Mild Conditions For Start Of Leg 2 Of The 2023 Ocean Race

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After being buffeted by strong trade winds for the duration of the short stopover, the waters off Mindelo, Cabo Verde were relatively calm on Wednesday for the start of Leg 2 of The Ocean Race.

The short stopover marked the first time The Ocean Race has visited west Africa and this island chain despite it featuring in the race course for all 14 editions as a tactical consideration on the leg from Europe down to the south Atlantic Ocean.


images Sailing Energy

Crowds flocked to Ocean Live Park to welcome the VO65 and IMOCA fleets or arrival this past weekend, regardless of the hour, and aided by the entertainment and concert programme that kept the OLP hopping late in the night throughout the stopover.

On shore, The Ocean Race Summit Mindelo gathered over 300 ocean advocates in Cabo Verde on Monday, including United Nations Secretary-General, Ant?nio Guterres; Prime Minister of Cabo Verde, Ulisses Correia e Silva; and Prime Minister of Portugal, Ant?nio Costa, to discuss redoubling efforts to protect the ocean.



Out on the race course on Wednesday, teams had a short lap of a reaching course to navigate before heading out to sea, destined for Cape Town, some 4000 nautical miles -and two weeks - of racing away.

It was Robert Stank’s GUYOT environnement - Team Europe and Charlie Enright’s 11th Hour Racing Team who burst off the line with speed, just ahead of Biotherm and Holcim-PRB, with Team Malizia last across the line.

On the reach out, GUYOT environnement held off Holcomb-PRB to lead around the mark and on the return through he start line before heading out to sea, Stanjek and his crew showed good boat handling through the manoeuvres to lead the fleet out to sea.

A short time later, it was Holcim-PRB with 11th Hour Racing Team to windward and in better wind, leading GUYOT einvironnement - Team Europe, Biotherm and Team Malizia. But the racing is extremely close and the deck will surely be shuffled a few more times overnight.

The wind was in the 7-10 knot range from the northeast throughout the start period, but is forecast to ease overnight, a far cry from the 25 knot trades that have been a feature since arrival.



The light winds mean it will be tactically difficult race over the first days, something already playing out with teams deciding how far south to position themselves compared to making miles to the west.

“It’s a big challenge. We have to manage the wind shadow from the islands, which means we need to get south, but then the doldrums are very big and normally being further west would be safer,” said Sebastien Simon, who is joining GUYOT environnement - Team Europe for this leg.

“It is a big doldrums at the moment. We’re not sure where to cross yet. It will be shifty and interesting for sure.”

For the winner of the opening leg, Team Holcim-PRB, the interest is in seeing the boats and sailors in different conditions from leg one.

“I’m sure we will see different characteristics of the boats and the sailors too,” said skipper Kevin Escoffier. “But the mindset for us is the same - pushing hard, always!!”



Follow the race at www.theoceanrace.com and www.eurosport.com and on social platforms @theoceanrace

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The Ocean Race, Leg 2: Slowly sliding south

The fleet had a slow night, gybing south from Cabo Verde



25 January 2023, The Ocean Race, Start of Leg 2 in Cabo Verde ? Anne Beaug? / Biotherm
It's been a tense first night as the IMOCA fleet has sailed south, away from Mindelo and towards the uncertainty of the Doldrums.

It was an exciting start, despite the light conditions, with close quarters action as the fleet leaves Cabo Verde en route to Cape Town.





Paul Meilhat's Biotherm is in the lead on Thursday morning, and along with Team Holcim-PRB and 11th Hour Racing Team, is gybing west away from Sao Filipe.

Further behind, Team Malizia is chasing hard, while GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, has fallen slightly further back, after leading the fleet around the starting race course.

"This is VMG (velocity made good) racing downwind between the islands," said Paul Meilhat heading into the night. "We made the choice to use the spinnaker off the start and it's worked well because we are in front of the others."



The latest positions are in the Race Tracker:
https://www.theoceanrace.com/en/racing/tracker



Leg Two Rankings at 1100 UTC - 26 January 2023

1. Biotherm, distance to finish, 4672.4 miles
2. Team Holcim-PRB, distance to leader, 1.4 miles
3. 11th Hour Racing Team, distance to leader, 5.3 miles
4. Team Malizia, distance to leader, 9.6 miles
5. GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, distance to leader, 27.6 miles

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Cat and mouse towards the doldrums
It's a game of inches as the fleet works southwest towards the equator




Lighter conditions don't mean easier conditions as the IMOCA fleet finds itself constantly shifting gears, making sail changes and gybing as the teams zig-zag southwest towards the equator and the doldrums.

