As SailGP debuts a new venue in Valencia, the championship is reaching the point where a bad weekend becomes difficult to recover from. What’s worth watching this weekend.
SailGP’s fleet arrives in Valencia this weekend as the Spain Sail Grand Prix moves to its new home after four years in Cádiz. The three-season venue commitment gives the championship a fresh stage with only three events remaining after this one, leaving little room for the teams chasing a place in the Grand Final to give away points.
Sassnitz set the tone. Racing on the Baltic Sea produced an outright SailGP speed record on day one, when DS Automobiles France reached 107.63km/h, and a day two final sailed in gusting wind and driving rain that left several athletes unable to see across the course. Australia’s BONDS Flying Roos came through it to win their fifth Grand Prix of the season, while New Zealand’s Black Foils reached their first Final of 2026, only to be penalised for failing to keep clear of Los Gallos right at the finish line.
BONDS Flying Roos extend their grip
Tom Slingsby’s crew have now won five of the season’s nine events, and their Sassnitz victory, delivered in conditions that pushed both boats and crews to their limits, only strengthened their position at the top of the table. The 14-point cushion gives Australia breathing room, but Slingsby’s crew are not yet mathematically guaranteed a place in the season-deciding Grand Final. The light winds forecast for Valencia could also level out a fleet that looks settled on paper.
Los Gallos face the pressure of Valencia’s first SailGP
Diego Botín and Los Gallos arrive in Valencia sitting second overall, 14 points off the lead, as SailGP’s Spanish event moves from Cádiz to Valencia for the first time. Botín has been careful not to overstate the advantage. “It’s a very special feeling,” he said. “We have the chance to race at home once a year, and for us and our team it’s an incredible boost. But nothing beats racing at home with all the support of the fans.”
Strategist Nicole van der Velden struck a more measured tone, pointing to the forecast light winds as a leveller. “If we have less wind the difference between the boats might not be as big, so a small technical mistake can make a big difference,” she said. “We cannot afford the smallest mistake. If we have a bad moment, it can cost us a place in the Final.”
Emirates GBR look to arrest a rough patch
The reigning champions endured another difficult weekend in Sassnitz and arrive in Valencia fourth overall on 46 points, level with the United States and 30 points behind Australia. With only three events remaining after Valencia, Dylan Fletcher’s crew face a narrowing window to rediscover the consistency that won them last year’s title. A strong result in Spain would put them back on firmer ground before the final three events.
NorthStar’s progress starts to show on the scoreboard
Few teams have made a bigger jump through the middle of the season than NorthStar Canada, who backed up their Portsmouth result with a second consecutive podium finish in Sassnitz. For driver Giles Scott, the result showed that the work behind the scenes was finally translating to the scoreboard.
“We felt like we were always stepping forward in the fleet, which is great, something that we struggled with in the past,” Scott said. For a team that spent much of the season explaining a gap between performance and results, the shift in tone has been notable. “It wasn’t too long ago that we were, every interview like this was like, ah, you know, Groundhog Day, still not getting there,” Scott said. “I feel like we were making inroads, but it wasn’t showing in the results. And now it is.”
Strategist Annie Haeger credited part of the turnaround to confidence in breezier conditions, which suited NorthStar in Sassnitz. Whether that form carries into Valencia’s lighter forecast is one of the more interesting technical questions of the weekend. “We know where our pressure point is from the competition’s perspective and we still have a lot of work to do,” she said.
Scott, a two-time Olympic gold medallist, was equally clear that NorthStar still has work to do. “We’re not there yet. We know we’ve still got a lot to work on, but again, that’s a positive thing.”
Black Foils test their depth after a heartbreaking finish
New Zealand’s near miss in Sassnitz was another step forward since the team returned to racing at Halifax in June. Co-CEO Blair Tuke described Valencia’s forecast light winds as a fresh test after Sassnitz’s extremes. “A lot of SGP is built on the work you do in between events, how quickly you can adapt to new conditions,” he said. “You want to capture the learnings from a windy event like Sassnitz, but then pretty quickly you park it and concentrate on these conditions.”
Thursday’s session also gave the Black Foils a look at their bench strength, with strategist Liv Mackay spending time driving the F50 while reserve strategist Kate Stewart stepped into her usual role.
Valencia will also be Finn Henry’s final event with the Black Foils after more than four years with the team.
The Black Foils race in Group A alongside the BONDS Flying Roos, Artemis, Explora Swiss, Emirates GBR, Red Bull Italy and Mubadala Brazil, with Los Gallos racing in Group B.
Racing runs from 1.30pm to 3pm local time on Saturday and Sunday.
