British yachtswoman Dee Caffari and Spanish co skipper Anna Corbella onboard their yacht, GAES Centros Auditivos, have crossed the finish line of the Barcelona World Race at 08:17hrs (BST) on 13 April 2011, both having achieved a world record.
 
For Caffari this marks her third race around the globe and thrusts her into the record books as the woman that has sailed non-stop around the planet more times than any other in history. Corbella also sets her own record as the first Spanish woman to circumnavigate the globe non-stop. The only all female crew to participate in the Barcelona World Race finished in sixth place, from a starting fleet of fourteen.

Having spent 102 days at sea, the GAES girls were thrilled to see a flotilla of boats ready to welcome them off the Barceloneta beach. Dee Caffari, 38, and Anna Corbella, 34, have been supported by Spanish hearing aid company, GAES and the world’s sixth largest insurance group, Aviva.

 

Caffari and Corbella were surrounded by supporter boats as they crossed the finish line triumphantly. An exhilarated Caffari said:

 

“Sailing around the world just once in a lifetime is an amazing experience. To circumnavigate the planet non-stop for a third time and set another world record is an absolute privilege. Every time you go down to the Southern Ocean and expose yourself to the extremes of nature you test your luck and, fortunately, mine has held so far. I am hoping that good fortune will continue as I am not finished with round the world sailing just yet!”

 

Caffari’s next goal is to compete in the Vendée Globe 2012 with the intention of securing a podium position and the search for a new title sponsor to support her ongoing sailing campaign continues.

 

On becoming the first Spanish woman to sail non-stop around the world, Anna Corbella said:

 

 

“It is very emotional to finish in my home city after sailing around the world and passing the three great capes nonstop. The journey has not been easy but the reward could not be bigger.”

 

Caffari added:

 

“I am delighted for Anna who has achieved something very special onboard GAES Centros Auditivos. To become the first Spanish woman to sail around the world non-stop will make her an inspiration to many others. It has been an incredible opportunity for me to have achieved a world first and to have helped Anna accomplish her own record on our journey together”

 

Dee Caffari, entered the record books in May 2006 when she became the first woman to sail solo, non-stop the ‘wrong’ way around the world (against the prevailing winds and currents). Caffari went on to achieve a double world first three years later by becoming the only woman to sail solo, non-stop around the world in both directions when she completed the Vendee Globe race on 14th February 2009. The Barcelona World Race has allowed Caffari to achieve one more non-stop lap of the planet and add another world record to her prestigious sailing achievements.

 

The Barcelona World Race was not all plain sailing for the GAES girls as three weeks ago they discovered damage to a main structural ringframe of the boat. The repair necessitated that Caffari cut into the ballast tank to mend both sides of the damaged area in the hope that the temporary fix would last to the end of the race. Although under race rules a technical stop was allowed and indeed seven boats (50% of the fleet) took advantage of that fact for a variety of reasons, Caffari and Corbella were determined that they complete the race as a non-stop course.
 

Antonio Gasso, CEO of GAES said:

“For Gaes it is an historic milestone to have participated in an adventure that has seen Anna and Dee become the first all female crew to sail around the world non-stop in the Barcelona World Race. We are extremely proud to support this fantastic team.”

Sarah Loughran, Head of Corporate Sponsorship at Aviva commented:

 

“Dee’s achievements are a testament to her courage, determination and ability and we are thrilled to have played a role in that inspirational journey. We have supported Dee since the start of her first non stop round the world trip in 2005 and to be able to welcome her home six years later as the woman who has completed that voyage more times than any other makes everyone at Aviva incredibly proud.”

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Currently sixth in the rankings, record breaking British yachtswoman Dee Caffari  and her Spanish co-skipper Anna Corbella are the only all female crew taking part in the race and will each establish two world records when they complete the race. Dee will become the only female sailor to have sailed non-stop around the world more times than any other in history. Anna Corbella will become the first Spanish woman to circumnavigate the globe non-stop.  

Dee Caffari and Anna Corbella were about 25 miles off Cartagena this morning in light conditions making just 4-5 kts, with 294 miles to make to the finish line.

