From Press Release
This sixth and penultimate day promises to be decisive. After 6 legs contested in sustained conditions, the bodies are beginning to feel the strain and the riders’ faces are a little drawn. Once again, we were expecting commitment on the water and nobody was disappointed. Clear attacks, multiple incidents of damage, a look back at a day which may well prove decisive in the Martinique Cata Raid…
In the rankings, the stakes are high on the eve of the final bend and the strategies are already taking shape. Leaders in the provisional general ranking Ad Noordzij and Bastiaan Tentij, who are determined to hold on to their advantage, have opted to play it safe: “We’re going to try and stay in the leading pack, lying in ambush and not taking any risks. As we have good downwind speed, we’ll try to find an opening on this tack to attack and try to win.”
Matthieu Marfaing and James Melvin have the opposite tactic: at the foot of the podium this morning, the Franco-American crew is determined to attack: “For us, the strategy today is maximum attack. We procrastinated a bit too much yesterday and made a few mistakes. Today, we’re not calculating any more, we’re going to try to enjoy ourselves and attack as hard as we can. The pressure is more on the crews up front. We’ve shown that we have the speed to be out in front and to play with the others, so it’s not a bad thing to be free!”
As for the weather, the conditions haven’t changed: the steady trade winds and the big swell outside Robert’s Bay are forcing the race committee to propose a constructed course. On the programme for this Friday, then, are two races of two laps each.
