Ben Ainslie’s Great Britain scooped a 'win sandwich' on SailGP’s Season 3 opener while newcomer Canada’s smooth sailing saw the team finish the day at the top of the leaderboard. Click Here to see Pictures of SailGP Bermuda 2022 Day One
Ainslie’s British team got to work quickly, leading the pack at mark one and taking an early jibe to cut out in front. With tactician Nikki Boniface keeping her eyes on the fleet from the back of the boat, the British team kept it clean and steadily extended their lead as the race progressed.
Canada was never far behind, proving the experience of former Spain Driver Phil Robertson and the expertise of SailGP veteran Chris Draper. Overall, fans enjoyed smooth sailing around the racecourse with heightened performances across a fleet that looks to have mastered the fine balancing act of flying the F50.
Canada and Great Britain dominated for much of the second race until a head to head between the two boats at the 6th mark proved costly for the British team. A sticky turn forced them to turn closer to the wind, killing their boat speed and leaving them in eighth place overall.
The third fleet race started well for Jordi Xammar’s Spain and Delapierre’s France while Canada and New Zealand were penalized for early starts.
An early on sprint between Great Britain and France at the second gate became the theme of the race, with the two teams leading the pack and jostling for the lead. A mistake early on by Spain, which saw Xammar needlessly sail extra distance to round the alternate mark, proved fatal and left the team in ninth position.