Every change in the breeze brings the potential for a sail change. Each move by the opposition brings a decision on whether to match or continue.










It's exhausting, but can bring some rewards, as it has for GUYOT environnement - Team Europe who are now back with the rest of the fleet.

"We've clawed back and made contact with the fleet again, which is super," said skipper Robert Stanjek. "We're in a nice position and we can finally compare ourself to another boat live, not just by the numbers."

The GUYOT boat and Team Malizia have been matching gybes with each outher since about 20:00 UTC on Thursday night.

Slightly further ahead, the leading trio of Biotherm, 11th Hour Racing Team and Team Holcim-PRB are doing the same.









"As the trade winds build we want to start getting west but we need to make sure we don't go too early," said 11th Hour Racing Team's Simon Fisher, and this is what we see playing out on the tracker. Every move to the west, balanced by another gybe south.

There's a lot at stake here, with a potential leg winning advantage to be found with a quick doldrums crossing and being first into the trade winds south of the equator.

This will play out over the course of the weekend, with doldrums and equator crossing likely on Sunday.







Leg Two Rankings at 1100 UTC - 27 January 2023

1. Biotherm, distance to finish, 4501.8 miles
2. 11th Hour Racing Team, distance to leader, 11.1 miles
3. Team Holcim-PRB, distance to leader, 24.5 miles
4. GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, distance to leader, 29.9 miles
5. Team Malizia, distance to leader, 44.5 miles

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Back on track

31 January 2023, Onboard 11th Hour Racing Team during Leg 2, Day 7. Malama enjoying a return to the Tradewinds at 20-plus knots.? Amory Ross / 11th Hour Racing / The Ocean Race



Five IMOCAs are charging south in the tradewinds









After hitting the speed bump of the doldrums, the five IMOCA yachts competing in The Ocean Race are now eating up the miles on the race south to Cape Town.

Defying conventional wisdom that says 'west is best' for a doldrums crossing, GUYOT environnement - Team Europe is holding a slender lead built on sailing less miles since the start via an easterly position compared to the rest of the fleet.

Now it's a race to the south. All of the boats are enjoying southeast winds in the 12-18 knot range.

On the hunt to make up miles is the fifth-placed Team Malizia with sailor Rosalin Kuiper saying she's happy to be back in the tradewinds, sailing fast, and looking for opportunities to get back in touch.









"We're still behind the others. In the doldrums the western side wasn't too favourable. So that was hard," Kuiper said. "But at the moment, we have 18 knots of breeze and a true wind angle of about 085 degrees, so this is really good conditions for us.

"But we feel a little bit limited by the foil alarms, so we're trying to find the right mode and make sure we don't damage the foils. It's frustrating because we know there is more potential and speed in the boat. We will keep on pushing."








Leg Two Rankings at 1200 UTC - 1 February 2023

1. GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, distance to finish, 3304.4 miles
2. Team Holcim-PRB, distance to leader, 67.5 miles
3. Biotherm, distance to leader, 98.6 miles
4. 11th Hour Racing Team, distance to leader, 114.2 miles
5. Team Malizia, distance to leader, 178.3 miles



https://www.theoceanrace.com/en/racing/tracker

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Credit to GUYOT environnement - Team Europe who have regained the lead on the race tracker as well as their position as the most southerly boat in the fleet. In a race south, that's a good thing.... or is it?






Two of the three boats positioned about 120 miles to the west - Team Holcim-PRB and 11th Hour Racing - have just (as at 1200 UTC) put in a gybe to the west, consolidating position and setting up for a weather transition ahead of the eventual left turn to Cape Town. It wouldn't be a surprise to see Biotherm match them.

Tradition would say this is the right move. But that same tradition would have had GUYOT environnement stuck in the doldrums, and to this point the team keeps making miles towards the target. Can their luck hold?






"Whether the separation from the field will do us any good remains to be seen. The pronounced ridge of high pressure is forcing us all deep south, maybe even south-west. That doesn't make us happy," skipper Robert Stanjek said.

Navigator Sebastien Simon is looking for a way out of the trap: "The finish line is very far for us. So we have to stay focused for the next part of the race. After the high pressure we have to manage all the subtropical low pressure. The game is not finished. We have to just sail our boat, sail our strategy."

