Please select your home edition
Edition
Maritimo M50

2022 Great Britain Sail Grand Prix at Plymouth - Day 1

by SailGP 30 Jul 2022 12:46 PDT 30-31 July 2022

Peter Burling and his New Zealand SailGP Team produced one of the most impressive days seen on the water in SailGP, taking 28 points from a possible 30 on day one of the Great Britain Sail Grand Prix in Plymouth.

Burling took his team to three top-two finishes on Plymouth Sound to all but seal a place in the event final with two races still to be held. The other two places in the top-three are occupied by the Australian team, which claimed the day's second race, and France, who managed two top three finishes on an impressive day of racing from Quentin Delapierre.

In front of thousands lining the Plymouth coast, Sir Ben Ainslie left himself with a significant amount of work to do for tomorrow's final, as a series of poor starts saw him finish no higher than fourth in the day's racing.

But the day belonged to Burling, who said his team would remain focused on day two despite an outstanding opening to the event.

"Obviously it's nice to come out and get a fair few more points on the board than we have managed in our SailGP careers. We just made a few subtle tweaks and I think we have been showing for a long time we were getting closer to putting together a perfect day. I think we managed that today," Burling said.

As has become custom in SailGP, Australia finds itself in the top three in the standings, but driver Tom Slingsby said he felt there was a lot of room for improvement.

Slingsby said: "Today was frustrating actually, I really felt like we left a lot of points out there, to be honest. Overall the team spirit is high and I'm proud we fought back from some bad positions but it's ultimately a frustrating day."

On one of the better days on the water for the France SailGP Team, it sits third after day one, and stands a good chance of a first event final for Delapierre.

"I like our mindset, the learning curve is going well, it was a really good day for the team, I'm feeling positive," Delapierre said.

After a strong start to Season 3 it was a disappointing day for Ainslie and the Great Britain Team, but they remain in the hunt for a final appearance that would delight home fans.

Ainslie said: "It really wasn't a great day for us, we made life really, really hard for ourselves with our starts, I mean, three bad starts. We actually did a good job after that to get back in it but we have left ourselves with a ton of work to do."

Not much went right for Ainslie, with race one also involving a collision with Spain, after which Jordi Xammar's team was docked four penalty points.

"We were fighting for the bottom end of the line and so were the Spanish - we were there on the gun and they tried to come in tight and there wasn't really enough room," Ainslie said.

Day two of racing starts at 2.00pm local time and is live on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. Fans around the globe can check out how to watch where they are at sailgp.com/watch

For fans in Plymouth, a few final tickets are still available for Sunday but are selling fast, head to sailgp.com for more information. Racing is also available on SailGP's YouTube channel and app.

Day Two Racing (incl. Event Final) is scheduled for Sunday, July 31, 2-3.30pm BST. The Commonwealth Race featuring The Duchess of Cambridge racing onboard Great Britain, and Lewis Pugh - UN Ambassador for the Oceans - onboard New Zealand, will take place ahead the official day's racing.

GREAT BRITAIN SAIL GRAND PRIX, PLYMOUTH - DAY ONE STANDINGS (after 3 races):

1 // New Zealand // 28 points
2 // Australia // 22 points
3 // France // 22 points
4 // Canada // 20 points
5 // Great Britain // 19 points
6 // Denmark // 18 points
7 // Switzerland // 13 points
8 // United States // 11 points
9 // Spain // 5 points

Individual race results can be found at sailgp.com/results/season-3/season-championship

SAILGP SEASON 3 CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after two events):

1 // Australia // 20 points
2 // Canada // 17 points
3 // Great Britain // 17 points
4 // New Zealand // 12 points
5 // Denmark // 12 points
6 // France // 9 points
7 // United States // 9 points
8 // Spain // 8 points
9 // Switzerland // 4 points

Related Articles

Germany Deutsche Bank claim first SailGP event win
Race Day 2 of the Rolex Switzerland Sail Grand Prix The Germany SailGP Team presented by Deutsche Bank has entered the winners circle, claiming their first event victory at the Rolex Switzerland Sail Grand Prix in tricky, light conditions on the waters of Lake Geneva. Posted on 21 Sep
SailGP: Germany score first Event win - Day 2
The German crew led by Erik Heil sailed consistently, on a day where inconsistency was punished. Perhaps it was not surprising that in a nation known for its horology, that the time-clock should have played such a dominant role for the Final day of SailGP Switzerland. Posted on 21 Sep
SailGP: Australia on top in Geneva- Day 1
The Flying Roos (AUS) top of the leaderboard, after the first day of racing in SailGP Switzerland. The Flying Roos sit on top of the leaderboard, after the first day of racing in SailGP Switzerland. This was the first test of the new light air foils, and three races were sailed, all completed within the time limits. Posted on 21 Sep
BONDS Flying Roos in pole position in Geneva
Day 1 of Rolex Switzerland Sail Grand Prix The BONDS Flying Roos top the event leaderboard with 25 points after opening day in Geneva. All 12 international teams battled shifty, light conditions, with those able to stay up on the foils and nail the maneuvers finding themselves still in the hunt. Posted on 20 Sep
SailGP prepares for high-stakes Lake Geneva debut
A weekend of tactical, light-air racing on the horizon The Rolex Switzerland Sail Grand Prix begins tomorrow with a weekend of tactical, light-air racing on the horizon. All twelve national teams hit the water today, getting in essential practice laps in the only freshwater venue of the season. Posted on 19 Sep
SailGP: Artemis is the 13th team to join SailGP
ETNZ co-helmsman Nathan Outteridge to be the helmsman for new Swedish SailGP team. SailGP CEO Russell Coutts has announced that the Swedish team Artemis is the 13th team to join the SailGP League. The helmsman will be Nathan Outteridge, currently a co-helmsman with Emirates Team New Zealand. Posted on 19 Sep
SailGP: Brits win French event
Day 2 of the Sail Grand Prix in Saint-Tropez has been cancelled due to forecast thunderstorms Day 2 of the Rockwool France Sail Grand Prix in Saint-Tropez has been cancelled due to forecast thunderstorms expected to impact the area during scheduled racing. Posted on 13 Sep
ROCKWOOL France Sail Grand Prix Day 1
Fletcher flies high on turbulent first day Day one of the ROCKWOOL France Sail Grand Prix went the way of Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team as they topped the event leaderboard after the first four fleet races of the weekend in Saint-Tropez. Posted on 12 Sep
SailGP: Brits top leaderboard after Day 1
A squirrely 15-18kts breeze opened up plenty of opportunity for aggressive tactics. Emirates GBR topped the SailGP France leaderboard after the first day of racing in Saint Tropez. The squirrely 15-18kt breeze was distorted by the surrounding high terrain, channeling the pressure and direction, caused some dramatic switching of places. Posted on 12 Sep
Riviera racing: SailGP set for Saint-Tropez return
As league confirms 2026 expansion team plans The Rolex SailGP Championship returns tomorrow - and France's famous "Mistral [wind] has turned up just in time," according to league CEO Sir Russell Coutts. Twelve national teams will hit the startline for the sold-out event. Posted on 11 Sep
Hyde Sails 2024 - One DesignPredictWind - Routing 728x90 BOTTOMSwitch One Design