NorthStar 10th in ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix

Giles Scott, driver of NORTHSTAR SailGP Team, controls the wheel as waves crash into the F50 catamaran whilst in action on Race Day 2 of the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix in Auckland, New Zealand © Iain McGregor for SailGP

The NorthStar SailGP Team wrapped up racing in the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix in 10th position overall, recording the top speed during the weekend and breaking their own in-race record at over 101.3 kph.

Over the weekend, in front of the largest waterfront grandstand of the year, Auckland delivered very challenging conditions on the Waitemata Harbour, testing the teams across the 13 nation fleet competing in the Rolex SailGP Championship.

On Saturday, the NorthStar SailGP Team were out of the gate strong but struggled when one of the wing trimmer's control panels was damaged during a manoeuvre and the team had to retire early. The shore crew then battled onboard to repair the panel mount ahead of race 2. The jury-rigged solution was not optimal, but the team held on to take a 10th in that race.

After a solid start in race 3 for NorthStar, racing was cut short following a dramatic on-water collision between the New Zealand Black Foils and DS Automobiles SailGP France Team. Two athletes were transported to hospital following the incident and racing was abandoned for the day.

The NorthStar SailGP Team extends its sincere thoughts to both of these teams and in particular to Louis Sinclair, grinder for the Black Foils (brother of NorthStar G1 Alex Sinclair) and Manon Audinet, strategist for the French team.

With a windy forecast on the tight Auckland racecourse and safety concerns, SailGP officials elected to split the fleet on Sunday. NorthStar lined up in Group A racing against teams from Great Britain, Germany, Brazil and Italy. The team led the first race for two laps before a photo finish with Emirates GBR which resulted in a slip to 2nd place. A subsequent 3rd place finish in the final split-fleet race of the day was however, not sufficient to make the grand final which saw the Bonds Flying Roos claim the win in Auckland for the second year in a row.

Driver Giles Scott said: "Today was a much better day. We left a little bit out there, which is always the way, but overall, it was a good day. For the weekend in general, yesterday was tough for us. We had a bit of damage to the wing control panel that happened towards the end of the first race. Then we had the split fleet decision overnight, which we supported, but from a competitive standpoint the way the points worked out after our bad day yesterday, it wasn't great for us. Normally, if you have a bad Saturday, you look forward to Sunday because there are so many points up for grabs. But that wasn't quite how it worked out this time."

The Auckland event delivered both intense racing and sobering reminders of the sport's inherent risks. NorthStar will be focusing on continued improvement as the SailGP season progresses.

"While the overall result isn't where we want to be, there were clear positives in our performance - especially on Sunday, and the team continues to build momentum," said Phil Kennard, CEO and Team Principal.

From Auckland, the fleet travels to Australia for the KPMG Sydney Sail Grand Prix on 28 February - 1 March.

2026 SailGP Championship Standings after two events - photo © NorthStar SailGP Team