It was Jean Pierre Dick, double winner of the Barcelona World Race, who said in the Mediterranean that Barcelona needs to be earned, and after their downwind approach thorugh Gibraltar and the Alboran, Dee Caffari and Anna Corbella are having a final reminder of JP’s belief. As if they needed it after 101 days racing. But the GAES Chicas have had another transition of light winds to go through and are now in light upwind conditions with 294 miles to go to the finish at 0300hrs this morning UTC. So depending on wind, still a late Tuesday, maybe Wednesday finish for Dee and Anna.

“My arms are certainly telling me so too. We knew the Mediterranean would make uswork for the final few miles and we were not wrong.” Dee Caffari writes this morning, “The first transition has been dealt with and fortunately we were only becalmed for a couple of hours. We are now sailing upwind in flat water.The mileage is ticking by but quite slowly now we are having to tack to make our course. I think in the last twenty four hours we have done more manouevres than in the whole of the Southern Ocean.”

Hugo Boss are level with Madeira and will be contemplating when they tack across. They are making 11.5kts.
Forum Maritim Catala are 360 miles SWW of the Cabo Verde Islands upwind in 15-16 kts trade winds, while We Are Water are still a bit compromised in terms of northwards progress as they are beating up the Brasilian coast only 150-180 miles off.

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British yachtswoman Dee Caffari and Spanish co skipper, Ann Corbella, are pushing hard to reach Gibraltar and the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea by Saturday evening. The GAES girls are hoping for relatively straight line sailing to the last milestone in the Barcelona World Race before they begin tackling the fickle conditions of the Mediterranean on their approach to the finish line.

 

Commenting on this last stretch of the race, Caffari said:

 

“After Gibraltar, all that stands between us and Barcelona is the tricky Mediterranean. It will provide complex and changeable weather and we will most likely experience downwind conditions, then becalmed, then upwind sailing. We will certainly be working hard for the final miles but with the promise of Diet Coke and pizza at the finish, we will be pushing hard!”

 

The only all female duo are approximately four days from the finish line and setting two new world records.

Caffari will shortly complete her third race around the globe and, on successful completion, will become the only woman to have sailed around the planet three times non-stop – more times than any other woman in history. Catalan sailor, Corbella, will also claim her own world record as the first Spanish woman to circumnavigate the globe non-stop.
 

At the 0900hrs ranking, Caffari and Corbella maintain their 6th place position in the Barcelona World Race. Virbac-Paprec 3 and Mapfre have finished the race in first and second place respectively, with Renault Z.E. expected to claim the final place on the podium later today.

Aviva has been a longstanding supporter of Dee Caffari and her inspirational record breaking sailing achievements, assisting her to three world records including becoming the first woman to sail solo, non stop, around the world in both directions. As Founding Partner of Caffari’s sailing campaign, Aviva is pleased to extend this support to Corbella and GAES for the Barcelona World Race.

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The Finish. As the time ticks down closer to the first finish of this Barcelona World Race, the closing proximity to the final line, be it a few days or two weeks away, means that the release after 89 days of racing is weighing heavily on the minds of many of the skippers now nearing the home strait, be that in actual fact, or more metaphorically.

Two of the skippers who were joined by Visio-Conference today were showing the effects of their three months of endeavour, tired and drawn, and admitted to wanting as much to get their respective first IMOCA Open 60 circumnavigations safely completed as to deliver their results.

For Jean-Pierre Dick and Loick Peyron, ETA Gibraltar around midnight Thursday,  theirs has been a day of precision manouvers off the Moroccan coast, getting to within 800 meters of the beach at one point early this morning. But it still seems like it will be at least offshore of Murcia before they may have some relief from their interminable upwind passage since the Equator. The final miles from there look light and unpredictable.

For Iker Martinez on MAPFRE it was a chance to explain their slightly problematic passage through between La Gomera and La Palma. The Spanish Olympic champion confirmed that part of the reason for their routing was to take brief advantage of La Palma’s lee to effect what should have been a 20 minutes repair, but the combination of unexpected 30 and then 40 knots gusts and some unpleasant seas meant this short repair interlude turned into three hours of hard labour which cost them an extra 45 miles on leaders Jean-Pierre Dick andLoïck Peyron.

Martinez explained how that their 10 years plus of Olympic strength and conditioning training for the 49er has been a key factor in being able to drive their MAPFRE as hard and consistently as they have. And now, low on food rations, it is clear the double Olympic medallists are using some of that nutritional experience to manage their limited body refuelling, maximising sleep to just keep going to the finish line. He said, in fact, given their pre-race experience, second for them would be seen as much as a victory.

