Overnight (UTC) the fleet gybed and Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag went into Stealth Mode as the teams pick their lane for the final sprint to Cape Town.
© Ugo Fonolla/Volvo Ocean Race
Xabi Fernández’s MAPFRE retains the lead, some 25-miles ahead of Dongfeng and Vestas 11th Hour Racing who are the closest match in the among the front pack. The battle for second place is one to watch.
“We are finally back on starboard tack after another healthy stint on port,” wrote Simon Fisher from Vestas 11th Hour Racing. “Having put in our final gybe it feels like we really are now on the final stretch into Cape Town. It has been fun having some fast sailing for the last few days but we are now leaving the cold front that has been speeding us east and are into a tricky night of sailing as we transition from the westerlies to a southerly wind. The wind shift as always looks nice and smooth on the grib files but in reality, i’m sure it will be anything but. Most likely some rain, squally winds and a sudden shift will find us in a rush to change sails. However, for us this spells opportunity.
“We may have lost the drag race against Dongfeng in the windy conditions but we have managed to reel them back in as things have moderated. We have been able to see them just 5 to 6 miles ahead… Having matched them into a gybe onto starboard how we play this next section of the race course could determine whether we get a chance to haul them back in.”
The boat that seems in the most stable position is probably Team Brunel in fourth place, too far back to push into a podium finish but well ahead of the three chasing.
“The boats ahead of us should have stretched more as they were still able to ride the front that little bit longer,” skipper Bouwe Bekking concedes. “We unfortunately can’t change that. But it ain’t over until you are finished, even though it looks pretty straightforward.”
Behind, the big move came from the Scallywags who elected to engage Stealth Mode last night. At the time, they had moved up to fifth place, ahead of Turn the Tide on Plastic and AkzoNobel. They will reappear on the 1900 UTC position report today.
