Pro Sailing Drama and Intrigue
by Mark Jardine 15 Apr 14:00 BST
Australia drop their wingsail - pre-start - Race 7 - Race Day 2- Oracle San Francisco SailGP - March 23, 2025 - San Francisco © Simon Bruty/SailGP
What a couple of weeks it has been in the world of professional sailing: SailGP, the America's Cup, and the sailors themselves have all been in the mainstream news for one reason or another.
As a club sailor, it's sometimes difficult to empathise with what goes on in these higher echelons of sailing as they're such a far cry from what we do at weekends, but many of us know the sailors involved, and it's their livelihoods on the line, so what happens has real bearing on real people.
Wing woes for SailGP
Let's start with the dramatic collapse of the Australian SailGP Team's wingsail and what it means for the circuit.
The incident itself was back on March 24th in San Francisco during the Race 7 pre-start. Coming in late, they'd had to dial up fast with the American team below them and the Italians just in front. They somehow managed to miss the Italian F50, but during their manoeuvring the wing collapsed aft, narrowly missing the crew on the windward hull. We analysed the collapse in this video.
In a statement from SailGP, CEO Russell Coutts said, "After thorough review, our engineers and technicians have discovered an issue with the bonding of the core material in the shear web of some of the wingsails, which could potentially compromise the structural integrity of those wingsails. As such, we've made the prudent choice to suspend next month's event, giving us sufficient time to complete repairs and conduct any further investigations."
Let's not forget this is the third wingsail to collapse in the past year, with New Zealand's Black Foils tallest rig falling at the St Tropez SailGP in mid-2024 and Martine Grael's Brazil SailGP F50 wing breaking during a training session in Bermuda.
So far, and luckily, no one has been injured in the incidents. We don't know how long the repairs and investigations will take, but SailGP is now grappling with a huge problem. The Brazilian SailGP in Rio, scheduled for May 3rd & 4th, has been cancelled, and we have no idea if they'll be ready for the New York event on June 7th & 8th.
Will the sailors have confidence in the wings and what remedial work can be completed mid season?
These boats are now five years old, or more in some cases, and have to put up with a lot of wear and tear as they're sailed hard, and then deconstructed and transported from venue to venue throughout the season. There is bound to be fatigue, and while on the road it's very hard for the technicians to do anything meaningful about it.
Time to switch to soft sails?
The question I now have is whether it is the wings themselves that are the problem and what needs to change. When an F50 capsizes the damage is considerable, plus transporting and maintaining the wings has to be an absolute pain. Could SailGP take a leaf out of the America's Cup AC75 and AC40 designs and switch to a twin skin mainsail?
This wouldn't make them impervious to mast breakages, as we saw in Barcelona with the Swiss Alinghi team dropping two rigs, but with a well-designed and, dare I say it, over spec'd mast, it would surely make them more robust.
Also there would be advantages during a capsize, as it should be possible to avoid any damage when the soft sail hits the water.
The past two America's Cup cycles using the AC75 have shown that the twin mainsail concept works and is fast, and I for one find sailing more relatable with soft sails as opposed to wings.
I know this can't be implemented mid season for SailGP, but after the initial outlay it has the potential to lower the running costs for a campaign or team, as well as making transportation and logistics much easier.
British billionaire backs out
The news that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS will not be in the 38th America's Cup is a blow to British hopes of finally winning the Auld Mug. The key to success in nearly every campaign is continuity, and it's very rare that a team wins on the first, or even the second attempt. This was Britain's most successful campaign for over 90 years, winning two races in the America's Cup match itself, so it's a real shame to stop now.
The official reasoning in the statement was the protracted negotiation with Athena Racing Ltd following the split between the two parties and that the six-month delay undermined their ability to prepare. Others may suspect it's part of the INEOS review of its sports investments and its plan to shed what it considers 'non-core assets'. It's no secret that things are going less than swimmingly for Manchester United Football Club and the INEOS Grenadiers, so this could be the perfect excuse to back out of one sport, even if it's arguably the most successful of their sporting properties.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Chairman of INEOS, said on the withdrawl, "This was a very difficult decision to have taken following our challenge at the last two America's Cups. We were the most successful British challenger in modern times with an exceptionally quick boat and we felt with the very effective input from the Mercedes F1 engineers that we had a real chance to win at the next Cup. Unfortunately, the opportunity has slipped away."
The pressure is now on Sir Ben Ainslie's Athena Racing to find the backing for a viable campaign, otherwise Britain will not be represented at the 38th America's Cup, and all that work over the past decade will be lost. So far Ben has been tight-lipped, so it really is a case of watch this space...
Where next?
The next bit of big news was that Auckland was out of the running to host the 38th America's Cup, with the New Zealand Government refusing to fund any share of the event. Word is that between 40 and 50 million NZD was asked for, with private backers and Auckland Council providing the rest, which would seem to be good value considering the economic benefits the event brings to a venue.
The New Zealand economy is going through a tough time, but the America's Cup could have brought the kind of boost which can turn things around in this sports-mad nation which is truly passionate about sailing and the Cup itself. Economic studies show that the investment would be far more than repaid, but political decisions often aren't down to common sense.
So where will the event be held? Naples in Italy, Athens in Greece and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia are said to all be in the running. The announcement needs to be made by June 20th, which is only two months away, and it's likely that negotiations will go down to the wire.
What next for Burling?
The other big news in the America's Cup world was Peter Burling's departure from Emirates Team New Zealand. The skipper is a three-time winner of the cup with the Kiwis, and will be in hot demand with other teams.
With the America's Cup current nationality requirement of 100% of the crew sailing in each race to be nationals of the country represented it's hard to see how Burling can sail for another team, but his input as a coach would be invaluable.
SailGP is taking up increasing amounts of the top sailors' time, and it may be that Burling has decided to concentrate on that, but I'd be highly surprised not to see him sign for either the Swiss or Italian teams as a coach or advisor going into the next America's Cup.
In the meantime...
Britain is enjoying a glorious spring, with a prolonged period of sunshine and wind conditions which aren't flat calm or gales, which was becoming a serious problem during the autumn and winter. I've very much enjoyed my club racing in my Laser / ILCA, and the aching limbs that come with it on the day after. I picked up a couple of wins on Sunday and felt as happy as Larry afterwards.
I regularly ask my fellow sailors if they're interested in what happens at the top end of the sport, and get the full range of responses. The foiling world of SailGP and the America's Cup may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is sailing's way of getting in the limelight in a world where everything is trying to vie for a slice of your time. Love it or hate it, it is important.
Mark Jardine
Sail-World.com and YachtsandYachting.com Managing Editor