SailGP: 'A baptism by fire' high-speed titanium ‘T-Foils' tested in Auckland

Spain SailGP Team helmed by Diego Botin in action during a training session ahead of The Rolex SailGP Championship ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix in Auckland, New Zealand. Monday 13 January © Bob Martin for SailGP

After nearly two years of rigorous testing, SailGP has rolled out its new high-speed titanium ‘T-foils,’ across the league’s international F50 fleet.

Five of 12 national teams took flight using the new foils during an action-packed training session on Monday.T-Foils will be introduced as part of the high-speed configuration for the first time in racing this weekend in Auckland (January 18-19, 2025). The innovation aims to deliver higher speeds and closer competition for the global racing championship.

Stepping off the water, Mubadala Brazil SailGP Team flight controller Andy Maloney described the session – which saw gusts of up to 50 km/h - as a ‘baptism by fire.’

“It was pretty crazy conditions for our first day out on the T-Foils,” said Maloney. “The wind was super gusty and shifty here in Auckland – it was a real baptism by fire for all the teams out there. A really good first day, but the learning curve is definitely steep.”

To date, T-Foils have been trialed under limited conditions – primarily by the Canada SailGP Team, who performed a series of tests over the development period in SailGP’s fourth season. In training, Canada – led by former driver Phil Robertson – recorded a top speed of 101.98 km/h – surpassing the league’s current speed record (in racing) of 99.94 km/h, achieved by the France SailGP Team in Saint-Tropez in Season 3.

The T-Foils will replace the existing ‘L-Foils,’ that have been used since SailGP’s inception in 2019. Constructed from machined titanium and carbon, the high-speed T-Foils have thinner sections than the current L-Foils, reducing drag at high speeds. During today’s multiple-boat training, New Zealand was the fastest, achieving a speed of 97.2 km/h.

As all teams race to master the new technology in identical F50 catamarans, the T-Foils could level the playing field across the fleet – providing an opportunity for new teams to catch up to more experienced crews. Having moved from one of the league’s most dominant teams – the Black Foils – to one of two new national teams, Maloney said the impact would be tangible.

“It’s definitely an interesting element,” Maloney said. “Some of the teams we’ve seen at the top of the leaderboard the last few seasons won’t have any more experience on T-Foils than the new teams. So, it will be really interesting to see where everyone ends up this weekend.”

The Mubadala Brazil SailGP Team – led by double Olympic Gold medalist Martine Grael – is one of two new nations to join the league this season, alongside the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team. This weekend, they will be joined by the league’s final national team this season when France returns to race in the newly-completed ‘boat 12.’

The second event of the Rolex SailGP 2025 Season Championship gets underway this weekend in the ‘City of Sails.’ The Black Foils enter the weekend first on the season leaderboard after a commanding victory in Dubai. More than 25,000 fans will watch the action from the inner-city Race Stadium and official spectator fleet. Maloney said fans would be in for an incredible show. “I’m hoping for some windy conditions, similar to today. If we get that, we will see these boats going faster than they have before. It’s going to be pretty incredible,” he said.