The 'sail your boat' theme comes up again and again. The IMOCA fleet is not one-design, the boats have different characteristics and sweet spots. Copying an opponent's moves is a road to ruin.


https://www.theoceanrace.com/en/racing/tracker










This is how media man Amory Ross, on 11th Hour Racing Team, described the situation coming out of the doldrums: "Over the next (days) everyone to our east will probably want to come down to our line. Too far east going into the high and it gets really light. It’s always tempting to cut the corner so to speak, but it rarely works. So while the competition may be numerically closer to Cape Town and may be in better wind for the time being, if we can hang on out here to the west, our lane will come good eventually. We have, in essence, already done the hard work to get here and now we have to hope they either get stuck too close to the high...or spend their gains to join us. That’s when we get our turn. For now though the watch brief from (navigator) Si Fi is simple. Stick to the plan... Don’t be distracted by the short term successes of those to the east."

That will come as comfort to the sailors furthest to the west, Team Malizia. Led by Will Harris, the team remains in the hunt, chasing down the leaders, while cautiously maintaining watch on their new foils.

With the ETA in Cape Town slipping by up to 48 hours, both food and power supplies become a focus, with the teams already looking at light rationing to conserve what is on board.

"We have been working on the solar panels - we have added 50% more area so that they are not in the shadow of the boom - so we can charge all day with solar," said Team Holcim-PRB skipper Kevin Escoffier. "We also have the hydro generator that works off the speed of the boat and today we have been able to do 24 hours off these sources of power."

ETA Cape Town is now 11 February.





Leg Two Rankings at 1200 UTC - 3 February 2023

1. GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, distance to finish, 2663.9 miles
2. Team Holcim-PRB, distance to lead, 94.5 miles
3. Biotherm, distance to lead, 108.6 miles
4. 11th Hour Racing Team, distance to lead, 136.7 miles
5. Team Malizia, distance to lead, 220.6 miles

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11th Hour Racing Team and Malizia win the weekend
The rankings have flipped over the weekend with 11th Hour Racing Team jumping into the lead







The American-flagged 11th Hour Racing Team pushed into the lead on leg 2 of The Ocean Race over the weekend.

Skipper Charlie Enright and his crew held their nerve over an early decision to take a westerly routing on the descent down the Atlantic and the choice paid dividends on Saturday afternoon and overnight into Sunday.

Amory Ross reports from 11th Hour Racing Team: "From here it’s a bit of a zig zag course trying to gybe in the shifts and continue to use the windy features rolling west to east across the South Atlantic to get down, and to get east, quickly. We’ll keep zigging and we’ll keep zagging until we’re far enough south that we can skirt around the southern boundary of the St Helena High. At that point it’s just east, and eventually back north to Cape Town. We’re coming up on a relatively fast part of the course so the pedal is down and if the winds cooperate there should be some nice 24 hour runs in our future."





The team wakes up on Monday morning at the top of the rankings as the closest boat to Cape Town, just bow forward on Team Holcim-PRB and Team Malizia, who was the other big gainer over the weekend.

Skipper Will Harris and his team had also subscribed to the 'west is best' theory and went from a fifth place ranking, over 220 miles behind the leader, to being right back in the thick of things with the tight group of 11th Hour Racing Team, Holcim-PRB and Biotherm.

"It's so cool... We were 200 miles behind and now we've just gybed and crossed in front (of Biotherm)," said Rosalin Kuiper from on board Team Malizia. "It's magical. We're so happy to see it like this!"

Sliding down the table over the past 48 hours, GUYOT environnement - Team Europe undoubtedly lost a few miles due to a blown out spinnaker, but more significanlty, found themselves in light winds, positioned too far to the east. Now they are trailing the gang of four, trying to stay in touch, but still closer to the light winds of the St. Helena High and struggling to match speeds with the rest of the fleet.

But although 11th Hour Racing Team and Team Malizia have been the big winners this weekend, there is still nearly a week of racing left in leg 2 and with the boats still grouped so closely together, there is plenty left to play for.

The ETA for Cape Town is on Sunday February 12.

Follow the latest positions on the Race Tracker

Leg Two Rankings at 0800 UTC - 6 February 2023

1. 11th Hour Racing Team, distance to finish, 2027.6 miles
2. Team Holcim-PRB, distance to lead, 18.4 miles
3. Team Malizia, distance to lead, 28.8 miles
4. Biotherm, distance to lead, 70.1 miles
5. GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, distance to lead, 272.6 miles

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Roaring towards Cape Town

The fleet has pushed south into the Roaring 40s and close to record-breaking speed runs...




