What should have been a triumphant home weekend for the Black Foils came to an abrupt and sobering halt on the Waitematā this afternoon, when a collision between two F50s brought fleet racing at the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix to a premature end.
Fleet race three had barely found its rhythm when New Zealand and DS Automobiles SailGP Team France collided heavily shortly after the start. Officials raised the red flag almost immediately. The racing day was finished.
Two sailors required hospital treatment, both taken in stable condition for assessment. Every other crew member from the two teams involved was assessed and cleared on the water. Safety boats were alongside within moments of the impact.
The sequence unfolded at alarming speed. A strengthening breeze appeared to cost the Black Foils control of their F50, sending the boat veering across the course directly into the path of the French team. The collision was severe. New Zealand's platform buckled under the force of the impact, and the France F50 rode up over the Kiwi hull. Anyone watching from the shore or the broadcast feed could see immediately that this was nothing like an incidental brush between boats.
French driver Quentin Delapierre, speaking afterwards, said both teams were "quite okay" and noted that the moment had happened so fast it remained unclear in his own mind.
Racing before the stoppage had been exactly the kind of high-voltage competition SailGP is built around. Tight starts, unpredictable pressure shifts, and boats reaching motorway speeds inside a compact race area had the Auckland crowd locked in.
Australia claimed fleet race one, then New Zealand hit back in race two with a controlled performance that had the home fans on their feet and put the Black Foils firmly in contention. The day had the feel of a genuine fight between the competition's familiar frontrunners.
Conditions were never straightforward. Gusts were punching through at around 35 km/h and the pressure across the course was patchy and inconsistent. In that kind of breeze, the F50s are extraordinarily fast but leave almost no margin for error. A small imbalance can compound into something critical within seconds, and several teams were already testing the edges of control. NorthStar dealt with wing control problems throughout, and Emirates GBR had to claw its way back from a difficult opening race before finishing second in race two. The fleet was packing in hard at the first marks. Race three never got the chance to show what it might have been.
The championship standings shifted significantly as a result. With only two races counted, France and Australia are locked together at the top on 17 points apiece. Spain sits third with 12. The Black Foils had been sitting on 10 points and well positioned before the collision, but New Zealand is now withdrawn from the remainder of the event.
Both New Zealand and France have been ruled out of Championship Sunday while damage to both boats is assessed and an investigation into the collision gets under way.
For the Auckland crowd, the afternoon served as an unsparing reminder of what these machines demand. Close to 90 km/h on the water inside a confined course leaves no room for hesitation, and the F50 has no interest in second chances.
Racing continues on the Waitematā tomorrow, though it will carry on without two of the event's headline teams, and in the shadow of a few seconds that turned a spectacular afternoon into something far more serious.
