Team AkzoNobel and Team Brunel were racing practically neck and neck
on Sunday as the Volvo Ocean Race fleet geared up for a nail-biting Leg 9
finale. With less than 300 miles remaining
to the finish line in Cardiff, Wales, the two Dutch boats were just two
miles apart at the front of the seven-strong fleet and matching each
other for speed.
Having broken free of the clutches
of a high-pressure ridge west of Ireland that halted their fast progress
across the Atlantic, the fleet faces one last hurdle – a cyclone off
Land’s End, the most westerly point of England.
The depression will force the teams
to sail upwind, tacking to take what they believe is the quickest route
to the finish line. There will be an enhanced emphasis on tactics, sail
selection and above all team work on the final miles to the finish.
Having had victory snatched from
them at the last minute in Leg 8, Brunel are out to exact revenge on
rivals MAPFRE and Dongfeng Race Team by defeating them in Leg 9.
At 1300 UTC Dongfeng were 32 miles behind them in third, with MAPFRE in fifth some 87 miles off the pace.
Brunel’s veteran skipper Bouwe
Bekking said that with the two red boats taken care of, his crew would
then set their sights on overhauling AkzoNobel in pursuit of their
second leg win this edition.
“The finish looks tricky – we have
to manage a low-pressure system just off Land’s End, England that means
upwind sailing and tacking eventually, then one more park-up before
sailing into the finish,” Bekking said.
“We expect Dongfeng will push hard
south east as it’s their only way to have a chance to gain mileage on
us. But it can be tricky for them as well – if they get caught in the
low, it means no pressure.
“We can't control them if we’re
sailing in a different weather pattern, so we can’t think too much about
that. We have to make the right moves for what is the best for us.
“Objective number one for this leg was, and is, beating the two red busses, so that hope for overall victory is still alive.
“Let’s make that happen first and we feel we can pass the leader as well.”
AkzoNobel were equally fired up for the final fight in Leg 9.
“We’re ready for a long match race,
potentially all the way to the finish line,” AkzoNobel’s Chris Nicholson
said. “Everyone’s up for it.”
As well as the regular battle
between the seven teams, a personal scrap between the race’s two Welsh
sailors – Bleddyn Mon on Turn the Tide on Plastic and Trystan Seal on
Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag – has developed, with each looking for bragging
rights sailing into their home country.
“There are two Welshmen in the race
and the race is on between them. We have Bleddyn Mon and Scallywag have
Trystan Seal and we are racing to bring a local hero home,” said Dee
Caffari, skipper of sixth-placed Turn the Tide on Plastic.
“I am sure both will be Welsh
celebrities by the end of the stopover but this is now about bragging
rights and we need to find our victories somewhere, however large or
small.”
The Race Village in Cardiff
officially opened on Sunday morning. The Welsh city becomes just the
third port in the UK to host the Volvo Ocean Race, after Southampton and
Portsmouth.
Current ETAs have the leading group
finishing late Monday night and into the early hours of Tuesday morning,
with the rest of the fleet following throughout the day.
Volvo Ocean Race – Leg 9 – Leaderboard (13:00 UTC)
1. team AkzoNobel – Distance To Finish: 299.9 nautical miles
2. Team Brunel – 2.2 nautical miles behind
3. Dongfeng Race Team – 32.8 nautical miles behind
4. Vestas 11th Hour Racing – 60.2 nautical miles behind
5. MAPFRE – 87.3 nautical miles behind
6. Turn the Tide on Plastic – 143.0 nautical miles behind
7. Sun Hung Kai / Scallywag – 255.4 nautical miles behind
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