Sydney Harbour delivered its most testing race—not by speed but by decisions made in slow racing conditions—of the weekend in Race 6 of the 2026 SailGP Sydney event, with the United States controlling a slow, tactical contest that reshaped the standings ahead of the final fleet race.
Before Race 6, Spain’s Los Gallos, helmed by Diego Botín, led the event on 41 points. Emirates GBR and Australia’s BONDS Flying Roos were tied on 33, with the United States on 30 and Artemis close behind on 29. The margins for second and third were narrow which added pressure to the racing.
By mid-afternoon, the breeze had fallen into the low single digits. The 27.5 metre wing and light air T foils were selected. With speeds struggling, teams reduced to four athletes onboard to minimise weight. There was very little sustained foiling ride time. The F50s remained in displacement mode most of the race.
In these conditions, any breeze was a blessing. Finally, the United States found space through the centre and built just enough separation to control the first beat. Nothing explosive.
Low winds bring their own problems. Switzerland encountered pre start trouble. Sweden was penalised early. Protests flickered through the fleet as boats fought for room in light airs; you’d think they couldn’t make mistakes but recovery in light airs proved difficult. Germany found a good position and held second. ROCKWOOL Racing capitalised on focused sailing to move into third.
Spain recovered steadily to finish fourth, preserving valuable points. Mubadala Brazil placed fifth and Australia sixth. Emirates Great Britain slipped to seventh after tight engagements cost them forwards momentum. Italy finished eighth, Artemis ninth, NorthStar tenth and Switzerland eleventh.
Race 6 points saw the United States take 10, Germany 9 and Denmark 8, with Spain collecting 7 to maintain their overall lead.
One races down. One race to go until the event final.
2026 SailGP Sydney Race 6 results
| POS | TEAM | DRIVER | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | U.S. SailGP Team | Taylor Canfield | 10 |
| 2 | Germany by Deutsche Bank | Erik Heil | 9 |
| 3 | ROCKWOOL Racing | Nicolai Sehested | 8 |
| 4 | Los Gallos | Diego Botín | 7 |
| 5 | Mubadala Brazil | Martine Grael | 6 |
| 6 | BONDS Flying Roos | Tom Slingsby | 5 |
| 7 | Emirates GBR | Dylan Fletcher | 4 |
| 8 | Red Bull Italy | Phil Robertson | 3 |
| 9 | Artemis | Nathan Outteridge | 2 |
| 10 | NorthStar | Giles Scott | 1 |
| 11 | Switzerland | Sébastien Schneiter | 0 |
| 12 | Black Foils | Peter Burling | 0 |
| 12 | DS Team France | Quentin Delapierre | 0 |
Event results after Race 6
| POS | TEAM | DRIVER | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Gallos | Diego Botín | 48 |
| 2 | U.S. SailGP Team | Taylor Canfield | 40 |
| 3 | BONDS Flying Roos | Tom Slingsby | 38 |
| 4 | Emirates GBR | Dylan Fletcher | 37 |
| 5 | Red Bull Italy | Phil Robertson | 33 |
| 6 | Artemis | Nathan Outteridge | 31 |
| 7 | Germany by Deutsche Bank | Erik Heil | 27 |
| 8 | Mubadala Brazil | Martine Grael | 26 |
| 8 | ROCKWOOL Racing | Nicolai Sehested | 26 |
| 10 | Switzerland | Sébastien Schneiter | 17 |
| 11 | NorthStar | Giles Scott | 7 |
| 12 | Black Foils | Peter Burling | 0 |
| 12 | DS Team France | Quentin Delapierre | 0 |
