Podcast: Escalation in sailing's most explosive feud, SailGP repairs and the race to Halifax

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The legal battle between Sir Ben Ainslie and Sir Jim Ratcliffe has taken another dramatic turn.

In this week's episode of The Foil Podcast, Andy Rice, Freddie Carr and Neil Cole dive into the latest developments in the increasingly bitter dispute over ownership of Britannia, the AC75 that carried INEOS Britannia to the 37th America's Cup Match in Barcelona.

The team unpacks a series of extraordinary allegations contained within newly filed legal documents, including claims that have now made headlines far beyond the sailing world. They examine what the dispute could mean for Britain's challenge at the 38th America's Cup in Naples, whether GB1 can remain competitive while the case unfolds, and why ownership of a single yacht could determine whether Britain makes it to the start line at all.

Freddie offers a unique perspective having raced aboard Britannia during the last America's Cup campaign, while Andy assesses the wider implications for one of the most significant rivalries sailing has seen in recent years.

Away from the courtroom, Freddie returns from the Sardinia Cup with fresh insight into the growing strength of Grand Prix offshore racing and what it could mean for the future of the sport.

The team also turns its attention to SailGP's dramatic three-boat collision in New York and the race against time to repair the damaged fleet ahead of Halifax. With exclusive insight from SailGP's technical team, they reveal how close Italy, Brazil and the United States came to missing the next event and what is happening behind the scenes to get the boats back on the water.

This video is brought to you by Musto – the brand that's been building performance sailing gear for decades, working directly with sailors pushing boats and themselves to the limit. We wear it ourselves, on and off the water.

Chapters

00:00 Intro & Sardinia Cup
05:20 America's Cup Legal Battle
19:00 The Brackley Lockout Claim
29:20 Two British America's Cup Teams?
39:10 The Tax Question
44:00 Can GB1 Still Win?
52:20 SailGP Crash Fallout
56:50 Inside the Halifax Repair Effort
1:02:00 Will All Three Boats Race?