Inside overlaps

Where do you think I stand on this one?

Laser fleet racing, in force 2-3, approaching leeward mark on run;

Group of six or seven boats clear ahead of me, about to round mark....Obvious to me that as the inside boat gybes to round, that all the other boats will also gybe and fall to leeward and outside...... leaving an inviting gap inside for me to gybe clean through on...... Only that another boat (X) outside of me, that I DO have an overlap on, gybes onto me and goes for the gap as well.....Whilst one of us IMHO could have got through cleanly, both can't! I touch mark, and bump gunwhales, with  boat X, who in turn bumps gunwhales with the other earlier group of boats now to leeward.

Who do you think is in the wrong?

Well thank you all,

This is how I saw it;

Jim C is entirely right to point out case 63.

Boat X DIDN'T have an inside overlap on the group of boats ahead (Mike Ellis).

I didn't call for water from boat X, as I was clearly inside overlapped AND both of us on starboard gybe, him being windward boat as well. Boat X had every opportunity to sail round the outside of the group in front and should have been prepared to give me room for the same option as well. I don't think you have to anticipate another boat breaking a rule(s). Had I called for water this could have easily been misinterpreted by the group in front as calling them, which I wasn't entitled to do! (lukepiewalker).

In the event, outside (overlapped) windward boat X, gybed onto port in front of me. He must have broken a rule there! I gybed onto port to miss him, which took me into the gap at the mark, only being 1 3/4 boats wide, there was an inevitable bump of gunwhales. I must say at this point, if the wind conditions had been much stronger I would have been forced to duck above the mark to avoid serious collision between boats.

I chose to strike the mark (passing it the correct side), in order to give all the boats to leeward as much room as possible to avoid contact. Boat X was sandwiched between me and the right of way boats to leeward.

I was of the same opinion as Mike Ellis, that without Boat X, I would have made the gap cleanly, and it was only by the actions of boat X that I was 'compelled' to break a rule(s)

In the heat of it all, one of the leeward, right of way boats (rightly feeling aggrieved) focussed on me as the transgressor, and called 'protest'. Boat X meanwhile sailed off scot free!

Bearing in mind case 63, and as elmo points out, the onus would have been on me to prove I would have passed gap cleanly (a very difficult thing to prove), I begrudgingly took a 2 turn penalty to exonerate myself.

I never did identify boat X.

NOW should the leeward, right of way boat have protested boat X in the first instance rather than me, since it was he that made contact, rather than me?