RDR, Caudrelier remains under threat from underdog Gabart

Dominant Route du Rhum-Destination Guadeloupe leader Caudrelier remains under threat from underdog Gabart

If there is one thing that the 2018 edition of the Route du Rhum-Destination Guadeloupe taught us, it is that this solo 3,542 nautical mile Transatlantic race is never over until it is over. In the last edition, long-time race leader François Gabart, - French sailing's golden boy who had previously won the Vendée Globe, the IMOCA Class in the Route du Rhum and who held the solo round the world record - looked set to add the Route du Rhum line honours to his long list of achievements. 

But during the hours of darkness when the wind, inevitably, drops to a handful of knots and sometimes nothing, the audacious 61-year-old Francis Joyon came back from a deficit of 150 miles and ghosted past Gabart to steal the title from under his nose. 
This year, Gabart is the underdog. He and his SVR Lazartigue team have spent months fighting a ruling that put his boat out of class, in essence because his sails are trimmed from inside his hub. And so, this is his first full on ocean race with his new VPLP designed Ultim 32/23. 

In contrast, the highly optimised Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, skippered by Volvo Ocean Race winning skipper Charles Caudrelier, has dominated every Ultim ocean racing event since 2019.

Currently, the top-three Ultim 32/23 multihulls are flying at an average speed of thirty knots towards Guadeloupe, and it's leader Caudrelier who looks well placed to win. But he remains under threat from Gabart and Thomas Coville (Sodebo Ultim 3) who have remained hot on his heels since leaving Saint-Malo. This afternoon, with less than 400 miles to the finish line, Caudrelier has just 64 miles in hand over Gabart.

Caudrelier is under threat
The skipper of Maxi Edmond de Rothschild has dominated the Route du Rhum-Destination Guadeloupe from the start, gaining mile after mile over his rivals, but he has never shaken them off completely. With a lead varying from sixty to eighty miles depending on who is gybing, Caudrelier is still leading the way to the Tête à l'Anglais buoy, which he may reach early tonight (between 2230hrs and 0100hrs) local time. But the battle is not yet over. They will be rounding the island of Guadeloupe by night, making it hard to keep his rivals in check, particularly as they know that anything is still possible.

Once they reach the Tête à l'Anglais buoy - the penultimate mark before the final buoy in Basse Terre close to the finish - the Atlantic battle will be over, but the final verdict still awaits them. Any mistake or technical problem will cost the skipper dear in this final stretch. 

What worries Caudrelier the most is, "I'm afraid François Gabart will do a Joyon on me, as he is out to get his revenge after what happened last time." 

Gabart is super motivated, knowing that in 2018 he had an advantage of almost 150 miles as he approached the Tête à l'Anglais buoy, but that lead was to melt away in the heat of the night in Guadeloupe.

Coville confirmed this. "On our boats, if you are lacking the slightest thing, a rudder flap, a foil regulator, it all stops. The only way to sail, is to stay on it until the line."

1,700 miles behind the leader, Armel Le Cléac'h added, "It looks like Charles is in full control of his boat, which wasn't the case four years ago for François, but it is not impossible to lose 100 miles in three hours. It's not over until the line is crossed."

ETA Tête à l'Anglais buoy, Ultim32/23 class
Plus or minus 2 hours for each timing
Maxi Edmond de Rothschild: Wednesday, November 15, 10:30 p.m. local time (2:30 a.m. UTC)
SVR Lazartigue: Thursday, November 16, 2:30 a.m. local (6:30 a.m. UTC)
Sodebo Ultim 3: Thursday, November 16, 6:00 a.m. local (10:00 a.m. UTC)