Yes, you read that correctly . . . Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team top the leaderboard after 3 Fleet Races on Day 1 at the Canada SailGP.
Now the question is, can they stay at the top and take their first win with driver Giles Scott?
This turn-round came after Ben Ainslie felt forced to issue a statement ahead of the SailCanada Grand Prix . . . ‘For the record. Rumours about Giles Scott future in SailGP are way wide of the mark. He has mine and the teams full support. Bring on race day @EmiratesGBRSGP.’
Scott and the Emirates Great Britain team were the most consistent team across the day with a 3-5-2 record to top the table with 23 points.
This outstanding showing put Emirates GBR ahead of New Zealand on 22 pts and ROCKWOOL Denmark a further point back after the first day of racing.
The Kiwis also failed claim a race win despite their placement in second, but the Danes did secure an emphatic victory in Race 2, following Spain’s win in the opening race.
Race 3 winners were Australia who will be pleased to have claimed a victory having started the day very poorly, finishing eighth then sixth before beating Emirates GBR and Canada to the finish line in the final race of the day.
Hosts Canada turned things around, following a seventh-place finish in the opening race with two third places to see Phil Robertson’s team well in the hunt for a podium finish and qualification for Sunday’s winner-takes-all Final.
The points are tight, just three points covering the top five teams and then the next two, Australia and France only two points off the leading pack.
Day 2 has two further Fleet Races scheduled for Sunday and the congestion at the top of the table means we coud see a complete change with not a single team yet secured qualification for the winner-takes-all Final.
SailGP Canada Day 1 (1 June) Leaderboard after 3 races:
