A "shocker" when it mattered most cost Tom Slingsby's Australian team dearly as their hunt for a record fourth consecutive SailGP event victory fell short in Halifax, Canada.
Instead rivals Spain drew closer to the championship-leading BONDS Flying Roos with a hard-fought triumph in SailGP's first-ever four-boat podium final on Sunday.
The day had started according to script for Slingsby’s crew in front of more than 12,000 fans, with 27 km/h winds.
Needing a fourth-place finish or better in the final qualifying race, the Aussies delivered a tactical masterclass to win comfortably, securing their spot in the winner-takes-all final alongside Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
Yet after dominating the weekend’s qualifying races with three first-place finishes and a third, they were shut out of the podium altogether, forced to watch from fourth as Spain's Los Gallos snatched the glory ahead of Swedish runners-up Artemis and the third-placed Swiss.
"We don't feel great," said Slingsby. "That's the first-ever four-boat final and one boat has to miss out on the podium and that's us.
"We saved our worst race for last unfortunately. We sailed really well all weekend then we had a shocker at the end but that's the way it goes sometimes.”
Drama unfolded during the day's warmups when Emirates Great Britain were involved in an incident that damaged their wing, ruling the defending champions out of competition. Mubadala Brazil also suffered damage, with the umpires handing down a four-point penalty after the team crashed into a gate mark.
Despite missing out on the Halifax trophy, the Aussies retain a commanding lead at the top of the 2026 leaderboard on 62 points, with Spain's Los Gallos and Emirates GBR sitting tied for second on 44 points.
The BONDS Flying Roos will look to bounce back when they head to Portsmouth for the Great Britain Sail Grand Prix on July 25-26.
