Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team triumphed in practice racing ahead of the first ever Oracle Los Angeles Sail Grand Prix this weekend, while Erik Heil’s Germany stunned with a second place finish.
The league’s fleet of hydrofoiling catamarans hit the water on Friday, undertaking three fleet practice races and a three boat Final, ahead of racing beginning in earnest on July 22 & 23.
Teams had to navigate Los Angeles’s tricky tight racecourse and light wind conditions of just 10 km/h, but it was Emirates GBR which dominated with 1-7-1 race results to secure a place in the three-boat Final.
It comes after Ben Ainslie’s team also triumphed in practice racing ahead of the Mubadala SailGP Season 3 Grand Final in San Francisco - while practice was called off in Chicago due to high winds.
The shock of the day however was another solid performance from Erik Heil’s new German team. Germany picked up consistent 3-1-7 fleet results - netting its first ever race win in the second race of the day. The rankings secured the team a place in the rehearsal Final - going head to head against Emirates GBR and Nicolai Sehested’s Denmark. Tactical nous, solid boat handling and smooth maneuvers saw Heil overtake Sehested’s team to place second overall.
Elsewhere, it was a lackluster showing from season champions Australia, which finished the day with 4-6-5 finishes, while Peter Burling’s New Zealand - which won the Chicago event - finished with 10-3-9 results.
The leaderboard will be reset when official racing gets underway at 16:00 PDT on July 22 & 23. Full broadcast information and How To Watch details are HERE.
