Please select your home edition
Edition
C-Tech 2021 (Spars-QFX Racer) 728x90 TOP

SailGP: F50's sent for wingsail checks

by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World.com/nz 10 Apr 00:20 PDT
Australia drop their wingsail - pre-start - Race 7 - Race Day 2- Oracle San Francisco SailGP - March 23, 2025 - San Francisco © Simon Bruty/SailGP

Reports by Brazilian newspaper OGlobo's website that the SailGP fleet has been diverted "to a shipyard" for wingsail checks, have been confirmed.

The Brazil SailGP event has been cancelled. The event, the first in Brazil was scheduled to take place from May 3-4.

Writing in the century old newspaper, Lauro Jardim reports: "The cancellation was due to an accident during the San Francisco stage in California, where the Australian boat suffered a broken mast. As a precautionary measure, the organization decided to send all vessels to a shipyard to check for possible structural failures"

In an official statement issued by the League over 12hrs after the appearance of the story, 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."

Three wingsails have collapsed inside 12 months, with no report on the failures issued by SailGP. The F50s have three sizes of wingsail - 18m, 24m and 32m. The bottom section is constant in all three with the other heights being achieved by adding sections.

The first to collapse was the Black Foils (NZ) in St Tropez in mid-2024, when the big 32m rig toppled under no real load after a race. The second was Martine Grael's Brazil SailGP F50 at a training session in Bermuda. Tom Slingsby's Flying Roos dropped their wingsail after a sharp luff to starboard during the San Franciso SailGP. As a fleet, the F50s were fitted with new T-Foils in January 2025.

To date no-one has been injured by the collapsing wingsails.

Several wingsails were damaged in an incident when a wingsail was caught in a violent gust of wind, as it was being lifted off the F50, in Sydney in January 2024 . The rogue wingsail did a lot of damage, striking a tent being used to store other wingsails.

The F50 wingsailed catamarans were designed and developed for the 2017 America's Cup in Bermuda, with most being built at the Core Builders Composites facility at Warkworth about an hour north of Auckland, NZ. The current fleet of 12 consists of a mix of new boats built for SailGP, or others repurposed from the 2017 America's Cup. The latest addition to the fleet was the former Emirates Team NZ America's Cup winner, built by the New Zealand team.

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
Mackay Boats 728x90 BOTTOMRooster 2025RS Sailing 2021 - FOOTER