_claymagazine summarized the sequence: Bellucci's time violation, protest dismissal, set points saved, but Navone's eventual break and lead.
