Emirates Great Britain were the eventual winners in a final that saw all three teams hold the lead at different times. Australia’s Bonds Flying Roos led early before the Black Foils used a shift to gain the lead before the British took it halfway through the race and never gave it up.
Before the Grand Final, Denmark’s Rockwool Racing took out the Abu Dhabi event win as the leader after fleet racing while two solid Sunday fleet races saw Emirates Great Britain finish the season at the top of the Rolex SailGP Championship.
Despite the result Black Foils Co-CEO and Driver Peter Burling was immensely proud of his team.
“We’re all definitely hurting right now, but that’s what you want in these situations. If the team didn’t care about what we’re doing and the mission we’re on, we wouldn’t feel the hurt we’re feeling now. Super close, but the cards didn’t quite go our way this time. Super proud of what we’ve done this season. We definitely had our ups and downs, so we’ll keep building into next season. Its going to be super interesting how all the team transfers unfold, and we’re excited for what’s next”
Burling said the team would look to learn as much as they could from another Grand Final.
“It’s hard for us — this is our third opportunity. We’ve won plenty of the Finals, but we still haven’t managed to win a Grand Final. It’s incredibly tough when the whole season comes down to one 10-minute race but that is the Sail GP format. For us the goal is to set the benchmark across the board and give ourselves a stronger position in the Final. So we are proud of that”
Season 2026 starts in just a few weeks time as the teams head to Australia’s West Coast for the first time for the inaugural Oracle Perth Sail Grand Prix presented by KPMG. The event will be held in Fremantle on 17-18 January.
The Black Foils will get to race at home just a few weeks later as SailGP returns to Auckland for the second year in a row for the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Auckland on 14-15 February.