Martinez explained: “ We are pretty tired with the food situation, physically this is an ultramarathon. Some days we have it when we are really tired, but it is not one of our biggest worries. I think we are all now thinking about the finish, not too long ago we weren’t but now we are.

We try to sleep as much as we can to keep energy so that we don’t make mistakes, and if they do like yesterday then we have the energy to deal with them and keep going.

It is more than 10 years that we have been physically training. Training for the Olympics in China was pretty extreme, so I think that physically we were in good shape for this race, but I think we pushed very hard.

We are here in this second place because of our physical preparation and ability to push, not because of our experience. Fourteen months ago we did not even have an IMOCA Open 60 and had never even sailed on of these before.?

Behind them the situation is opening up as the Azores High pressure blockade of the Straits of Gibraltar opens progressively throwing open new options to Renault ZE Sailing Team and Estrella Damm to sprint north and try to breach the high pressure ridge, perhaps for some brief SW’ly breezes but to enjoy the prospect of a more dependable N’ly and NE’ly breezes which would allow them a more direct layline to Gibraltar.

The predicted temporary compression between third placed Renault ZE, slowed slightly now, and Estrella Damm, is becoming evident – Alex Pella and Pepe Ribes gaining 12 miles this afternoon – but the direct northerly option does not seem to be offered as freely to Neutrogena.  Ryan Breymaier said:

“They (Estrella Damm and Renault Z.E) are both going quite fast at the moment, but I am not sure how well that is going to work for them because that ridge goes back north and I think that it is going to be quite tricky for them. We have been waiting, hoping for some sort of tactical opportunity just to finish quicker, not even so much thinking we can get by them, just to finish with some food less. So theirs seemed like an option but the ridge seems to move back and forth a lot and so that makes it a much more difficult to take that option.?

Under the leadership of their chief technician Stan, Jaume Mumbru and Cali Sanmarti have been making excellent progress with their boom repair in Ushuaia for their We Are Water. The boom has been successfully sleeved with initial internal lamination, but final lamination has to be completed. They can leave after 1555hrs UTC Thursday 31st but it is unclear as yet if the duo will be completely ready for that time, but it is believed they will be close.

 

Standings of Wednesday 30th March  at 1400hrs UTC

1              VIRBAC-PAPREC 3 796 miles to finish

2              MAPFRE + 311 miles to leader

3              RENAULT Z.E at + 1142miles to leader

4              ESTRELLA DAMM Sailing Team at + 1289 miles to leader

5              NEUTROGENA at + 1313 miles to leader

6              GAES CENTROS AUDITIVOS at + 1905 miles to leader

7              HUGO BOSS at + 3327 miles to leader

8              FORUM MARITIM CATALA at + 3802 miles to leader

9              WE ARE WATER at + 6060 miles to leader

10            CENTRAL LECHERA ASTURIANA at + 10753 miles to leader

 

RTD        FONCIA

RTD        PRESIDENT

RTD        GROUPE BEL

RTD        MIRABAUD

 

Alex Pella (ESP) Estrella Damm:“We are still sailing upwind but a little bit more eased, cracked a bit making north. The wind is very stable. In the next 24 to 48 hours there will be a change. First we have a transition zone with some lighter winds, then some SW’ly veering to the N. Let us see how Renault Z.E goes but for now they are better positioned than us. For sure the further north you are at the moment, the better. That is what we decided is best for getting to Gibraltar. We think that Renault Z.E has made the best choice and ourselves too. There was not much to hide, we talked about using ghost mode but in the end it was not left or right, there was only one way to go and we have to go there as fast as possible and let the others do what they can.

We’ll see what happens between now and the Strait and then in the Mediterranean. There should be the accordion effect in the Strait but really it is impossible to know because we are still about eight days from that. Until then it will be difficult to catch up. But otherwise everything is going well, the boat is all good, it is getting colder again, we have thicker clothes on again and we have food to spare, and Pepe seems to have enough painkillers for his knee until the finish.?

