Black Foils collide with France as day-one racing is abandoned

The question on everyone's lips was whether 13 F50s could survive being crammed into Auckland's pressure cooker. By race three, we had our answer.

The ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix – the second event of the 2026 season – promised drama from the start. This is a venue many drivers consider the toughest on the calendar, and with forecasts of up to 30 knots, the fleet strapped on their smallest 18-metre wingsails and braced for chaos. Friday's practice racing had already been scrapped due to lightning threats. The Waitematā Harbour wasn’t about to make life easy.

For the Black Foils and Spain’s Los Gallos, the stakes were even higher. Both teams arrived on zero points after their respective Perth nightmares – New Zealand's collision penalty controversy, Spain's training-day breakage – though at least their repaired F50s were race-ready.

Off the water, the headlines kept coming: American Magic's takeover of the Danish team, Russell Coutts teasing a 'SailGP 2' feeder series, and Burling revealing he'd become the first driver to rack up demerit points under the new F50 licence programme.

For the first two races, the Kiwis were flying, topping the standings on home waters. Then came race three, a horrifying collision with DS Team France, and the weekend ended for both crews.

Thirty seconds from the start, a tech glitch across the fleet forced race officials to halt proceedings, leaving 13 F50 crews hanging in limbo on a harbour already doing its best to throw them off balance.

When racing got underway shortly after, the Waitematā delivered on its promise of chaos. Gusts swirled off Auckland's CBD, creating a patchwork of pressure zones that left strategists guessing and boats tumbling off their foils at the grandstand. DS Team France grabbed the lead at mark one, but the Black Foils on home waters had snatched it back by gate two.

Then Tom Slingsby did what Tom Slingsby does. By leg five, the BONDS Flying Roos had found clean air and never looked back, cruising to a comfortable win. France held on for second, while the Kiwis just edged out a resurgent Spain for third. Meanwhile, Emirates GBR, the team to beat, finished a dismal 11th.

“We’re getting plenty of wild conditions,” said Tom Slingsby “It’s really tough out here. You guys can probably see there’s plenty of mistakes, but when there’s plenty of mistakes, there’s plenty of opportunities.”

“It’s bloody tough for Tash [Bryant, the strategist], swapping all the boats and calling crosses, and then all of a sudden the boat gets a 30-degree lift, so she’s done an amazing job. In that race, even though we won, we had moments just laying on the trampoline trying to get back up. It was a bit of a wild race.”

The two teams who sat out Perth were making a statement.

New Zealand and Spain arrived in Auckland on zero points, nursing repaired boats and wounded pride. By the halfway point of race two, they were running one-two. The Black Foils had seized the lead with a daring move at gate two after early leaders Brazil dropped off their foils, while Los Gallos hung on in second as DS Team France's Quentin Delapierre made a costly handling error that let the frontrunners break away.

It looked like vindication for both crews, but then came the final mark.

Los Gallos squeezed Artemis for room, sending Nathan Outteridge's boat tumbling off the foils as Spain crossed the line in second. The Swedes crawled to the finish in the grandstand's wind shadow, slipping down to fifth. Spain copped a penalty which put them behind in sixth. Costly for both teams.

Burling, though, was untouchable. Emirates GBR, with Fletcher pushing hard to make amends for race one, briefly threatened to steal the win, but the Kiwi driver edged back in front to cross the finish first on home waters. Emirates GBR and DS Team France completed the podium.

“Such an awesome racetrack,” said Burling straight after. “Thanks to all of those that came down, the cheering is awesome. It's a beautiful show for them, but super puffy and shifty, so you've got to make the right calls.”

Two races in, Burling was doing exactly that, with the Black Foils leading the standings.

Phil Robertson’s Red Bull Italy shot off the start to lead the pack at Mark 1, but behind them, disaster struck.

Reaching towards the first mark, with all 13 boats converging at high speed for the favoured lane, the Black Foils rose high on their foils and then suddenly lost rudder control, the rudder exiting the water and stripping the boat of steerage.

Travelling at close to 90 km/h down the course, the Kiwi F50 rotated sharply up into the wind, leaving DS Team France no realistic opportunity to keep clear. Despite an immediate reaction from Quentin Delapierre, the French boat struck the New Zealand platform as it spun across their path, resulting in severe structural damage to the Black Foils’ starboard hull and forcing the wing down, with the French boat also badly damaged in the impact.

Safety crews were on the scene immediately. All sailors were accounted for, though injuries were reported on both boats, and Race 3 was abandoned.

Race organisers released an official statement: “Racing has been abandoned following a major collision between New Zealand and France on Day One of the Auckland Sail Grand Prix. Two athletes have been treated for injuries but are in stable condition. All other crew members have been accounted for onboard.”

Some relief amid the wreckage: injuries have been reported on both teams, but all are in stable condition. We'll update you as we learn more.

For New Zealand and DS Team France, the weekend is certainly over. For everyone else, a sobering reminder of the margins at play.

Storm threats loom over tomorrow too, forcing organisers to bring racing forward to 11:30am NZT. Whatever next?

FLEET RACE 1
1 Australia
2 France
3 New Zealand
4 Spain
5 Denmark
6 Germany
7 Brazil
8 United States
9 Sweden
10 Switzerland
11Great Britain
12 Italy
13 Canada

FLEET RACE 2
1 New Zealand
2 Great Britain
3 France
4 Australia
5 Sweden
6 Spain
7 Denmark
8 Italy
9 Switzlerand
10 Canada
11 Brazil
12 United States
13 Germany

FLEET RACE 3
Race abandoned