GLOBE40
ANOTHER FIGHT FOR THE FINISH IN RECIFE
The GLOBE40 seems determined to deliver another one of its signature scenarios in Leg 5 between Valparaiso and Recife. While the CREDIT MUTUEL team of Ian Lipinski and Antoine Carpentier had a lead of up to 612 miles approaching Cape Horn over the BELGIUM OCEAN RACING – CURIUM team of Jonas Gerckens and Corentin Douguet, the 02:00 rankings today reveal a stark result for the French team: just 20 miles of their accumulated lead. Yesterday, the French team lost nearly 80 miles, stalled in a windless zone after rounding Capo Frio at a latitude close to Rio de Janeiro.
This situation was anticipated by the French team, who had been reporting it in their various posts over the past few days. Expected, but no less traumatic for this crew, who hadn’t made any real strategic errors and were sailing their Class40 to the fullest extent of their two skippers’ considerable experience. Experience has been harsh. Now they must resume a close-quarters battle, fighting for every mile, every tenth of a knot, every gust of wind. With the exception of Leg 3 between Reunion Island and Sydney, every major leg of this second edition of the GLOBE40 has delivered an exceptional sporting scenario: a 9-minute gap between the top three finishers in Reunion Island, the famous tie in Valparaiso, and now an epic comeback by one of the two leaders.
Hunter or hunted, that is the question: in this case, the Belgian hunter, after rounding Cape Horn, benefited from the perspective of those behind, allowing him to anticipate the boat in front of him when it was struggling and try to avoid it. This ascent of the South Atlantic, with its constant hazards, also provided ideal conditions for this spectacle: brutal gusts of wind, large areas of calm, unpredictable weather, all creating a realm of uncertainty that tests the nerves of every skipper at sea. The leaders have 700 miles to go before the finish in Recife, expected this weekend, and this final leg of the race will almost certainly be contested with maximum tension for each of the two leading teams.
In the Classic Class40 “pointus” class, the FREE DOM team of Thibaut Lefevere and Maxime Bourcier continues its superb run, holding a commanding lead today ahead of its long-time rival BARCO BRASIL, which itself has been threatened by the excellent WILSON, currently in second place in the pointu class. What a comeback for the Réunion-based team after their solo crossing of the Pacific following their various problems at the start in Sydney! JANGADA RACING and WHISKEY JACK remain in the group of Class40s that have been inseparable, alternating rankings for several weeks. And to demonstrate the same level of competition, the competitors in the Classic Class40 fleet are within 120 miles of each other after 5,000 miles covered since the start in Chile.
The German team NEXT GENERATION will soon join the fray for the final leg, having arrived today in Recife from Cape Town.
