LOS CABOS (MEXICO) – Bis zur finalen Wettfahrt des Jahres kämpfte Red Bull Sailing bei Leichtwind um den Regatta-Sieg, lag zwei Rennen vor dem Ende sogar noch in Führung. Nach vielen Startverschiebungen und Kursänderungen setzte sich das seit rund fünf Jahren in gleicher Besetzung segelnde Schweizer Team durch. 
„Wir haben fast eine gesamte Saison benötigt, um die richtige Crew zu finden. Umso glücklicher sind wir, es gemeinsam mit drei jungen und aufstrebenden Segelhoffnungen wieder in die Weltklasse geschafft zu haben“, freute sich Red Bull Skipper Roman Hagara, der einen Großteil der Rennen 2018 als Coach betreute.  
Der Doppelolympiasieger und sein Partner Hans Peter Steinacher segelten erst zum zweiten Mal in der laufenden Saison (sieben Regatten) gemeinsam am Boot und ließen dabei unter anderem den Gesamtsieger des Vorjahres Team SAP (4. Endrang) oder auch den vierfachen Olympiasieger und America´s Cup Team Skipper Ben Ainslie (5. Endrang / Ineos Team UK) hinter sich.

Mit an Bord Ryhs Mara (AUS), Dan Morris (USA) und der erst 22-jährige Neuseeländer Micah Wilkinson, der 2016 die von Hagara / Steinacher ins Leben gerufene und weltweit ausgetragene Red Bull Foilng Generation gewann.

In der Gesamtwertung setzte sich Alinghi (SUI) souverän durch und verwies Oman Air (OMN) und SAP Sailing (DEN) auf die Plätze. Mit dem zweiten Rang in Mexico überholte Red Bull Sailing das britische Team Ineos Team UK und beendete die Saison am 4. Rang.

Endstand Extreme Sailing Series Los Cabos (MEX / nach 12 Rennen): 1. Alinghi (SUI) 141 Punkte, 2. Red Bull Sailing Team (AUT) 130, 3. Oman Air (OMA) 126, 4. SAP Extreme Sailing (DEN) 123, 5. INEOS Team UK (GBR) 110, 6. US Team Extreme (USA) 97, 7. Team Mexico (MEX) 92

Enstand Gesamtwertung 2018: 1. Alinghi (SUI) 92 Punkte, 2. Oman Air (OMA) 83 , 3. SAP Extreme Sailing Team (DEN) 83, 4. Red Bull Sailing Team (AUT) 72, 5. INEOS Team UK (GBR) 70, 6. Team Mexico (MEX) 56

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<picture>Under the red hot rays of the Mexican sunshine, the fight for the day one win raged, only for the Austrians to rule in their rampage through the ranks.</picture>

Despite a turbulent year, the team seems to have found the secret to success. With double Olympic gold medallists Roman Hagara and Hans Peter Steinacher back onboard, and bolstered by newcomer and Tokyo 2020 hopeful Micah Wilkinson, the squad has seen significant improvements, climbing the ranks in San Diego, USA, and now securing their position as frontrunners in Los Cabos. 

“It was the perfect day for us,” said skipper and helm, Hagara. “Our manoeuvres were good so it was all about getting off the start line. Clearly we are aiming for the win now.”

“We’re stoked with our result today,” added an excited Micah Wilkinson. “Roman and Hans Peter are doing a great job on the tactics and the starts. Rhys is doing a good job trimming, it’s all going well. Same process, same routine tomorrow!”

For Danish SAP Extreme Sailing Team, day one did not go as planned. With hopes of tearing a victory away from Swiss team Alinghi in the final Act of the season, valid for double points, Rasmus Køstner and his crew had been more than ready for war with the white and black boat.

However, the Danes did not deliver. Despite their consistent performance all year, that included setting a new speed record for the Series in Cascais, Portugal, they fell at the final hurdle, finishing the first day of the finale in fifth place behind British INEOS Rebels.

Racing on Friday starts at 2pm local time. 

On days three and four (Saturday 1 December and Sunday 2 December) racing will be streamed live on Facebook and YouTube.

