The penultimate day of Hamilton Island Race Week presented by American Express has set the stage for a close final day, with several divisions changing leaders and championship battles tightening across the fleet.
First Light takes control of Rating Division 1
Peter White’s First Light dominated Rating Division 1 under IRC, scoring back-to-back victories to take a two-point series lead into the final day.
Sandy Oatley’s Wild Oats X recorded a second and third to sit second overall on 11 points, with Mark Spring’s Highly Sprung third on 13.
Under TPR scoring, Highly Sprung strengthened its series lead, while Robert Kelly’s Virago took the day’s victory.
Rating Division 2 continues to belong to Bruce McCracken’s Ikon, which added another victory to extend its remarkable unbeaten run to six wins from six starts. With the first discard applied, Ikon leads on the minimum possible five points.
Raymond Roberts’ Team Hollywood is equally dominant under IRC in Super 40+, recording a fifth consecutive victory. Peter Higgins’ Black Sparrow continues to lead under SFR, while Sam Haynes’ Celestial heads the ORC AP standings.
New leader in Hamilton Island Blue
Hamilton Island Blue has a new leader, with Walter Carpenter’s Caol Ila moving to the top of the standings on 17 points after finishing third.
Grant Wharington’s Wild Thing 100 dropped to second overall after a 10th-place finish and trails by just one point. Ryan Hardy’s Delta Lady claimed the Day Five race win.
Hamilton Island Pink is even tighter, with Jennifer and Brenton Carnell’s Phoenix49 leading on 24 points, just one ahead of John Whitbread’s Kerb, with Cam Rae’s Crusader another point back.
Peter Russell’s Vincitore won the day’s race ahead of Pretty Boy Floyd and Vixen Racing.
Phoenix49 co-skipper Jennifer Carnell said the varied conditions had produced an exciting week.
“It’s been windy, crazy and awesome. We need the wind, but some of it has been pretty wild when the fronts hit. It is so close at the top and has become a real battle of the Geelong boats,” Carnell said.
The Phoenix49 crew combined their Race Week campaign with an extended cruise north, including several days at Whitehaven Beach before converting the boat from cruising to racing mode.
Carnell also highlighted the younger sailors aboard, including Evie Macdonald and Grace Hooper, who joined the team as juniors and are now 20 and 21, along with her 24-year-old nephew Fletch as navigator.
“Watching them evolve and grow has been awesome,” she said.
Plenty still to play for
John Foster’s Xscape won Hamilton Island Yellow to establish a seven-point series lead, while Hamilton Island Orange has a new leader in Mark Tobin’s C’est La Vie.
Hamilton Island Green remains wide open. Neil Young’s Carbontest.au leads on 22.5 points, but Solaire and Bonaventure are close behind, leaving the top three separated by just three points.
There were also changes at the top of the non-spinnaker fleets. Namadgi 3 now leads Non-Spinnaker Black and White, while Bigger Day Out and Maritimo 100 are tied in Non-Spinnaker Grey.
In the Trailable Yachts, David Freedman’s Maximum Limit won Day Five and moved into the overall lead ahead of Charter World Yachting Holidays and Offshore Account.
Terry Robinson’s Miyu continues to lead Multihull Racing under OMR, while Mint has moved to the top under EHC.
With just one day of racing remaining, many of the divisions are still far from settled, setting up a fitting finale to the 41st Hamilton Island Race Week.
Full results here.
https://www.hamiltonislandraceweek.com.au
#HamiltonIslandRaceWeek #HIRW2026 #WildOatsX #Whitsundays #Sailing #YachtRacing #AustralianSailing
Interested in seeing more Racing News?