Iker Martinez (ESP) MAPFRE:“Yesterday was a bit of a complicated day.  We took the decision to go between La Palma and La Gomera which seemed like a good option. We thought we could use a bit of the lee to make a fix a problem with sail and the solent stay, but it got a bit out of hand, there were a lot of waves and we had gusts of 30 knots, we ended up having to run downwind to change to the smaller headsail, then we had 40 knots and it all got a bit messy. We managed to get it all in order, but we probably lost about three hours of sailing. It was a day with a lot going on, but in the end we did not break anything else. The stay we fixed works not bad, we were a bit unlucky and we broke a bit of the furler, so we swapped about a bit, changed the cables and it is OK, it works. We can use the Solent which is important.

We are pretty tired with the food situation, physically this is an ultramarathon. Some days we have it when we are really tired, but it is not one of our biggest worries. I think we are all now thinking about the finish, not too long ago we weren’t but now we are.

We try to sleep as much as we can to keep energy so that we don’t make mistakes, and if they do like yesterday then we have the energy to deal with them and keep going.

It is more than 10 years that we have been physically training. Training for the Olympics in China was pretty extreme, so I think that physically we were in good shape for this race, but I think we pushed very hard.

We are here in this second place because of our physical preparation and ability to push, not because of our experience. Fourteen months ago we did not even have an IMOCA Open 60 and had never even sailed on of these before.?

Ryan Breymaier (USA) Neutrogena:  “They (Estrella Damm and Renault Z.E) are both going quite fast at the moment, but I am not sure how well that is going to work for them because that ridge goes back north and I think that it is going to be quite tricky for them. We have been waiting, hoping for some sort of tactical opportunity just to finish quicker, not even so much thinking we can get by them, just to finish with some food less. So theirs seemed like an option but the ridge seems to move back and forth a lot and so that makes it a much more difficult to take that option.?

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There was a sense of triumph for the all female duo aboard GAES Centros Auditivos as they crossed the Equator into the Northern Hemisphere yesterday morning. The GAES girls are now just under 3,000 miles from the finish line and toasted Neptune one last time on this race to request safe onward passage to their final destination of Barcelona. Caffari and Corbella were also celebrating the completion of the repair to the damaged ballast tank over the weekend which involved slowing the boat right down to avoid too much movement. The duo then had to take it easy for a further 48 hours before they were satisfied that the repair was strong enough to withstand normal racing conditions.

 Commenting on completion of the repair, Caffari said:

  “I am relieved that we have completed the repair and hope that we have done good enough job for it to withstand the final miles of the race. We had gained miles on the boats ahead before our slow down and then lost them all again and some which was pretty frustrating, however, we did take full advantage of the conditions with Anna climbing the mast to carry out a rig check.”                                                                                  

Project Manager, Joff Brown, added:

“The girls have done a great job on the repair, and really we just need to keep our fingers crossed. We’re pretty confident it should be ok, but when you’re doing repairs at sea with limited materials, it’s really difficult to estimate how reliable it’s going to be. However, we’ve had really good results in the past with the special Sicomin Resin we use for working in damp and wet conditions, so it should be ok. They’ve just got to try and judge the conditions onboard really, try and avoid the big repeated slams and maybe throttle back if conditions are bad. Unfortunately they’re now upwind for most of what’s left of the race.”

At the 0900hrs ranking, Caffari and Corbella maintain their 6th place position. The Barcelona Word Race continues to be led by Virbac-Paprec 3, who are now a little over 1000 miles from the finish line. Mapfre are in second place with Renault Z.E. holding third.

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 Virbac-Paprec 3 in ‘ghost’ mode

 We Are Water prepare for the worst case scenario

 Renault Z.E. third into northern hemisphere
‘Let’s play!’ commented Loick Peyron and Jean-Pierre Dick (FRA) from Virbac-Paprec 3 this morning as they entered ‘stealth’ mode at 1000hrs (UTC). Their position or rankings will not be visible for 36 hours, ensuring that their movements will remain hidden from view by the fleet and nearest rivals MAPFRE.

Tactically the forthcoming upwind section of Atlantic raises an interesting dilemma for the front-runners, and particularly for MAPFRE, 244 miles behind in this morning’s 0500hrs position report. The Azores High is expanding east-west across the north Atlantic, creating a large obstacle on the way to the Mediterranean. Whilst taking a westerly route looks like an unworkable tactic given the considerable extra mileage involved, the issue of when to tack east to avoid the centre of the anticyclone remains uncertain.