Extreme Sailing Series 2018 Los Cabos, standings after Day 1, 3 races (29.11.18)

Position / Team / Points
1st, Red Bull Sailing Team (AUT) Roman Hagara, Hans Peter Steinacher, Dan Morris, Rhys Mara, Micah Wilkinson: 36 points

2nd, Oman Air (OMA) Phil Robertson, Pete Greenhalgh, James Wierzbowski, Stewart Dodson, Nasser Al Mashari: 31 pts

3rd, Alinghi (SUI) Arnaud Psarofaghis, Nicolas Charbonnier, Timothé Lapauw, Bryan Mettraux, Yves Detrey: 31 pts

4th, INEOS Rebels UK (GBR) Ben Ainslie, Giles Scott, Oli Greber, Mark Spearman, Joey Newton: 26 pts

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Los Cabos (MEXICO) – “It felt great to be working together with Hans Peter on the boat again in San Diego, as well as with the rest of our crew, Rhys Mara, Dan Morris and Micah Wilkinson. Micah is new to the team but brings a lot of skill and enthusiasm from previous wins in the Red Bull Foiling Generation World Final and the Flying Phantom Series, as well as a podium in the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup,” Hagara comments. “We all gelled quite smoothly, and that’s what you need to stand on the podium, so I think we’re going to be taking it to the leaders at Los Cabos.” 

Located at the southern tip of the spectacular Baja California peninsula, Los Cabos is hosting the Extreme Sailing Series grand finale for the second season in a row. The typically sunny skies and Pacific breezes bring out the best in the sailors of the stadium racing regatta, and thousands of spectators line the shores to watch the foiling action. With first place Alinghi, second place SAP Extreme Sailing and third place Oman Air locked in a five-point spread, and other teams including Red Bull Sailing and home favorite Team Mexico eager to play the spoiler, anticipation was off the charts even before it was announced that sailing star Sir Ben Ainslie will take the helm for the British contender, INEOS Rebels UK.

“I’m excited to race with Red Bull Sailing again in the Extreme Sailing Series. In the act last month I learned so much about these massive GC32s from Roman and Hans Peter, and it’s amazing to sail against big names that I’ve always looked up to,” declared Wilkinson, who is a 2020 Olympic hopeful. “We’re going to make the most of this chance to finish 2018 with a good result.”

A smiling Steinacher adds, “At home in Austria we’re skiing already, but here in Mexico it feels like the middle of summer. What a perfect way to end the sailing season.”

The grand finale of the Extreme Sailing Series 2018 kicks off in Los Cabos on Thursday, 29 November, racing to the finish and awards ceremony on Sunday, 2 December 2018.

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About Roman Hagara and Hans Peter Steinacher

Roman Hagara and Hans Peter Steinacher are Austria’s most successful summer sport athletes, having won two Olympic gold medals (Sydney, Athens) and numerous world championships. They are the only Austrians to have competed on the America’s Cup World Series. Determined to see sailing progress to the next level, they groom the next generation of sailors by leading the Red Bull Sailing Team in the Extreme Sailing Series and by serving as sports directors for Red Bull Foiling Generation and the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup.
 

About the Extreme Sailing Series 2018

In seven events spanning three continents, the Extreme Sailing Series brings the action right to the public, with stadium sailing on super-light foiling catamarans in the heart of vibrant global cities. Schedule 2018:

14-17 March:  Muscat, Oman 24-27 May:     GC32 World Championship, Lake Garda, Italy 14-17 June:     Barcelona, Spain 5-8 July:         Cascais, Portugal 24-27 August: Cardiff, UK 18-21 October:           San Diego, USA 29 November-2 December:    Los Cabos, Mexico

Cardiff, Wales (UK) – With only three races left until the 2018 Extreme Sailing Series champions are crowned, there will be no holding back in the Welsh regatta, which serves up the tightest course of the season and promises a thrilling spectacle for the crowds who turn out year after year for the headline event of the Cardiff Harbour Festival. 

“We like racing in Cardiff. The sightlines are great for the spectators, and when the winds are right our GC32s will rise up on their foils and really fly,” said Steinacher, who with Hagara helps to identify and develop future sailing talent through such series as Red Bull Foiling Generation and the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup. “We had some pretty wild wind here in 2016 and surprisingly calm breezes last year, so you have to be prepared for everything.”
To give their powerful young team as much experience as possible, the Austrian legends will work off the boat; Hagara as skipper and coach, with Steinacher as sport director and tactician. Meanwhile, manning the Red Bull GC32 will be Chris Taylor (helm), Ed Powys (mainsheet), Rhys Mara (trimmer), Dan Morris (bowman) and Neil Hunter (flight control). Currently in fifth overall, another Cardiff podium could conceivably boost Red Bull Sailing to challenge the top three – Alinghi (SUI), SAP Extreme Sailing Team (DEN) and Oman Air (OMA) – who are locked within a four-point spread.

