The Foil Weekly Wrap - 16 Feb '26

SailGP dominated the news this week – and not always for the right reasons. Plus a few other things are happening in the sailing world too…

Australia land another Auckland victory – Tom Slingsby's Flying Roos claimed their second consecutive Auckland Grand Prix win, overhauling Emirates GBR in a tense three-boat final that also featured Los Gallos. The victory moves Australia to the top of the Season 6 standings, level on points with Ben Ainslie's British crew after just two events.

Injuries overshadow racing – But nobody was celebrating too hard. Black Foils grinder Louis Sinclair underwent surgery for compound fractures to both legs following Saturday's horrifying collision with France, while French strategist Manon Audinet remains under observation after being thrown forward through the port-side steering wheel at the moment of impact. Both are stable, but the injuries cast a long shadow over what should have been a triumphant weekend of racing.

Season 6 dreams all but over – For the Black Foils, the situation is looking pretty dire. With the F50 repairs potentially running into the millions and a timeline stretching into months rather than weeks, there's no chance of them making Sydney – and even Rio in April looks like a long shot. Two points from two events, a decimated boat, and their home crowd still in shock. This wasn't how Season 6 was supposed to go.

Split fleets work, but points don't add up – The decision to split the remaining eleven boats into two groups for Sunday's racing was vindicated almost immediately – within 30 seconds of the first start, Italy lost grip and spun up into the breeze, exactly as New Zealand had done the day before. But with more space on the course, disaster was avoided. The format works, but the points allocation, with Sunday's races worth only half of Saturday's, maybe didn’t. Teams complained that the maths meant lower-ranked crews couldn't reach the final regardless of Sunday's results.

Bidding wars threaten City of Sails – This was the final event under SailGP's original four-year deal with New Zealand Major Events, and Auckland is not currently confirmed for 2027. Cities around the globe are clamouring to host events, and reports indicate that Auckland is struggling to match the fees being offered elsewhere.

F50 licences arrive – In a move borrowed straight from Formula 1, SailGP has introduced a super licence system requiring athletes to meet minimum standards for each role on the F50. And alongside those licences come demerit points – with Pete Burling the first driver to receive them, picking up three for the Perth collision with Switzerland. Once an athlete hits 15, they face suspension. Whether he copped any further demerits after this weekend's crash with France remains unclear.

American Magic enters SailGP – With everything else happening, the news that Doug DeVos's American Magic organisation had acquired Rockwool Racing for $60 million feels like it happened a month ago. The DeVos family – owners of the NBA's Orlando Magic – have pivoted from America's Cup campaigns to SailGP, though the current crew stays put and Rockwool remains as title sponsor through 2032. Terry Hutchinson insists the focus is on supporting the existing crew, not Americanising the operation. Nicolai Sehested remains at the helm and at least three Danish athletes must be on board per the nationality rules.

Investors continue to pile into SailGP – Germany's SailGP team announced a raft of new minority shareholders including David Blitzer's Bolt family office and Blue Pool Capital, joining existing owners Thomas Riedel and Sebastian Vettel. The four-time F1 world champion sees plenty of parallels with his former sport: high-tech, data-driven, with extremely fine margins. After this weekend's drama, he might add another comparison – the jeopardy is very, very real.

The 38th America's Cup preliminary regatta schedule is now set, with teams arriving in Cagliari from 5 May to establish their bases at the Military Port. Expect AC40s on the water from 16 May, with an official practice day on the 21st before four fleet races on Friday 22nd, another four on Saturday, and three more on Sunday before a winner-takes-all match race final. The Race Village opens on the evening of the 21st with a presentation of all teams – the first time we’ll see the lineups this cycle.

Emirates Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa look set to be the first teams to get their modified AC75s on the water for AC38. Taihoro – the Kiwis' winning boat from Barcelona – completed a stealthy 4am transfer across Auckland's Harbour Bridge to the team's Wynyard Quarter base, where it will be fitted out before sea trials in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, Luna Rossa's 'Boat 3' has been in Cagliari since late November undergoing its own modifications. The other three challengers appear further behind, with little known about Alinghi's AC75 status and the French and British teams still working towards their own timelines. Whoever launches first makes a bold statement – and right now, it looks like a two-horse race.

Britain's Jonny Rogers claimed victory at the 36th Palamós International Optimist Trophy – one of the benchmark regattas on the international youth sailing calendar – after a superb final-day fightback. Rogers went into Sunday in third place behind overnight leader Will Keilty of Canada, but posted results of 2-1-5 to overhaul the field and finish on 11 points. Brazil's Manuel Bragança took second with American Briggs Kossmann in third, while Keilty slipped to fourth after a costly final day. With 360 entries from 23 countries, events like this are where the next generation of professional sailors cut their teeth – some of them could be racing F50s and AC75s a decade from now.

After frustrating delays, the 2026 Eurocup 29er in Valencia finally kicked into gear on day four when conditions cooperated – 18-25 knots from the northwest delivered some proper racing. France's Alexandre Mostini and Raphaël Allain, representing SNO Nantes, wasted no time in asserting their dominance, winning all four races to take overall victory with just 3 points after discards. The battle for the remaining podium places was far tighter, with Italy's Emilia Salvatore and Pietro Rizzi edging out the Spanish Codoñer brothers from the host club on countback, both teams finishing on 4 points.

Leg 5 of the GLOBE40 round-the-world race for Class40s departs Valparaiso, Chile, on Wednesday, sending the fleet on a roughly 4,300-mile dash to Recife, Brazil – and crucially, a rounding of Cape Horn. This is the doublehanded round-the-world race that sits below the headline glamour of the Vendée Globe and The Ocean Race but delivers serious offshore drama for a fraction of the budget. Belgian crew Belgium Ocean Racing–Curium and France's Crédit Mutuel have been locked in a breathtaking battle for the overall lead, with Leg 4 from Sydney producing a finish separated by just 59 seconds after 7,000 miles. If you haven't been following, now's the time to tune in.

The 70th Finn Gold Cup wraps up in Brisbane on Thursday, and Norway's Anders Pedersen looks unstoppable. Four races, four wins – including two on a hairy day when gusts of 28 knots sent over half the fleet swimming on the first downwind. Italy's Alessandro Marega holds second with Australia's Anthony Nossiter third. The weather is expected to ease as the regatta enters its final days, which might be the only thing that gives anyone else a chance.