Image: The Ocean Race VO65 Sprint Cup 2022-23 - 21 June 2023, Stage 3, Day 6 onboard WindWhisper Racing Team © Tomasz Piotrowski / WindWhisper Racing Team / The Ocean Race
While the VO65 WindWhisper has escaped into the Med, Team Holcim-PRB is charging to the front to lead the rest of the boats into Gibraltar Strait..
.
It's been a profitable 24 hours for Poland's WindWhisper Racing Team who have escaped from the rest of the boats racing towards the Grand Finale in Genova and stretched out to a lead of over 150 nautical miles over their nearest pursuers in the VO65 fleet.
In the short term, however, the forecast isn't in their favour. The wind is expected to ease dramatically in the western Mediterranean over the course of today before shifting from the westerly that has pushed them into the Med, to an east-northeasterly that they'll need to fight to make progress toward Genova.
The calm patch will apply to the chasing boats as well, who may need to battle this transition along with unfavourable tidal current in the Strait of Gibraltar depending on when they arrive to the Strait. And a later arrival could mean tacking into a building headwind.
On the approach to Gibraltar, Team Holcim-PRB is leading the IMOCAs, but at 1200 UTC, was in danger of losing miles to Team Malizia, positioned further south and threatening to sail around the outside of both Holcim-PRB and Biotherm.
"It's a good opportunity for us to catch up to the others," said Malizia's Will Harris, looking ahead at the transition. "There will be a light wind area and maybe a chance for us to play a card and gain some miles if we find better wind. We'll see what we find."
The light and somewhat fickle winds are taking a toll on the crews. On the VO65 Team JAJO, currently battling with Mirpuri/Trifork Racing Team for second position in the VO65 Sprint, the night showed a loss, in very close quarters racing.
"It's been very painful," admitted JAJO's Jorden van Rooijen. "On the way to Gibraltar, we've been battling Mirpuri/Trifork all night. We had them seven miles behind us and now they just got a little bit of pressure, overtook us, a super-close battle, one boat length apart, and now they're just in front of us.... So we have to get them back!"
They may have already accomplished this, by holding a more southerly, direct course towards the Strait. But time will tell if this positioning pays off. The game is on.