Solent served up top-end conditions, near-100km/h speeds and a first in SailGP history: ten fleet races, ten different winners.
26 July 2026, Portsmouth, UNITED KINGDOM – SailGP took over the Solent this weekend as 20,000 fans packed Southsea Common for the Portsmouth Sail Grand Prix – and witnessed a championship first: ten fleet races, with ten different winners.
With the 13-boat fleet split into two groups – now the new normal in SailGP – Red Bull Italy SailGP Team lined up in Group A against three of the championship’s heavyweights: eventual event winners Los Gallos, season leaders Bonds Flying Roos and the Black Foils, winners in Portsmouth for the past two seasons. The breeze was every bit as demanding as the fleet around them, sending the F50s past 50 knots – nearly 100km/h – throughout the weekend.
“We had top-end conditions here in Portsmouth,” said CEO Jimmy Spithill. “We have the 18-metre wing, the high-speed boards, high-speed rudders, and we’re in the tough fleet.”
The Italian crew rose to it on day one, posting a P3 and a P2 on Saturday. “A really good day for the team,” said Spithill. “We’re mixing it up there. I thought the tone and the composure on board was very, very good, and a very successful day for us where we are in our learning curve.”
Sunday asked more of the fleet, and after a punishing final day Red Bull Italy SailGP Team finished the event in 12th, putting them 11th in the season standings.
“The weekend definitely didn’t end in a particularly positive way for us, but in reality there are lots of small positive things that we managed to improve on, and we’re very proud of that,” said strategist Jana Germani. “At the next events we’ll try to put those improvements into practice during racing as well, even when things are tighter and more constrained. We’ll try to put them into practice and keep improving.”
Away from the racecourse, the Italian team welcomed two special guests on Friday. Red Bull parkour athlete Hazal Nehir and TV historian Dan Snow each rode on board the F50 alongside the crew as sixth sailors. Nehir also brought her own discipline to the water, vaulting the containers at the SailGP tech site before freerunning out to sea, leaping across chase boats, flipping on the F50’s netting like a trampoline and chasing alongside as the Italian crew skimmed across the Solent.
“It was awesome having Hazal come down here,” said Spithill. “Seeing some of the stuff she takes on as a parkour athlete was really cool. At the same time, she was blown away by what our athletes do. In terms of the balance crossing the boat, the G-forces, it was a real eye-opener. She told us after that was one of the best experiences she’d had away from her sport.”
Snow’s visit followed a documentary collaboration with Red Bull Italy SailGP, exploring a pirate ship in celebration of the new Assassin’s Creed game Black Flag while learning what it takes to be a SailGP athlete. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/uOdxYMUgmv0
Victory in Portsmouth made it back-to-back event wins for Diego Botín’s Los Gallos, following their success in Halifax last month. Next stop on the calendar is Sassnitz for the Germany Sail Grand Prix, 22–23 August.
Red Bull Italy SailGP Team
Red Bull Italy SailGP Team represents a new generation of high-performance sailing: fast, fearless, and forward-looking. Making its debut in the 2024–25 SailGP season, the team aims to push boundaries, inspire, and redefine the sport by uniting Italy’s finest sailing talent with international expertise. At the helm is Phil Roberson, SailGP Champion and one of the sport’s most dynamic athletes. Alongside him, sailing legend Jimmy Spithill leads as CEO and co-owner, bringing unmatched experience and vision. The ownership group, led by Assia Grazioli Venier and Gian Luca Passi de Preposulo, combines entrepreneurial innovation and global perspective in a bold new chapter for Italian sailing
SailGP
SailGP is widely regarded as the most thrilling racing on water, redefining the boundaries of modern sailing. The Rolex SailGP Championship is a global annual league that visits iconic cities around the world. Twelve national teams – featuring some of the best athletes in the sport – compete on identical 50-foot foiling catamarans capable of exceeding 100 km/h and literally sailing faster than the wind.
SailGP combines sport and entertainment through its “stadium racing” format, with courses set close to shore to deliver a unique, high-adrenaline experience just meters from the action.
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