Today's Edition
ABU DHABI (ALETIHAD)
The shimmering waterfront of Mina Zayed is set to transform into a high-stakes arena this weekend as the SailGP Championship reaches its season-ending crescendo. It is the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Sail Grand Prix, a spectacle often described as Formula 1 on water, where $2 million awaits the winner of a single, cut-throat race.
This season of the SailGP Championship sees 12 teams competing in identical, high-tech F50 catamarans lifted out of the water on hydrofoils, reaching speeds exceeding 100km/h.
But unlike traditional sailing or motorsport leagues, where a title can be wrapped up weeks in advance based on accumulated points, SailGP employs a ruthless Grand Final format. After 11 stops across the globe, the season boils down to this weekend.
Only the top three teams in the overall standings after the fleet racing will advance to the winner-takes-all Grand Final race on Sunday.
Heading into this finale, four heavyweights are mathematically fighting for those three coveted spots: season leaders Emirates Great Britain, New Zealand’s Black Foils, Australia’s Flying Roos, and the outsiders and defending champions from Spain, Los Gallos.
Dylan Fletcher, the driver for Emirates GBR, finds himself in pole position after a steady and consistent year. He is a man of few words. “We’re absolutely buzzing for the racing in Abu Dhabi,” Fletcher said at the pre-race press conference.
“We’ve had quite a rollercoaster of a season where we started off strong, then took a downward turn at the US events, but then we brought it back in Europe... This is my first season with the team so it’s great to be leading the standings heading into the final event.”
Fletcher is aware that leading the points table means nothing if they miss the cut for the final race. “Essentially, there are four teams competing for three spots in the Grand Final... It will be whoever comes out best in those fleet races in Abu Dhabi that will make it into that $2m race, and if we manage to get in there, we will go hell for leather to try and win the season championship.”
Breathing down his neck is Australian driver Tom Slingsby. His Flying Roos team is looking to capitalise on New Zealand’s recent misfortune – Kiwi driver Peter Burling is managing a finger injury – but Slingsby admits his own team is on the back foot after a poor showing in Cadiz.
“We’re probably 60% of the way there,” Slingsby admitted. “There’s still a fair chance we can be knocked out. If we have a good event, we should be fine – but we’ve got a bit more work to do than we’d hoped.”
Slingsby notes that the evolution of the sport has made recovery nearly impossible. “Back in Season 1, we had an 18-minute race. Now it’s eight. You have much less than half the time to overtake boats. The start is just critical now.”
Waiting in the wings are Spain. Driver Diego Botin knows they need a chaotic weekend to sneak into the top three. “It’s been a challenging second part of the season for us,” Botin said. “We are in a hard position to make it into the three-boat grand final... but the small course and the potential light winds open the chances for things to get crazy.”
