Rolex Los Angeles Sail Grand Prix begins tomorrow
by SailGP 15 Mar 2025 00:55 GMT
March 15-16, 2025
ROCKWOOL Denmark SailGP Team ahead of Australia SailGP Team, Canada NorthStar SailGP Team, New Zealand SailGP Team, and Switzerland SailGP Team during a practice session ahead of the Rolex Los Angeles Sail Grand Prix © Simon Bruty for SailGP
The most exciting racing on water returns to Los Angeles tomorrow, with a 12-nation fleet competing for the very first time. The weekend is the first of three home events for the U.S. SailGP Team, including back-to-back stopovers in Los Angeles (March 15-16) and San Francisco (March 22-23).
"It's such an honor to race in your home country, in front of a home crowd," said U.S. SailGP Team driver Taylor Canfield, "It gives me the chills just thinking about it. We're ready for the opportunity, we're pumped. I hope everyone is excited and here to cheer us on."
After a commanding win in Sydney, Australia, a new team leads the fleet heading into the Rolex Los Angeles Sail Grand Prix. Emirates Great Britain driver Dylan Fletcher said, "It's been a great start to the season - three events and three podiums, and to get the win in Sydney, where it all started for me in SailGP was fantastic."
But with three different winners across as many events, the 2025 Season leaderboard remains anyone's game. "There's no denying that the Kiwis, Aussies and Spanish are some of the strongest teams out there," said Fletcher. "The Spanish winning last season and the Kiwis winning on season points before that. All teams are pushing hard coming to this double header on this small, tight racecourse. It's really exciting to get out there and compete against the best in the world."
Unfolding over two action-packed days of racing, the Rolex Los Angeles Sail Grand Prix will see yet another close-to-shore racetrack - this time, welcoming 12 supercharged F50 catamarans, meaning drama and close calls are all-but-guaranteed. The event is nearly sold out, with only a handful of tickets remaining across both days.
SailGP CEO and co-founder Sir Russell Coutts said, "I think this weekend is going to be incredibly exciting. We're very privileged to bring SailGP back to the Port of Los Angeles and we can't wait for many to experience it for the very first time. SailGP doesn't just appeal to the avid sailing fan, it appeals to the racing fan - this is high-speed, high-tech racing, that just happens to be on the water."
The weekend's event is buoyed by the news of football superstar Kylian Mbappé's investment in the France SailGP Team - an appointment French driver Quentin Delappiere called, "a dream."
"It couldn't be better," said Delappiere. When you are a team looking to win this championship one day, having Kylian on our side is great.
The Rolex Los Angeles Sail Grand Prix begins tomorrow, with live racing getting under way at 2 p.m. local time. The Rolex SailGP 2025 Season Leaderboard can be found here.