It's been a productive and fast 24 hours for the IMOCA fleet in The Ocean Race as the teams are diving south towards an ice exclusion zone and into the Roaring 40s, named for the area south of 40-degrees latitude where low pressure systems circle the continent of Antarctica unimpeded by land masses.




Sailors in The Ocean Race have traditionally called this territory the beginning of the Southern Ocean and it's where the legends of the race are born.

Today is no different. Conditions have been ripe for speed runs and the top three boats on the ranking have all posted plus 500-nautical mile stretches in a 24-hour period.

"It's very wet, it's very grey, but we are really, really fast," said Susann Beucke on Team Holcim-PRB. "We are tying to match with the other boats... They're pushing a lot so we have to push back."

Skipper Charlie Enright's 11th Hour Racing Team had the best mark according to Race Control, set overnight at 541.7 miles, which is edging into record breaking territory.

(The IMOCA Charal, skippered by 2011-12 winner of The Ocean Race Franck Cammas, holds the uncertified fully crewed record for the class at 558 nautical miles; Alex Thomson's Hugo Boss has a certified mark of 539.71 nautical miles; and The Ocean Race record is Simeon Tienpont's AkzoNobel at 602 nautical miles).

While speed records are on the table today, conditions are forecast to change dramatically ahead of the finish.

Skipper Will Harris and his Team Malizia grabbed the lead on the rankings as at 1100 UTC, but the truth is the top three boats are very close in terms of tactical position towards the finishing line.

And those behind aren't out of it. The leading boats are forecast to begin pushing into a ridge of high pressure that has very light winds. The trailing teams, including GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, will bring stronger winds with them from the west, and there is a scenario where all five boats end up very close on final approach to Cape Town overnight Saturday and into Sunday.

But that's all to come. For today, it's still a matter of pushing hard, to the southeast, making miles in the strong conditions as long as they last. It's fast, but it doesn't make for an easy life on board.

Life on board 11th Hour Racing Team at record pace



"Moving from your bunk to the back of the cockpit, which is about five steps, can take about a minute," explains Jack Bouttell on board 11th Hour Racing Team. "You have to plan each step with coordination as to which handhold you're going to hang on to.

"And then there is the noise of the boat and how loud the hum is from the foil. The louder the hum, the faster you're going and the bigger risk of a nosedive following that. There are times you hear the hum come on and you just hold something and don't move and just wait for the inevitable. And then you can carry on with your day. But cooking, going to the bathroom, changing clothes, it's all very difficult."

The ETA for Cape Town is Sunday February 12.

Follow the latest positions: https://www.theoceanrace.com/en/racing/tracker


Leg Two Rankings at 1200 UTC - 8 February 2023

1. Team Malizia, distance to finish, 1201.3 miles
2. 11th Hour Racing Team, distance to lead, 4.4 miles
3. Team Holcim-PRB, distance to lead, 62.9 miles
4. Biotherm, distance to lead, 222.7 miles
5. GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, distance to lead, 492.8 miles

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Pointing at Cape Town






The fleet is heading north again, away from the ice exclusion zone, and pointing at the finish in Cape Town





Team Malizia is leading the way on Thursday as the five IMOCA teams gybed away from the ice exclusion zone along 45-degrees south latitude overnight, turning to race towards the Cape Town finishing line.

Climb on board the leader - Team Malizia - as they battle with their water maker and work to protect their lead

There is now less than 900 nautical miles to run but a major obstacle remains - a ridge of high pressure with very light winds - between the fleet and Cape Town.

The wind is forecast to build in from the west, with the trailing boats GUYOT environnement-Team Europe and Biotherm carrying the breeze up to the leaders.

There is a very real possibility of all five teams finding themselves together on final approach to Cape Town, despite being separated by over 400 nautical miles on the rankings at noon UTC today.










In fact, the leaders are already starting to slow, the trailing boats making better speeds and closing the gap.

Charlie Enright, skipper of second-placed 11th Hour Racing Team, currently squeezed between Maliza and third-placed Team Holcim-PRB described the situation.

"(We are shooting) up towards Cape Town, which is a north easterly trajectory and where we will encounter a ridge and the whole fleet will compress and we'll have to be on our toes: it will be first in, first out. We could bob around for a while and anyone could pass anybody. Then we will end this Leg with a gruelling 100 mile coastal race... We've got to stay fresh to the end.”

