Denmark is top dog in Friday practice session in Valencia

Friday’s practice racing at the Spain Sail Grand Prix in Valencia offered an interesting glimpse into the 13-boat fleet’s form in light, marginal-foiling breeze.

There were three races each for Groups A and B. With conditions proving tricky to stay foiling, teams were forced to work the massive 27.5-metre wings as hard as possible to keep their boats flying above the water.

In Group B's six-boat fleet, Los Gallos looked set to run away with their side of the draw early on. Spain dominated the first two races, with Denmark finishing a distant second in both - while USA, France, Canada, and Germany scrapped amongst themselves further behind.

However, Race 3 told a very different story. Spain and France found themselves engaged in a personal match-race high above the windward end of the line, leaving both flat-footed at the gun and forcing France onto the wrong side of the start mark.

Capitalising on the chaos, Denmark nailed the start, led around Mark 1, and held on all the way to the finish line to claim the win. Canada closed fast to take second, with France crossing third - though never started properly in the first place - followed by, Spain in fourth, Germany in fifth and USA in sixth.

Consistency ultimately rewarded Denmark, whose win and two second-place finishes put Nicolai Sehested’s crew on top of Group B for the day. We saw Denmark excel in similar flat-water, light-airs conditions in Abu Dhabi last November, and maybe today’s performance is a sign of better times for the Danes as we head towards three light-airs venues at the end of the SailGP season. Spain, however, still look like the form team in Group B, the weaker of this weekend’s two fleets.

Group A’s seven-boat fleet presented a much tougher proposition. Australia predictably found their way to the front in Race 1, snatching an early lead from Switzerland. New Zealand suffered a terrible start to sit dead last off the line, but Peter Burling took a gamble by sailing opposite to the pack over the next two laps, brilliantly picking his way through to third.

The Kiwis turned their fortunes around in Race 2 with a far better start, launching into an early lead at Mark 1 and cruising to a comfortable win. Meanwhile, Australia got swallowed up by the pack down in fifth, though Tom Slingsby somehow fought back to secure second place. Brazil emerged as the surprise package of the race, climbing through the fleet to grab third. GBR had a dismal start in that second heat and opted for a radical route way below the layline to get up on the foils, surging around Mark 1 in third before fading back to fifth.

Dylan Fletcher and GBR redeemed themselves in the final race of the day, executing a vastly improved start to lead at Mark 1 and secure an easy victory ahead of Switzerland in second. New Zealand experienced the opposite fate, finishing a long way back in last to round off a rollercoaster afternoon for Burling. Beyond the results, a major talking point in Group A was the absence of Nathan Outteridge, who sat out after injuring his ankle.

British Nacra 17 Olympic medallist and World Champion John Gimson stepped in for his first day of F50 helming in a live racing environment, thrown straight into battle with very little warning. Whether Gimson remains at the wheel for Saturday and Sunday will be one of the key storylines to watch. It would be useful practice for a potential understudy driver to take Outteridge’s place while the Australian is absent on Emirates Team New Zealand skippering duty at next year’s America’s Cup in Naples.

Although practice day took place in front of empty grandstands, the colossal spectator arenas in Valencia stretch for hundreds of metres and promise a rousing reception for Diego Botin and the local team once the weekend proper gets underway. Based on what we saw today, Los Gallos look set to deliver some good news for their Spanish fans.