New Zealand’s Black Foils head into the Spain Sail Grand Prix this weekend looking to build on a steady run of improvement throughout the European leg.
The team followed a fifth-place finish in Portsmouth with fourth in Sassnitz, where it reached its first event final of the season.
“We’ve been building each weekend and came very close in Sassnitz,” said Black Foils co-CEO and wing trimmer Blair Tuke. “It’s nice to make the final, but it’ll be great to make one stick. Everyone’s pretty motivated to put a complete weekend together.”
The Black Foils used Thursday’s light sea breeze to get their first feel for the new Valencia racecourse, before lining up against rivals in Friday’s official practice racing.
“It’s my first time sailing in Valencia. I’ve watched some pretty important sailing here over the last 20 years, so it was really nice to get out,” Tuke said.
The forecast points to light winds on Saturday and a light to moderate sea breeze on Sunday, a sharp contrast to the record-breaking speeds seen in Sassnitz.
“A lot of SailGP is built on the work you do between events, how quickly you can adapt to new conditions and how you prepare without actually being on the boat,” Tuke said. “You want to capture the lessons from a windy event like Sassnitz, then pretty quickly we park it and concentrate on these conditions.”
The fleet again splits into two groups, with the top two from each contesting Sunday’s four-boat final. The Black Foils race in Group A alongside championship leaders Australia’s BONDS Flying Roos, Artemis, Explora Journeys Swiss, Emirates Great Britain, Red Bull Italy and Mubadala Brazil. Home team Los Gallos race in Group B.
“It’s going to be really interesting to see what is probably the first proper light-wind event since we’ve been in group racing,” Tuke said. “I think that’ll show a more open racecourse than what we’ve seen, thinking back to the Middle East events or other light-to-medium regattas.”
Thursday’s session ended with strategist Liv Mackay driving the F50 for two practice races and reserve strategist Kate Stewart taking Mackay’s usual seat.
“Probably the highlight was a couple of races at the end with Liv driving and Kate in the strategist role,” Tuke said. “It’s great to see their growth in those roles and have them ripping the boat around. To have people in other areas builds confidence for the whole group.”
Valencia is also the final event for shore crew manager Finn Henry, who is leaving the Black Foils after more than four years with the team. Henry and his wife, Amy, are expecting a baby. Henry joined the shore crew in March 2022 and took over as shore team manager in June 2023, helping lead the operation through the loss of Amokura in Auckland and the build of Manawat?t? in Southampton this year.
A reserve grinder as well as shore manager, Henry also raced for Spain at Taranto in 2023 and for New Zealand at the Season 4 Grand Final in San Francisco in 2024.
“It’s been a hell of a ride with this team,” Henry said in the team’s farewell video. “You’ll never be in a team like that again. It’s a unique thing, it’s special and it can’t be repeated.”
Tuke also highlighted the breadth of Henry’s contribution to the team.
“He’s been right at the centre of the Black Foils over the last four years, from his role in the shore team through to shore manager and reserve grinder,” Tuke said. “He’s right in the engine room of the Black Foils. We’re definitely going to miss him, but we wish him very well and I’m very grateful for his contribution to the team.”
Racing runs from 1.30pm to 3pm local time on Saturday and Sunday, 11.30pm to 1am NZT, live on ThreeNow.