Yachting: Gusts test sailors as Ainslie takes control

Great Britain's Ben Ainslie made the most of his brief appearance on the water yesterday to strengthen his hold at the top of the leaderboard on a weather-interrupted second day of the Auckland match racing regatta.

Gusts over 25 knots and big wind shifts forced an early end to the second day of racing after some spectacular early action saw the teams at the edge of control.

Only two flights were completed before officials sent the yachts off the race track, with Ainslie again displaying the most consistency.

The triple Olympic gold medallist and his Team Origin crew won both their matches, the first over Sebastien Col and the second over New Zealand America's Cup veteran Chris Dickson.

Ainslie is alone at the top of the leaderboard with eight wins and two losses, with three teams, Dean Barker of Emirates Team New Zealand, world match race champion Adam Minoprio and Polish ace Karol Jablonski on six wins and four losses.

Below this group is further congestion, with Frenchman Bertrand Pace, one of the stand-outs on day one, and Australian young gun Torvar Mirsky fifth equal.

With the points split still very even, the race for the semifinals remains wide open.

Regatta co-ordinator John Rountree of the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron said racing was abandoned because the wind was reaching the upper limits for the fleet of identical Farr MRX match racers.

The racing that was accomplished saw some tight matches as the crews battled on the edge of control. One of the closest contests of the day involved an enthralling match between Minoprio and former world match racing champion Magnus Holmberg of Sweden. There were two lead changes and a wild charge for the finish line under spinnaker as Minoprio came from behind to take the victory gun by 4 seconds.

"We were reaching under spinnaker and went to luff Adam and his crew," said Holmberg. "However, they just managed to edge ahead at the finish line and that was it. It was a good race."

"The big problem was the gusts and the windshifts," said Minoprio. "We were getting 30-40 degree windshifts with big gusts. In these boats, you have to react very quickly in those conditions to keep control. We were a bit lucky. It was definitely on the edge."

Racing is scheduled to resume today, with eight more flights remaining in the second round robin.

The top-four ranked sailors will advance through to the finals. Weather permitting, the semifinals and finals will be decided by the first skipper to win three matches.

AFTER 10 FLIGHTS

Ben Ainslie (GBR)
Wins - 8
Losses - 2

Dean Barker (NZL)
Wins - 6
Losses - 4

Adam Minoprio (NZL)
Wins - 6
Losses - 4

Karol Jablonski (POL)
Wins - 6
Losses - 4

Bertrand Pace (FRA)
Wins - 5
Losses - 5

Torvar Mirsky (AUS)
Wins - 5
Losses - 5

Francesco Bruni (ITA)
Wins - 4
Losses - 6

Sebastien Col (FRA)
Wins - 4
Losses - 6

Chris Dickson (NZL)
Wins - 3
Losses - 7

Magnus Holmberg (SWE)
Wins - 3
Losses - 7