A focused and re-energised Denmark SailGP Team presented by ROCKWOOL secured two podium finishes to match its best ever result in a SailGP event, on Race Day 2 of the Bermuda Sail Grand Prix.
The team – led by driver Nicolai Sehested – fought back from a disappointing opening day to finish fourth overall, running the make up of the final three race to the wire following a thrilling performance on the Great Sound.
A third placed spot in Race 4 saw the Danes start the Sunday strong, but it could have been a better result, if not for a mistake on the final tack into the finish that saw the red boat fall back to third after battling with New Zealand SailGP Team for the win.
“We’re very disappointed with yesterday, which cost us a lot of points. We know that performance was below our level, but today we showed we can do better, and we almost made the final.
He continues: “Today was much better, and we showed what we are capable of. Everything came together. We actually could have done even better, had it not been for that bad gybe in Race 4. We just couldn’t get the board on the lock – if that happens, you lose a lot of pressure.”
This weekend was the first time that SailGP has featured nine boats on the start line, and the added competition was felt from the off, with reduced space around the course.
Reigning champions Australia took the victory with a faultless final race, as Great Britain came up second.
Canada SailGP Team, featuring driver Phil Robertson, took third place in its first Sail Grand Prix – and with the performance level increasing all the time, Sehested believes that opportunities to improve are getting smaller.
“The million dollar question is, how do you get better in the F50, without training time in the F50? I think it comes down to the preparation,” explains Sehested.
“We have data, we have replays – you just can’t afford to make mistakes that you could’ve avoided if you’d prepared better, when you’re in a competition as tough as this. You’ll always make some mistakes when racing – it’s high pressured and fast-moving – but if you could’ve avoided them, that’s not acceptable.”