That won't be easy. This has been a gruelling leg already and with the ETA slipping by two or three days, the teams are low on food. They'll have been rationing supplies for some days already, adding to the physical and mental stress of the final days of leg 2.

Salvation lies ahead in Cape Town, where a warm welcome awaits at the Ocean Live Park in the V+A Waterfront.

The ETA for Cape Town is Sunday February 12.








Leg Two Rankings at 1200 UTC - 9 February 2023

1. Team Malizia, distance to finish, 867.6 miles
2. 11th Hour Racing Team, distance to lead, 18.5 miles
3. Team Holcim-PRB, distance to lead, 73.6 miles
4. Biotherm, distance to lead, 190.8 miles
5. GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, distance to lead, 416.3 miles



https://www.theoceanrace.com/en/racing/tracker

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White-knuckle racing for The Ocean Race fleet

Times are tense as the fleet compresses on day 16 of leg 2 to Cape Town







For nearly 4700 nautical miles, the five IMOCA teams competing in leg 2 of The Ocean Race have been dueling south from Cabo Verde towards a finish line just off the V+A Waterfront of Cape Town.

Overnight Wednesday night the race shifted into a speed contest to the northeast as the one by one the fleet gybed out of the depths of the Roaring 40s to point directly towards Cape Town.

Incredibly, on Friday at noon UTC, the leading trio - Team Malizia, Team Holcim PRB and11th Hour Racing Team - are separated by less than 2.5 nautical miles on the advantage line as they drag race towards Cape Town on day 16 of the leg.








For nearly 4700 nautical miles, the five IMOCA teams competing in leg 2 of The Ocean Race have been dueling south from Cabo Verde towards a finish line just off the V+A Waterfront of Cape Town.

Overnight Wednesday night the race shifted into a speed contest to the northeast as the one by one the fleet gybed out of the depths of the Roaring 40s to point directly towards Cape Town.

Incredibly, on Friday at noon UTC, the leading trio - Team Malizia, Team Holcim PRB and11th Hour Racing Team - are separated by less than 2.5 nautical miles on the advantage line as they drag race towards Cape Town on day 16 of the leg.

However there is one more 'speed bump' to navigate. A ridge of high pressure - with very light winds - sits between the teams and the finish line. The leading boats keep poking their bows into the lighter conditions and slowing down. Meanwhile, the last place boat in the fleet is bringing fresh winds with them as they relentlessly close the gap.

In fact, GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, who trailed by over 510 miles when they made their turn to point at Cape Town, now find themselves less than 240 miles behind - a number that is coming down with each hourly position report.

"I've just done the routing (the weather routing predictions) for all of the boats, and we all finish within 10 minutes!" said Team Holcim PRB skipper Kevin Escoffier, in what may, or may not, be an exaggeration.

"What kind of sport are we doing when we do nearly 20 days at sea, pushing for every metre and then at the end everything is decided by the weather forecast?!?!

"But we know sailing is like that..." he concluded with a grim laugh. The only strategy left, he said, is to try and go as fast as possible for as long as possible. "We'll see."








This is the harsh truth of the next 48 hours for crews that are physically and mentally at the limit. Every decision is fraught with meaning as they attack crossing a high pressure ridge that is as wide as 250 miles - a mini Doldrums.

"The closer we get to the finish line, the less wind we are going to have," said Biotherm skipper Paul Meilhat. His team is nearly 100 miles to the northwest of the leading trio and sailing in different conditions. Will this be enough leverage to squeeze past?

"We hope to reduce the distance to the leaders. Maybe we will use a different strategy. They've left open the possibility to go directly to the finishing line (as opposed to coming up from the south)."

And after the ridge, a sprint to Cape Town.

"...once we do punch through this atrocious weather feature, we’ll have perhaps a couple of hundred mile coastal race to the finish," noted 11th Hour Racing Team skipper Charlie Enright. "And if you believe any of the computers that we use, everybody will finish within 10 feet of each other, despite the 16 days that we busted our … selves to get here!!!! So that is it, that’s the end of leg 2!”


