MAPFRE\u2019s stand-in skipper Xabi Fern\u00e1ndez was savouring a memorable Leg 4 triumph in the Volvo Ocean Race on Sunday, but his stint in charge will come to a halt for the next stage through the Southern Ocean (full story below).<\/p>\n
– \u00a0Xabi\u2019s successful spell in charge ends \u2013 for now<\/p>\n
– \u00a0Skippers review thrilling Leg 4<\/p>\n
– Listen here for the full audio of Sunday\u2019s press conference<\/p>\n
AUCKLAND, New Zealand, February 28 \u2013 MAPFRE\u2019s stand-in skipper Xabi Fern\u00e1ndez (ESP), was savouring a memorable Leg 4 triumph in the Volvo Ocean Race on Sunday, but his stint in charge will come to a halt for the next stage through the Southern Ocean.<\/p>\n
The 38-year-old Basque took over from his long-term partner and best friend, Iker Mart\u00ednez, for the last two legs while the latter concentrated on his 2016 Rio Olympics preparations.<\/p>\n
Xabi, for so long the right-hand man of his illustrious partner, has clearly not been daunted by the challenge, guiding the Spanish crew to fourth in Leg 3 and then following up with a paper-thin victory on Saturday night on the 5,264-nautical mile (nm) stage from Sanya to Auckland.<\/p>\n
He told a press conference on Sunday morning that, despite his success, normal service on board MAPFRE would be resumed when the fleet sets sail for Itaja\u00ed on March 15 for the toughest of all nine stages, Leg 5 through the Southern Ocean.<\/p>\n
\u201cIker is coming back,\u201d Xabi told reporters. \u201cHe\u2019s flying out on the 6th (March). He\u2019s going to be with us on the next leg, which was always the plan.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am especially looking forward to him coming back. We are already a very strong team with Jean-Luc (N\u00e9lias, the navigator) and the rest, but we\u2019ll be stronger with Iker in again, for sure.\u201d So will he be back for the rest of the race now?<\/p>\n
\u201cIt depends a lot on how things are going. He has some commitments, of course. For sure, he\u2019ll be doing the next leg and for sure he\u2019ll be doing the cross-Atlantic leg (from Newport).<\/p>\n
\u201cBut there\u2019s a question mark for the leg from Itaja\u00ed to Newport.\u201d<\/p>\n
The six skippers who arrived in Auckland harbour within seven hours of each other in the small hours of Sunday morning, local time, looked remarkably fresh after snatching very little sleep before a press conference attended by the knowledgeable New Zealand sailing media.<\/p>\n
Ian Walker (GBR), skipper of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, had every reason to look buoyant, despite being pipped into second place by four minutes 25 seconds.<\/p>\n
Their second successive runners-up spot, however, has given them the overall race lead over Dongfeng Race Team (Charles Caudrelier\/FRA), who they beat by under four minutes.<\/p>\n
Both have eight points but Walker\u2019s men have the advantage thanks to their superior record in the in-port race series where they lead after four races.<\/p>\n
Walker outlined a clear, pre-race strategy in October: Finish on the podium in every leg and the chances are you will end up on top come the end of the race in Gothenburg, Sweden, on June 27.<\/p>\n
So far, he has carried out that plan to perfection with, successively, first, third, second and second places, but he conceded: \u201cThe difference between the teams is getting less and less, but our strategy is consistency. However, it if it becomes a two-horse race, it could be the wrong strategy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caudrelier, without wishing to slight Team Alvimedica (Charlie Enright\/USA) who won the first in-port race in Alicante back in October, has identified that all crews are taking the inshore series increasingly seriously since it could well break ties by the end of the event.<\/p>\n
For Enright, it was another leg of learnings tinged with slight disappointment that his U.S.\/Turkish-backed boat could not build on their third-placed podium finish in the last leg in Sanya.<\/p>\n
\u201cNobody goes into a leg hoping for fourth place,\u201d he summed up succinctly. \u201cWe\u2019ve still got work to do on our boat speed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bouwe Bekking and his team on board Team Brunel are still very much in the hunt for the overall title in third place on 12 points, but the Dutchman was typically forthright in his conclusion of feelings on board the boat following their second fifth place in a row, having triumphed on Leg 2 to Abu Dhabi.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe feel gutted, not only myself, but everybody on the team,\u201d he told reporters. \u201cWe made one mistake \u2013 and we paid for it. We had some sickness on board, but that was no excuse.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Team SCA (Sam Davies\/GBR), it is a familiar story of gradual, but constant improvement, despite again finishing at the end of the fleet.<\/p>\n
\u201cResults haven\u2019t changed, but we\u2019re improving. We\u2019re almost in contact with the rest of the fleet. We\u2019re learning as we sail next to them,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
She, her crew and the rest of the fleet will now enjoy some well-earned rest in New Zealand\u2019s sailing-mad and most populous city before the action resumes on March 14 for The New Zealand Herald In-Port Race.<\/p>\n
The departure for Itaja\u00ed, a leg of some 6,776nm, begins 24 hours later on March 15. It is the longest leg of the race and, the skippers agreed, the one that could well point to the eventual destination of the trophy in the race\u2019s 12th edition.<\/p>\n
via Back to you, Iker| Volvo Ocean Race 2014-2015<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" MAPFRE\u2019s stand-in skipper Xabi Fern\u00e1ndez was savouring a memorable Leg 4 triumph in the Volvo Ocean Race on Sunday, but his stint in charge will come to a halt for the next stage through the Southern Ocean (full story below). … Continue reading