Please select your home edition
Edition

Volvo Ocean Race: MAPFRE pulls a "fast" one in Newport

by Peter Rusch 8 May 2018 05:00 PDT 9 May 2018
MAPFRE and Team Brunel - Leg 8 from Itajai to Newport. Arrivals. 08 May, © Jesus Renedo / Volvo Ocean Race

The Spanish team MAPFRE stunned the Volvo Ocean Race fleet on Tuesday morning by stealing a win in Leg 8, with a shocking come-from-behind victory into Newport, Rhode Island.

On Monday, with just 300 miles to go, MAPFRE was in fifth place.

As Tuesday morning dawned, and with the fleet ghosting towards the finish line in extremely light and shifty winds, Xabi Fernández's team was among the leading quartet, battling in slow motion with Team Brunel, Dongfeng Race Team and Vestas 11th Hour Racing.

And even when the leaders were just 500 metres from the finish line, MAPFRE was still trailing Team Brunel as the pair emerged from the fog within sight of the spectators at the Fort Adams Race Village.

But on approach to the final turning mark, MAPFRE picked up a zephyr of wind to sneak past Brunel and claim what just moments earlier would have been seen as a very improbable leg win.

"This is unbelievable," skipper Xabi Fernández admitted moments after crossing the finish line. "I can't be happier. We were always hoping to come back a little bit but to be honest we were not expecting to win this leg, so we're super happy.

"Our hopes were always that there would be a compression so we could catch someone... Last night has been crazy how much everything has closed up and everyone on board did an amazing job."

Bouwe Bekking's Team Brunel, who had been leading for most of the past week after the equator crossing took a well-deserved second place finish.

Dongfeng Race Team, who had been ahead of the fleet on the approach to the east coast overnight Monday night, suffered the cruellest fate over the final miles.

Every break seemed to go against Charles Caudrelier's team and after being in position to claim the leg win, the team had to settle for fourth place with Vestas 11th Hour Racing storming past Caudrelier's crew in the final mile of the leg.

"This leg has had its ups and downs," said Charlie Enright, the skipper of Vesta 11th Hour Racing. "We didn't start great but we feel like we sailed pretty well for the middle two-thirds of the leg... Then with some positive input from some local knowledge, we end up back on the podium which is great."

Newport is a homecoming for Enright and Nick Dana on Vestas 11th Hour Racing as well as Mark Towill who did his college sailing nearby.

"It's awesome here," Enright said. "It's 0600 local time here and the amount of boats out is absurd. The amount of effort put in by Sail Newport and the stopover here is amazing."

The final hours were painful for the exhausted sailors but extraordinary to watch. With the wind nearly shutting down overnight on the approach to Newport, the fleet found itself pushed around by the tide and currents near shore, at times even drifting backwards, away from the finish line.

This meant there was a high degree of uncertainty. Positions were never secure until the finish line was breached by MAPFRE. No one suffered more in the final miles than Dongfeng's Caudrelier.

"We're very disappointed," he said. "We were dreaming about a victory here... But it makes me angry and I will be better on the next one. I am already focussed on the future and I promise Dongfeng will do a fantastic job on the next one."

The shocking win by MAPFRE has a huge impact on the overall race leaderboard where MAPFRE has regained the lead from Dongfeng, and now sits three points clear at the head of the table. Brunel retains the third podium position.

The light winds near the finish resulted in a massive compression in the fleet, all the way back to SHK/Scallywag who were trailing the leaders by over 130 miles just one day ago. But as MAPFRE crossed the finish line on Tuesday morning, David Witt's team was less than 20 miles behind.

Related Articles

The Ocean Race Europe will race into Portsmouth
Back in the game for the IMOCA race in the summer of 2025 The Ocean Race Europe, an offshore sailing race for the foiling IMOCA class, will include Portsmouth on the south coast of England, among its six stopovers. Posted on 16 Sep
Volvo Cars and The Ocean Race extend partnership
With a joint mission on ocean health Volvo Cars and The Ocean Race both share the strong commitment to a more sustainable future and to contribute and deliver actual change where it's needed, including in the restoration and preservation of natural ecosystems and biodiversity. Posted on 28 Aug
Franck Cammas awarded 2024 Magnus Olsson Prize
French 'sailor of the decade' is recognised for his spirit and impact on the sport Franck Cammas, the incredible French sailing champion, has earned another important accolade as he is named the winner of the 2024 Magnus (Mange) Olsson Prize. Posted on 9 Aug
Mirpuri Foundation Sailing Trophy concludes
The festival of sailing was contested by 700 sailors battling across seven classes The annual Mirpuri Foundation Sailing Trophy, which took place in Cascais, Portugal, came to a close on Sunday evening after two days of close and intense racing. Posted on 9 Jul
Mirpuri Foundation Sailing Trophy Preview
700 sailors ready to race in the 5th edition The annual Mirpuri Foundation Sailing Trophy event is set to get under way this weekend from 5 to 7 July in Cascais, Portugal. Posted on 1 Jul
Bernardo Freitas to skipper Racing for the Planet
In the Mirpuri Foundation Sailing Trophy 2024 The Mirpuri Foundation Racing Team announces that former team watch captain Bernardo Freitas (POR) will lead the Team in the 2024 edition of The Mirpuri Foundation Sailing Trophy, in July. Posted on 9 May
The Mirpuri Foundation Sailing Trophy preview
A sustainable regatta that will see sailing boats take to the Atlantic coast of Portugal Organised in partnership with the Clube Naval de Cascais, the sustainable regatta will see a large number of sailing boats take to the Atlantic coast of Portugal, to raise awareness and important funds for marine conservation programs. Posted on 24 Apr
The Ocean Race will return to Genova
A key stopover for The Ocean Race Europe in 2025 The Italian city of Genova and The Ocean Race will extend their close relationship with The Ocean Race Europe bringing a fleet of foiling IMOCA race boats to the Mediterranean port in the late summer of 2025. Posted on 24 Apr
The Ocean Race joins world leaders in Athens
Nature's Baton and the Relay4Nature connect at Our Ocean Conference The Ocean Race joined world leaders at the Our Ocean Conference 2024 at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) in Athens, Greece on Tuesday, who had gathered to advance measures to protect and restore ocean health. Posted on 17 Apr
The Ocean Race sails into Athens
For the Our Ocean Conference UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for the Ocean hands Nature's Baton to Greece's Prime Minister's Special Envoy for Oceans and Coordinator of the conference. Posted on 15 Apr
Maritimo 2023 S-Series FOOTERTrinidad and Tobago - Sail Service Stay