SailGP: Approaching Season 3 midpoint

Saint-Tropez, France (September 8, 2022) – The entire SailGP fleet took to the waters today for the first time ahead of their fifth event of the season on September 10-11.

Practice time is controlled and limited, so it is critical for the nine-strong F50 line-up to use the few hours to adapt to the venue and put to use their game plan since they competed three weeks earlier. A second practice session is planned for tomorrow afternoon.

The third season of SailGP returns to the glitz and glamour of the Côte d’Azur one year on from Japan’s Season 2 win in the French town. But with that team removed from this season due to funding woes, the focus is now on recent shifts in momentum as the teams approach the midpoint of the 11-event schedule.

New Zealand will be aiming for a third successive event win whilst reigning SailGP champions Australia will be hoping for a much improved performance than their showing in Saint-Tropez last year, when they finished a disappointing last place.

Local favorites France, meanwhile, finished second in the last event and will be eyeing a historic home win under driver Quentin Delapierre to improve their bid for a spot in this season’s Grand Final. Conversely, the Brits want to stop the slide that has them trending downward in each successive event.

Racing takes place in Saint-Tropez between 14:30-16:00 CEST (08:30-10:00 EDT) on September 10 and 11.

SailGP information – France details – Season 3 scoreboard – Facebook – How to watch

Season Three Standings (after four of 11 events)
1. Australia (Tom Slingsby), 36 points
2. New Zealand (Peter Burling), 32 points
3. Denmark (Nicolai Sehested), 28 points
4. Canada (Phil Robertson), 27 points
5. Great Britain (Ben Ainslie), 26 points
6. France (Quintin Delapierre), 24 points
7. United States (Jimmy Spithill), 19 points
8. Switzerland (Sebastien Schneiter), 11 points
9. Spain (Jordi Xammar), 11 points

2022-23 SailGP Season 3 Schedule
May 14-15, 2022 – Bermuda Sail Grand Prix presented by Hamilton Princess
June 18-19, 2022 – United States Sail Grand Prix | Chicago at Navy Pier
July 30-31, 2022 – Great Britain Sail Grand Prix | Plymouth
August 19-20, 2022 – ROCKWOOL Denmark Sail Grand Prix | Copenhagen
September 10-11, 2022 – France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez
September 24-25, 2022 – Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía – Cádiz
November 12-13, 2022 – Dubai Sail Grand Prix presented by P&O Marinas
January 13-14, 2023 – Singapore Sail Grand Prix
February 17-18, 2023 – Australia Sail Grand Prix | Sydney
March 17-18, 2023 – New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Christchurch
May 6-7, 2023 – United States Sail Grand Prix | San Francisco (Season 3 Grand Final)

Format for 2022-23 SailGP events:
• Teams compete in identical F50 catamarans.
• Each event runs across two days.
• There are three races on each day, totaling six races at each event.
• The opening five fleet races involve every team.
• The final match race pits the three highest ranking teams against each other to be crowned event champion and earn the largest share of the $300,000 prize money to be split among the top three teams.
• The season ends with the Grand Final, which includes the Championship Final Race – a winner-takes-all match race for the $1m prize.

For competition documents, click here.

Established in 2018, SailGP seeks to be an annual, global sports league featuring fan-centric inshore racing in some of the iconic harbors around the globe. Rival national teams compete in identical F50 catamarans for event prize money as the season culminates with a $1 million winner-takes-all match race.

Source: SailGP