Leg Two Rankings at 1200 UTC - 10 February 2023

1. Team Malizia, distance to finish, 556.7 miles
2. Team Holcim-PRB, distance to lead, 1.9 miles
3. 11th Hour Racing Team, distance to lead, 2.4 miles
4. Biotherm, distance to lead, 68.0 miles
5. GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, distance to lead, 217.4 miles


http://www.theoceanrace.com/en/racing/tracker

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TEAM HOLCIM - PRB WIN LEG 2 OF THE OCEAN RACE



Skipper Kevin Escoffier and his Team Holcim - PRB have won Leg 2 of The Ocean Race from Cabo Verde to Cape Town after a tense battle through the final miles of the race.

At sunrise on Sunday morning, four teams were in the fight for the leg win, with Biotherm, 11th Hour Racing Team and the Holcim - PRB crews racing in lockstep in light and changeable conditions.

Team Malizia was some 20 miles to the south, but then spent the next three hours just about sailing around the leading trio.

But the light and fickle winds didn't hold for them and in the end it was a three boat race among the northern trio.

Just three hours before the finish, Escoffier and his team finally popped up at the head of the rankings, having been able to sail a slightly better angle at a similar speed towards Cape Town, creating the narrow separation necessary to eke out a winning position.

This is the second consecutive leg win for Escoffier and his team, who maintain a perfect record, and will extend their advantage on the race leaderboard.



SUNDAY 12 FEBRUARY

1647 UTC / 1847 local time in Cape Town -- Finally they catch the breeze and GUYOT environnement - Team Europe crosses the finish line in Cape Town at 16:56:27 UTC / 18:56:27 local to bring Leg 2 to a close.

1645 UTC / 1845 local time in Cape Town -- GUYOT environnement - Team Europe has a mere 1.1nm to reach the end of Leg 2 but although it's blowing 20 knots at the finish line, the committee boat reports that the team is stuck in transition zone with 0 knots of breeze at their present position.

1600 UTC / 1800 local time in Cape Town -- The fifth and final boat on this leg, GUYOT environnement is making good progress doing 12-13kts and should be crossing the line in the next hour.



1516 UTC / 1716 local time in Cape Town -- Team Malizia finishes fourth, less than two hours behind the first two boats, at 15:16:49 UTC / 17:16:49 local time.



1336 UTC / 1536 local time in Cape Town -- 11th Hour Racing Team crosses the line to earn 3 points for third place, finishing at 13:35:40 UTC / 15:35:40 local time. Such a close battle right up to the end, they finished a mere nine minutes behind Biotherm.



1327 UTC / 1527 local time in Cape Town -- Biotherm has hung on to take second place, finishing at 13:26:54 UTC / 15:26:54 local time, 16 minutes behind Team Holcim - PRB and with 11th Hour Racing Team breathing down their necks.

1311 UTC / 1511 local time in Cape Town -- They've done it!!! For the second time in two legs, Team Holcim - PRB have taken the win, crossing the line at 13:10:09 UTC / 15:10:09 local time. Kevin Escoffier's crew earned an incredibly hard-fought win that was in doubt right to the end. Congratulations to the team.

Behind, Biotherm has the advantage for second place, but this is still not decided with 11th Hour Racing Team very close behind.

Team Malizia, after teasing with a nominal lead from a southerly position earlier this morning look secure about one hour back and in fourth place, with GUYOT environnement Team Europe due in to Cape Town this evening in fifth place.

1250 UTC / 1450 local time Cape Town -- It's looking better and better for Team Holcim - PRB, now less than four miles from the finish. The battle rages on for second, with Biotherm less than a mile ahead of 11th Hour Racing Team.

1225 UTC / 1425 local time Cape Town -- As Team Holcim - PRB gybe back towards shore they have taken what passes for a commanding position on this leg 2 of The Ocean Race. Behind them however, Biotherm and 11th Hour Racing are locked in a fight for second place.

1200 UTC / 1400 local time Cape Town --- You'd have to say Kevin Escoffier and his Team Holcim - PRB are in pole position at the moment with a strong tactical position - between 11th Hour Racing Team and Biotherm and the finishing line - and a two mile advantage on distance to finish.

The wind is slowly filling in. It's up to 12 knots, from 310 degrees at the finish line.

The leading trio are just over 10 miles from the finish and probably have a bit over one hour to run.

1100 UTC / 1300 local time Cape Town --- The latest from Team Malizia recorded a short time ago. Skipper Will Harris: "It's going to be very light, very flukey, not much wind. It's going to be painful right to the end."

