Until Saturday morning, Boris Herrmann and his crew battled it out for their long-held lead, some 70 to 75 nautical miles north of “11th Hour Racing”, “United by the Ocean” and “DMG Mori Global One”. Then it was “11th Hour Racing” that first took the lead in the long-distance battle between “Malizia 4” and the trio positioned further south. “United by the Ocean” followed at around 9 am German time. The new “DMG Mori Global One” could soon follow in the footsteps of the two 2022 IMOCs.
Unfavourable winds slow “Malizia 4” down in the Ocean Race Atlantic leg
It is clear, however, that Team Malizia their previously comfortable lead of up to 42 nautical miles over its closest rival, “11th Hour Racing”, was not lost due to a sudden drop in speed, but rather because of less favourable winds. Malizia had most recently been sailing significantly further north than “11th Hour Racing”, “United by the Ocean” and “DMG Mori Global One”. There, the team on the new Koch-built “Malizia 4” repeatedly encountered ‘headers’. These wind shifts meant the wind kept coming from the front in increasingly unfavourable conditions.
Justine Mettraux, co-skipper of the Swiss yacht “Malizia 4”, had described precisely this problem the day before: whilst “Malizia 4” suddenly found itself facing a north-easterly wind on race day three, the competitors sailing further south were able to maintain a much more direct course eastwards. Team Malizia had previously deliberately chosen the more northerly position, thereby initially gaining an advantage over the boats further south.
Then the tide turned: the advantage was reversed, whilst the competitors to the south were now able to capitalise on their positioning. Whilst Malizia was repeatedly forced to lose altitude and veer northwards, “11th Hour Racing”, “United by the Ocean” and “DMG Mori Global One” were able to press on further eastwards – and thus make up significantly more distance on the direct route to the finish.
Once the hunted, now the hunter: the Malicians must fight
Fans of Malizia are currently watching the Ocean Race Atlantic and seeing how ‘their’ boat, despite its nominally high speed, is still losing ground to slightly slower boats. The “southern boats” have benefited from more consistent wind conditions and have been less adversely affected by wind shifts – the very shifts that have repeatedly caused headaches for Boris Herrmann, Justine Mettraux, Cole Brauer and Julien Villion of late.
Overnight, the new Verdier IMOCA “DMG Mori” recorded high peak speeds of just under 28 knots. However, the better winds were also a decisive factor in the Japanese boat’s progress. This meant that skipper Kojiro Shiraishi, Samantha Davies, Nico Lunven and Arisa Moriya were also able to maintain their speed unhindered by the winds as they headed towards the finish line off Lorient. Team Malizia’s temporary loss of the lead is not due to any weakness in the boat, but rather to the weather and positioning situation.
The fact that there had been a minor technical incident on “Malizia 4” the previous day had no impact on the positions: the cover of the forward ballast tank had been blown off by the boat slamming hard into the waves. As a result, around 200 litres of water entered the bow. The crew used the cover from the rear tank and pumped the bow dry again.
Motivator Supersprint: ‘Malizia 4’ remains the speed queen of the Ocean Race Atlantic
There had already been some consolation for the current difficulties with position and wind, and further confirmation of the speed of “Malizia 4”, on Friday evening when “Malizia 4” won the third Supersprint. Whilst it is true that the boats are always measured wherever they happen to be sailing – and therefore in varying conditions – the dominance of “Malizia 4” is nonetheless striking.
With two sprint victories and a second-place finish, “Malizia 4” leads this special classification comfortably on 17 points. It is followed in the Supersprint standings by “DMG Mori Global One” (13 points), ahead of “11th Hour Racing” (12 points), “United by the Ocean” (8 points), Oliver Heer’s “Embrace the Challenge” (7 points) and Conrad Colman’s “MSIG Europe” (6 points). The organisers will be showing the next Supersprint in their daily live broadcast from 5 pm via the website here.
Breaking news, 10.11 am: ‘Malizia 4’ port foil damaged following collision
On Saturday morning, the editorial team received this breaking news report from Team Malizia:
“At around 4.30 am UTC on Saturday morning (6.30 am German time), whilst sailing overnight at around 25 knots in 16-knot winds at approximately 40° N, 54°W in the North Atlantic on the third day of The Ocean Race Atlantic, Team Malizia’s crew, led by skipper Boris Herrmann, informed their shore team that an impact on the port foil of ‘Malizia 4’ – presumably by a small marine mammal or a large fish – had caused a technical problem with the foil’s hydraulic cylinder.
All crew members are safe. There appears to be no structural damage to either the foil or the yacht. The crew had stopped the boat to assess the situation and determine whether a full, potentially lengthy and complex repair was required, or whether a temporary repair could be carried out on board. The crew have now found a solution and successfully secured the foil’s hydraulic cylinder. From the side of the sail locker, the foil case was provisionally secured to lock the hydraulic cylinder in place.
The hydraulic cylinder was also secured with lashing to prevent any movement. The foil rests securely on its bearings and no longer moves. Although they are saddened by the incident, both the crew on board and the team on shore are relieved to have found a solution that allows the Malizia 4 to sail at full speed once again. They will carry out further checks in daylight to confirm the structural condition of the foil and will continue to monitor the situation closely.”
Replay! The replay of the daily live show on the Ocean Race Atlantic, which is always broadcast on YouTube at 5 pm. Here is the episode from 3 September:
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter