Sled's grip on the 52 SUPER SERIES Sailing Week standings tightened further after day three at Puerto Portals, yet the racing itself painted a more complicated picture: a fleet so evenly matched that any crew could threaten at any moment. Teasing Machine and Crioula each claimed a race win, injecting fresh names into a conversation that Takashi Okura's Sled had been dominating. Six races in, Sled holds a nine-point buffer, with Provezza and Platoon Aviation locked together on 34 points and the Brazilian entry Crioula sitting just one point further back.
A north-easterly breeze, gusting to 18 knots but never quite easy to read, provided the backdrop for two absorbing races. The first went to Eric de Turckheim's Teasing Machine, which had endured two difficult days before finally finding its form. Running alongside Alpha+ and Sled, the French boat identified pressure building on the right side of the course and made the most of it. Alkedo made a messy start with an early recall but stormed back to fourth by the first mark, progress that stalled as the three leaders established clear air and rhythm, with Trinity Racing also advancing through the fleet.
The second race was Crioula's. The Plass brothers' Brazilian entry read a subtle wind rotation better than anyone, rounding the top mark first and leaving Provezza, Alegre and No Way Back to contest the places behind. Sled, consistent as ever, held second. Tactics caller Samuel Albrecht was clear about what had made the difference. "In the first race we wanted to go right but got blocked," he said. "In the second, we had a clear plan. Once the pin stabilised, I knew we could win. When you're ahead, everything gets simpler."
Six races in, the pattern points to a fleet of genuine balance. A poor start, a misread shift, a moment of hesitation at a mark can unravel a race before it has properly begun. Platoon Aviation's Víctor Marino reflected on how that reality is reshaping tactical thinking. "Jordi Calafat and Vasco Vascotto have been working hard on how to structure races differently with 14 boats," he said. "The fleet is so even, though a couple of boats stand out for pure pace, Alkedo and Sled among them."
Francesco Bruni, calling tactics aboard Sled, identified the start as the defining weapon of the regatta so far. "The team has worked brilliantly on positioning and attacking the line. When you're fast, that helps you reach the wind shifts. Today it was about finding the right jumps." That composure was tested when a collision penalty at the leeward mark cost the crew significant ground, yet their recovery points to depth and poise under pressure.
Albrecht gave a straightforward account of Crioula's progress, noting that the lighter range between 8 and 11 knots still presents challenges for his crew, while above 12 knots they are far more at home. He also pointed to a significance beyond the racing itself. "Having another Brazilian boat here helps grow our sailing movement back home," he said. "Every day we learn from the bow to the shore team and take it back to Brazil."
Two racing days remain before Saturday, when the first seasonal leader of the series will be crowned. On the evidence of this week, the battle is wide open.
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