by Leslie Greenhalgh
A perfect 14 knot easterly wind held through the last 3 races of the regatta here in Cartagena and TEAMORIGIN went out ready to sail up the leader board once again.
After yesterday’s results Emirates Team New Zealand had a firm grip on first place but not beyond TEAMORIGINS reach and Matador were close behind.
A seventh in the first race only increased their determination to retain a podium position in this event so after the best start of the fleet on race 2 they sailed into a solid first place, things were looking good.
James Stagg, pitman: “It was a good race, we hit the left with Synergy, which was the right side of the course and led around the top mark. We managed to extend away from them and the fleet on the first run and it just kept getting better from there.”
Crossing the start line early on race 3 meant TEAMORIGIN had their work cut out but they made some gains and in the end have secured their first podium finish of the season.
Ben Ainslie, skipper and helm: “It was a good week for the team. We had a couple of tough races but have been improving throughout the season which was always our goal and hope for a strong finish to the series in Cagliari.”
Emirates Team New Zealand were back to form today securing two bullets and confirmed their spot at the top.
Overall the results for the Med Cup series mean that TEAMORIGIN are serious contenders for second place with Matador on equal points and Quantum Racing not far infront. That’ll make things interesting in Cagliari.
The town of Cartagena has been a great host to the Med Cup for this, the penultimate event in the series, the next and last stop of the tour in Cagliari, Sardinia is 20-25th September.
TEAMORIGIN
Audi MedCup