“Our team is strong, and we’ve got what it takes to bring home a trophy here,” stated Hagara, who led Red Bull Sailing to second place in Cardiff in 2015 and 2016, as well as third place in 2012. “We’re just going to take it one day at a time, one race at a time, stay focused… and also hope for better luck than we’ve had so far this season. With this act and two more in North America coming up, there is still a lot of racing ahead.” 

The stop at the amphitheater-style course in the Welsh capital also marks the climax of the Flying Phantom Series, featuring cutting-edge, two-sailor catamarans that are the fastest foiling boats of their size. Olivia Mackay and Micah Wilkinson, who won Red Bull Foiling Generation in 2016, will go all out to finish the season on a high for Red Bull Sailing, which comes into the event with good memories – last year the Austrian boat won Cardiff’s Flying Phantom regatta to clinch the series crown. 

The only UK act of the Extreme Sailing Series 2018 – which will also feature a wildcard team representing Wales itself – takes off in Cardiff on Friday, 24 August, continuing throughout the bank holiday weekend until the finals on Monday, 27 August.

LAKE BALATON (HUNGARY) - Hagara and Steinacher, who are preparing for the Erste Kékszalag Grand Prix on the lake, welcomed Ricciardo and Verstappen onto Red Bull Sailing’s 40-foot catamaran as well as the GC32 foiling multihull that the team races in the Extreme Sailing Series. After the most successful Austrian summer sport athletes and other members of the Red Bull Sailing team gave the drivers an introduction to what high-tech sailing is all about, it wasn’t long before the F1 drivers decided to pair off with the Austrians for some match racing across the famous lake, with Hagara and Ricciardo manning the GC32. Meanwhile, Steinacher and Verstappen boarded the X40, and were almost immediately driven into a nose dive from the winds, a dramatic – and tough – start.

“I had never sailed before in my life, but this was actually very cool and really fast!” said Verstappen. “I learned a lot from Roman and Hans Peter, and I think it was a great start into sailing.”

Once the X-40 team bounced back quickly from their dunking, the race was on. Compared to Formula One, in sailing wind is the fuel, and in Lake Balaton’s ideal breezes the boats flew on the water at velocities reaching 33 knots (61kmh/38mph).

“It’s really fun to have Max and Daniel on the boats. They are both quite strong, they pulled everything very hard,” stated Steinacher.

Ricciardo offered his own views on the experience. “I guess extreme sailing is the best way to describe it, and I hadn’t done anything like this before, not on a weapon like this,” said the Australian. “The boats are impressive – the pure size and the height of the sails were bigger than I anticipated. And Roman and Hans Peter are super cool guys. I found myself on the winch most of the time, and apparently we nearly capsized, but they made me feel safe so I didn’t think much of it!”

“Foiling on our boats, touching 35 knots of speed – that’s what we all like,” declared Steinacher. “Max and I were leading, but the finish line was always moving. I was pretty sure we had done it.” Hagara and Ricciardo disagreed, asserting, “It was a really close finish, and we thought we won, so we celebrated by jumping into the water.”

At the end of the day, Ricciardo and Verstappen headed back to Budapest. Ricciardo, who is currently fifth in the F1 standings with Verstappen right behind in sixth, shared his thoughts on the upcoming race at the Hungaroring, saying, “I love the circuit. I’ve had good memories there. It’s tight, twisty and a good atmosphere, and I think it’s going to be one of our stronger circuits to date. Quietly confident.”

The young F1 stars will have two friends from the sailing world supporting them in person. “Roman and I will go and watch,” Steinacher shared. “I hope they can win the race!”

Images for editorial use only. Credit: Samo Vidic for Red Bull Content Pool
Information, videos, images: www.redbullcontentpool.com
Contact: Mario Schoby / +436646385997 / mario.schoby@redbullextremesailing.com

About Roman Hagara and Hans Peter Steinacher
Roman Hagara and Hans Peter Steinacher are Austria’s most successful summer sport athletes, having won two Olympic gold medals (Sydney, Athens) and numerous world championships. They are the only Austrians to have competed on the America’s Cup World Series. Determined to see sailing progress to the next level, they groom the next generation of sailors by leading the Red Bull Sailing Team in the Extreme Sailing Series and by serving as sports directors for Red Bull Foiling Generation and the Red Bull Youth America´s Cup.