Three-time SailGP champions Australia became ‘complacent’ at the beginning of Season 4 but have ‘learned lessons’ from Los Angeles , driver Tom Slingsby has said.
Speaking in Saint-Tropez at a pre-event press conference, Slingsby said the Aussies ‘should have won the LA Final’.
“Australia versus Spain and ROCKWOOL Denmark - on paper we should win that one,” he said, admitting that ‘complacency got hold of us a little.’
“We felt we were sailing really well and we’ve just got to get off the line even and we’d beat those guys.”
He added that the team’s third place finish was ‘a shock to the system’ and meant the Aussies would be ‘more aggressive’ should they make the Saint-Tropez Final.
“We’ve learned some lessons from being a bit too conservative in that Final and we’ve got to change our ways (…) we’ve really got to nail those opportunities when we get them.”
Looking ahead to this weekend’s racing, Slingsby admitted that the venue of Saint-Tropez has historically been a ‘bogey one’ for the Flying Roos.
In Season 2, the team finished 8th at the back of the fleet in Saint-Tropez, while in Season 3, they finished 5th. “Saint-Tropez was our worst event in Season 2 & 3, and we all acknowledge that we aren’t comfortable here,” he said.
In preparation for the event, the team has been rewatching Saint-Tropez replays from past seasons.
As hard as it is to watch the racing where you get your arse kicked - we’ve gone back and watched that to figure out why we were losing so badly,” he said. “We’ve got to figure out this venue, the wind shifts and how the racecourse works and do a better job this season.
The France Sail Grand Prix | Saint Tropez will take place on September 9-10, with racing scheduled between 1.30pm- 3pm CEST. Full broadcast and how to watch details can be found HERE.