The GRIB files show stronger winds near the coast so by tacking early towards North Africa they will reach better pressure soonest, but will be sailing an unfavorable angle for longer. Carry on heading north as long as they dare and they will benefit from lifting pressure, but are at risk of getting trapped by the light winds at the centre of the high, while taking a ‘middle road’ between the two means avoiding the light winds in the lee of the Canary Islands. When to tack in, and when to tack back out? Timing will be everything, and by selecting stealth mode Virbac-Paprec 3 are hiding the clues for MAPFRE.

Battening the hatches

The situation is more serious on We Are Water. “The barometer has gone down to 956mb, we are preparing for the worst possible scenario,? emailed Jaume Mumbru (ESP) this morning, as he and Cali Sanmarti prepared to ride out what Barcelona World Race meteorologist Marcel van Triest predicted could be the worst Southern Ocean storm of the race due to a deep low pressure system.

The weather forecast for the area they are sailing in for the next 18 hours is severe: a south-westerly gale of 45-60 knots, gusting 75: a Force 12. In conjunction with the strong winds, huge seas are also predicted with a 9-12 metre swell. Heavy rain, squalls, and even snow are all likely as the winds are blowing directly from Antarctica, bringing bitingly cold dense air which makes the conditions all the more intense.

Jaume Mumbru reported from the boat around 1500hrs this afternoon that they were running away from the gale under storm jib only with zero mainsail, in around 55 knot (63mph or 101 km/h) winds. The pair were safely inside the boat, which was making around 11 knots in a north-easterly direction, and reported that although conditions were intensely cold, the wave pattern was better than anticipated with no confused cross-seas.

Battle for bronze

Just 118 miles divide the third to fifth-placed boats this afternoon as Renault Z.E., Estrella Damm and Neutrogena sweat it out in the Doldrums, where temperatures are soaring to over 30 degrees inside, making sleep during daytime almost impossible for some.

Renault Z.E. became the third boat to re-enter the northern hemisphere at 1445 (UTC) this afternoon, in what so far appears to be a relatively benign Doldrums crossing. Just 76 miles behind, Alex Pella and Pepe Ribes (ESP) remain solid in fourth, ahead of Ryan Breymaier (USA) and Boris Herrmann (GER) on Neutrogena. Ryan Breymaier explained today:

“There are position reports every six hours and I’m always looking on the map to see how many more miles we still have to cover, how fast, and when we’ll arrive. There are lots of things that can affect the rankings, the weather can change things quickly and as we saw from the start of the race the Mediterranean is not very easy for anyone to manage so we hope to be close to each other and still able to earn miles on them. But we don’t think too much about third place as I think with our damaged keel it’s going to be too difficult to get near enough.?

At 535 miles behind, Dee Caffari (GBR) and Anna Corbella (ESP) on GAES Centros Auditivos are also anticipating the light winds, as they require flat water to make laminating repairs to their leaking ballast tank. Instead they have experienced fluctuating and unpredictable breezes that Dee Caffari this morning described as a ‘practice Doldrums’, but are this afternoon once again making 10 knots.

Having exited yesterday’s brief but fierce low pressure system, Forum Maritim Catala and Hugo Boss are the fastest of the fleet over the past 24 hours, with just under 200 miles dividing the pair. With the depression having rapidly moved south-east, the race is now on for both to make sufficient ground north to avoid the chasing high and accompanying light winds. Forum Maritim Catala having gained over 80 miles on Hugo Boss over the past 24 hours, and the competition between the two is yet to be settled.

 

Standings at 1400hrs Wednesday 23rd March, 2011

1              VIRBAC-PAPREC 3 in ‘ghost’ mode

2              MAPFRE at 3066,6 miles from the finish

3              RENAULT Z.E at 887,5 from the MAPFRE

4              ESTRELLA DAMM Sailing Team at 963,5 miles

5              NEUTROGENA at 1005 miles

6              GAES CENTROS AUDITIVOS at 1540,8 miles

7              HUGO BOSS at 3558,1 miles

8              FORUM MARITIM CATALA at 3749,4 miles

9              WE ARE WATER at 5462,2 miles

10            CENTRAL LECHERA ASTURIANA at 9371,2 miles

RTD         FONCIA

RTD         PRESIDENT

RTD         GROUPE BEL                                                                        

RTD         MIRABAUD

 

Quotes from today’s skippers:

Dee Caffari (GBR), GAES Centros Auditivos:
“It’s like a practice for the Doldrums that we’ve had. It’s a bit frustrating because we still can’t sail the boat at 100 per cent because we’re waiting to do the big repair, and yet we’re still really struggling with the conditions. But today’s been much better.

