SailGP Perth: Black Foils look to rebound after grand final heartbreak

When one race decides a season, it takes only one or two decisions to influence the result.

For New Zealand’s Black Foils, that proved to be the case in SailGP’s season five grand final. The Kiwis held a solid lead in the back end of the race, but ultimately finished third in the three-boat shootout, behind winners Great Britain and Australia.

It was a disappointing end to what had been a solid season for the new-look Black Foils, with flight controller Leo Takahashi joining the team and coming into his own as the season progressed.

It’s from those positive improvements that co-chief executive and wing trimmer Blair Tuke is taking inspiration as the new season begins in Perth this weekend.

“You can’t just be defined by that one race or those two decisions,” he told the Herald.

“You have to look at the season as a whole and, you know, I’m incredibly proud of the group and what we have at the Black Foils and what we’ve set to achieve over the next year or the next few years.

“We’re certainly looking at this thing with a long-term view.”

In contrast to last season, the Black Foils come into the new campaign among the few teams not to have seen any team changes during the transfer window.

That should stand them in good stead from the outset. SailGP’s debut in Perth is expected to provide plenty of action as the season begins in high-wind venues.

Teams were given additional practice days this week to blow out the cobwebs and get familiar with the conditions, which Tuke said would be vital for the regatta on Saturday and Sunday.

“It’s been four, five months since we raced in windy conditions,” he said.

“You need to give it the respect it deserves, but we’ll be looking to start out this season in good fashion and make use of the training and then obviously race well this weekend.”

The event in Perth is followed by SailGP’s return to Auckland in mid-February, before the league goes back to Sydney two weeks later. They’re the first three events in the first SailGP season to be contested in a calendar year since the inaugural campaign in 2019.

With three venues that look to serve up exciting, fast racing, Tuke said it was a good opportunity to start the new campaign on the right foot, while taking the lessons from season five and how the grand final unfolded.

“That’ll be with us for a while, but you can’t dwell on those two decisions on their own. It was a great season all round ... that’s testament to everyone in the team, and now we get to go again.

“It’s about building throughout the season. We want to try and keep making finals at every event we go to, and then ultimately trying to win them. And, how we perform in the final, should we be there in November this year. It’s up to us to prepare for that.

“We’ve got to try and get through these events, start building some consistency as we race every few weeks over the next couple of months.”

Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.