1000 UTC / 1200 local time Cape Town --- It appears as if Biotherm, 11th Hour Racing Team and Team Holcim - PRB have been able to fend off the latest charge by Team Malizia. The trio in the north have gained speed again, and Malizia doesn't appear able match their angle towards Cape Town.

0900 UTC / 1100 local time Cape Town --- You can taste the tension on board Team Holcim PRB in this boatfeed

0840 UTC / 1040 local time Cape Town --- Team Malizia has used more breeze in the south to get bow forward on the other three contenders. But they still need to get downwind - at a slow angle - to complete the pass on the race course. Biotherm, 11th Hour Racing Team and Team Holcim - PRB are hoping for just slightly more wind to get back on track towards the finishing line. The forecast is for slightly stronger winds, but they haven't materialised yet. Check the live tracker

0730 UTC / 0930 local time Cape Town --- Tense times on board 11th Hour Racing Team with skipper Charlie Enright: "I trust us when things get tough. We've done well and made smart decisions so far. Of course there is a great deal of uncertainty during this approach to Cape Town and with that comes a great deal of anxiety - it's all I'm thinking about."

0715 UTC --- It's Team Malizia now who are making a move from their southerly position. Skipper Will Harris and his team are edging forward, gaining nearly 10 miles over the past two hours.

0500 UTC --- Three teams are engaged in a fierce fight to the finish with a fourth ready to pounce on any mistake. Biotherm leads 11th Hour Racing Team and Team Holcim - PRB, but Team Malizia is just slightly behind and with leverage to the south. There is just over 50 miles of racing to go and changeable conditions on the final approach.


SATURDAY 11 FEBRUARY

2000 UTC --- From 11th Hour Racing Team's Simon Fisher: "We are so close to Cape Town but the reality of the situation is that this race is far from over. I keep thinking all the miles won and lost up to this point are likely to count for very little. The forecast between here and the finish is complicated, filled with light winds and weather features that are typically poorly defined by the models. Despite hours staring at the various options, they remain just that, for answers aren’t coming any time soon."

You can read more here

1550 UTC --- From Will Harris on Team Malizia: "It looks like we're sailing on a lake at the moment. You wouldn't believe we're 300 miles south of Cape Town at nearly 40-degrees south latitude.. Flat water, 10 knots of wind..."

1315 UTC --- From Race Control weather guru Christian Dumard:

The latest ETA is between 0800 and 1200 UTC (10am - 2pm local time) for the first boats. The highest probability is between 0930 and 1130 UTC.

The first four boats could finish within less than one hour after nearly three weeks of racing. The ETA for GUYOT environnement is closer to 1800 UTC.

1225 UTC --- "In top gun you would call this a dogfight, a finish like this, no?!?" -- Kevin Escoffier, the skipper of Team Holcim - PRB.

1200 UTC --- It's gettling slow out there as the 1200 UTC position report shows the fleet struggling to make 10 knots. All of the boats have turned to the north, a more favourable angle for boatspeed, but slightly off the layline for Cape Town. The navigators will be sharpening their pencils looking for the most efficient way to keep the boat moving towards Cape Town at a reasonable speed. All whilst keeping an eye on the opposition.

"We're racing into a wall of no wind," is they way Sam Goodchild on Team Holcim - PRB explains the situation. "We're all choosing where we go into it, and then hope oyu can get through it more quickly than the others to get to Cape Town. It's probably going to be quite a close finish."

1000 UTC --- The 1000 UTC update shows this race will go down to the wire. Biotherm is now bow forward on 11th Hour Racing Team (the current leader on distance to finish) and Team Holcim - PRB, who are so close together they appear as one boat on the tracker. Keep your eyes peeled to the tracker, which will switch into 'live mode' this afternoon for the final push to the Cape Town finish.

0850 UTC --- Rosalin Kuiper, Team Malizia: "It looks a bit tricky... Just before Cape Town the wind will be light and downwind. That's not our best conditions. So this is a very big day. We need to make gains now..."

0800 UTC --- It's another spectacular day in Cape Town - it's been like this for a week now. Sunny, hot, but very little wind. And this is the problem for the five IMOCA teams trying to close down the last 300 nautical miles of leg 2.

A glance at the tracker tells you all you need to know. The top four boats are all within 7 miles in terms of distance to finish. And the fastest boat in the fleet is fifth-placed GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, now just 80 miles back on the advantage line. Two days ago that delta was over 500 miles!!

Speeds are down now - in the 8-10 knot range - and this is what we can expect between now and the finish.