“I need to laminate some carbon over some damage in our ballast tanks that are structural to the boat. So we can’t sail the boat at 100 per cent because we’re upwind and we can’t afford the cracks to open up. But we can’t do the repair unless we’re in flat water to allow it to stick, so it’s a case of really looking after the boat.?

Ryan Breymaier (USA), Neutrogena:

“The Doldrums are going very well thus far, knock on wood. We have between 5 and 10 knots out of the breeze and it’s not stopped yet, so hopefully that continues.

“In these lighter conditions we’re not as compromised as we will be later on when there’s more wind and waves, so we’re pretty happy to be keeping up now and are differently worried about what’s going to happen when we get into the stronger upwind trade wind conditions a little later on. There is no real plan for it, the boat is the condition that it’s in and we do the best we can with what we have. At the moment that’s what we’re doing and that’s what we’re going to continue to do – you know you can’t change reality, and the reality is we are not capable to cant the keel to the maximum and that compromises our speed all the time, Boris and I have accepted that and we just get on with our day to day work.

“The sun is an issue every day. Right now in the cabin it’s 32 degrees and outside it’s probably 36, I don’t know – a lot! For me more than Boris I get burned very easily and I have factor 50 suncream at least every day and wear hats and that kind of stuff, so it’s a real problem for sure, especially in this area. I would’ve told you six weeks ago that the heat really bothered me a lot, but it was awfully cold down in the south for a long period of time! But all things considered though I would say the heat is worse than the cold though, and I think Boris agrees with me.?

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GAES Centros Auditivos in the Barcelona World Race supporting Comic Relief with Babybel-made red noses!

Currently sixth in the rankings, record breaking British yachtswoman Dee Caffari  is now heading North towards Barcelona on her fourth lap of the planet. Racing with Spanish co-skipper Anna Corbella, they are the only all female crew taking part in the race and both girls send their support to Comic Relief from the South Atlantic.

To support Comic Relief, please visit: www.comicrelief.com

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British yachtswoman Dee Caffari and her Spanish co skipper Anna Corbella have been experiencing extreme sailing conditions and have also been struggling without a fleet broadband connection for the last few days.  The fleet broadband allows the all-female duo to download crucial weather data and other important information that combined enable them to make key strategic decisions.

 

GAES Project manager, Harry Spedding, said:

“A few days ago the fleet broadband connection started to show problems, Dee was struggling to get a full weather download without losing the signal. We have been working closely with suppliers and Dee has emailed back the connection logs that are stored on the computer. Currently the strongest likelihood is that this is simply bad luck.  A combination of their position in the Pacific Ocean combined with the heel angle of the boat, and the elevation and azimuth* of the satellite has led to there being an exceptionally bad connection. We have a few tests to run to ensure there are no other reasons for this problem occurring.

“Whilst the girls are unable to connect to the Inmarsat they are seriously handicapped with their decision making.  Weather models and navigation software are now so good that it helps the skippers to not only choose their route, plan sail changes and selection but also when to rest and when to push hard.  With gales forecast at Cape Horn in the next week it will be important for the girls to be able to receive the necessary data in order to plan their strategy for the rounding of the Cape.”
The stressful conditions seem to have abated for the girls with Caffari reporting this morning:

“We now have some respite with lighter winds that are finally allowing some downwind sailing. The more comfortable living is allowing us to sponge the water from inside the boat ready for the next high winds. Rest and recuperation and some enjoyable sailing rather than stressful sailing are on order for the weekend. We even saw some blue sky today which is a real treat and has helped lift spirits onboard.”

Caffari then quipped:

“Anna has made a remarkable achievement. She has brought back to life her ebook. It was completely dead, clearly not enjoying the cold damp conditions but somehow she has nursed it back to life so I am hoping her skills will do the same for the fleet broadband too.”

As a result of the conditions and lack of information, the Gaes girls have lost further miles to Andy Meiklejohn & Wouter Verbraak on Hugo Boss and at the 0900hrs ranking were 245 miles behind their closest race rivals. At the front of the fleet Virbac-Paprec 3 continue to hold poll position comfortably with Mapfre and Renault Z E in second and third respectively.

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