Australia defends Auckland SailGP title, moves to points lead amid safety concerns

Australia’s BONDS Flying Roos successfully defended their Auckland SailGP crown and moved to the top of the Season 6 standings after a weekend that combined high drama on the water with serious safety questions off it. Led by driver and CEO Tom Slingsby, the Australian crew overtook Emirates Great Britain and Spain mid‑race in the winner‑takes‑all Podium Final to claim their second consecutive event win in Auckland and, after two events, sit level on 19 points with Emirates GBR but top the leaderboard on countback.

The Podium Final was contested by Australia, Great Britain and Spain in gusts reported at up to 45 km/h (24 knots), and the league’s top teams pushed speeds in excess of 48 knots during the three‑boat sprint. Slingsby described the conditions: “It’s huge for us to come away with the win here. It’s been a year since our last event victory, so it’s been a long time between drinks. We’ve been sailing really well, and it’s nice to be rewarded for that. In those three‑boat Finals anything can happen so to win the event points score and go into the Final feeling confident made a big difference.” He added detail on the start and the decisive pass: “There was a lot of wind in the pre‑start and it was difficult to build momentum. At the start, I was just focused on staying on our feet and out of trouble. Spain got ahead early and kept it close but we managed to make the pass at the top mark. It was a great race - tight the whole way and we executed when it mattered.”

Safety issues overshadowed Saturday’s racing when a high‑profile collision sidelined New Zealand and France. “Two athletes – the Black Foils’ grinder Louis Sinclair and DS Team France’s strategist Manon Audinet – were hospitalized following the Saturday incident. Both are in a stable condition.” SailGP confirmed Louis Sinclair underwent surgery and is recovering well following surgery. SailGP Technologies has deployed an expert team to assess the damaged F50s and determine how and when they can be fixed, and organisers introduced a split‑fleet format for day two as part of the event response. A related post headline read: “SailGP – New Zealand and France ruled out of Sydney Grand Prix.”

The intensity of the racing was underlined by Sailweb telemetry: in fleet racing the NorthStar recorded 55 knots (102 km/h) at one point, just shy of the SailGP all‑time speed record of 56 knots (103.93 km/h). Teams operate F50s in a standard configuration with four wingsail sizes - 18m, 24m, 27.5m and 29m - two T‑foil daggerboards (high‑speed and low‑speed) and one set of rudders with high‑speed and low‑speed settings. Glenn Ashby stepped in as a ‘super sub’ for injured wing trimmer Iain Jensen and earned Athlete of the Day honours across Saturday and Sunday.

Season stakes remain high as the circuit moves on: “Season 6 Results (after 2 of 13 events) 1. Australia, Tom Slingsby (AUS), 2-1 2. Great Britain, Dylan Fletcher (GBR), 1-2 3. Spain, Diego Botin (ESP), 12-3 4. France, Quentin Delapierre (FRA), 3-4 5. Artemis, Nathan Outteridge (AUS), 4-5 6. Germany, Erik Heil (GER), 9-6 7. United States, Taylor Canfield (USA), 5-7 8. Denmark, Nicolai Sehested (DEN), 8-8 9. New Zealand, Peter Burling (NZL), 13-9 10. Canada, Giles Scott (CAN/GBR), 6-10 11. Switzerland, Sébastien Schneiter (SUI), 11-11 12. Brazil, Martine Grael (BRA), 10-12 13. Italy, Phil Robertson (NZL), 7-13” A total of USD $12.8 million is up for grabs in 2026. The winner of each of the 13 events takes home $400,000, with $260,000 for second and $140,000 for third. The team with the most points at the end of the season wins $400,000, while the team that wins the Championship Final Race wins USD $2 million.

The weekend capped “a fiercely contested weekend in front of thousands of fans,” but with two sailors hospitalised, damaged F50s under technical assessment and New Zealand and France sidelined, the series heads to Sydney with podium momentum and operational questions unresolved. The Auckland final took place on Sunday, Feb 15, 2026, and organisers and teams face urgent follow‑ups on medical updates, repair timelines and the implications for the Sydney Grand Prix.