gybe

"We had planned to gybe at the mark, but we couldn't because our spinnaker had some turns, so the two boats behind gybed and I think because they were together, we gained, sailing a better angle."

Easing sheets I gybed us on a beam reach which predictably slowed us, but only a wee bit, withthe B&G showing 6.8 knots in the 9.4 breeze which made me conclude that if the Oceanis 41.1 had any bad habits I certainly couldn't find them, www.vicsail.Sydney

"We let him go on our right, we didn't react quickly enough and then it was a fight and he overtook us and when we gybed he was ahead of us."

"I guess when Telefonica gybed and we saw how much we closed them down with about half an hour remaining in the race, we thought we are going fast here and it's possible we can get them," said Abu Dhabi skipper Walker, after winning from Puma in a time of one minute and 16 seconds.

First to West Dog was Stephen Lambert's 575 Atalanta closely followed by Richard Smith's 655 Sotto Vento, which held her kite the longest with a late drop while others gybed just before to harden up for the short beat up to Great Dog.

But the Kiwi spinnaker blossomed and just as swiftly, Emirates gybed over into the favouring left shift, catching the Italians flat-footed to win easily by 53 seconds.