Land Rover BAR, the British America's Cup team, will race with Tony Langley's British sailing team Gladiator to compete on the TP52 Racing circuit as Land Rover BAR Gladiator.
The newly formed team is gearing up for its racing debut, the SCYA Midwinter Regatta in San Diego on the 10th – 11th February. They will spend the week training on the race course ahead of the weekend's racing.
Sir Ben Ainslie and Tony Langley will lead the team with Langley at the helm. Many of the crew that represented Land Rover BAR at the 35th America's Cup competition in Bermuda last summer will be racing, including Sailing Team Manager Jono Macbeth and the British Olympic Finn gold medallist from Rio 2016, Giles Scott.
Giles Scott recently returned to the Finn class, winning the 2018 World Cup Series Miami, USA with a day to spare. David Carr (grinder), Matt Cornwell (bow), Nick Hutton (mid-bow), and Andy McLean (navigator) will also be aboard from the AC35 crew.
Geoff Povey will return as grinder from last season's Gladiator crew, alongside Andrew Escourt (main) and Tom Wilson (pit); with Jono Swain (downwind trim) and two times America's Cup winner Joey Newton (trim) joining the team for the circuit.
Land Rover BAR Team Principal and Skipper, Ben Ainslie, commented; “With the return to monohull racing for the America's Cup, the TP52 class provides a good opportunity and a competitive environment for us to get out racing and to retain some of our core sailing team alongside trying out new team members.
“We had a good first training session with Tony and the team towards the end of 2017 – here in the Solent – and we are looking forward to our first racing event together in San Diego.
“We're going into the events – and the TP52 Super Series – with our eyes open, we all appreciate just how tough the competition is. There are several experienced teams who have been competing at this level for years – and we are also expecting some of the other America's Cup Challengers to enter.”
Land Rover BAR Gladiator will return to San Diego for the NOOD Regatta on the 16 – 18th March before going on to race in the 52 Super Series – the leading high performance monohull racing circuit – with the opener taking place 23 – 27th May in Sibenik, Croatia. While two events in the UK, the Round the Island Race (7th July) and Lendy Cowes Week (4 – 11th August) will offer the British team an opportunity to race on home waters.
Land Rover BAR Gladiator racing program:
52 SUPER SERIES:
May 23rd – 27th, Sibenik, Croatia
June 20th – 24th, Zadar, Croatia
July 17th – 21st, Cascais, Portugal
August 21st – 25th, Mallorca, Spain
September 18th – 22nd, Valencia, Spain
TP52 Racing:
10 – 11 Feb San Diego US – SCYC Midwinter Regatta
16 – 18 March San Diego US – NOOD Regatta
21 – 24 March – Testing UK
2 – 6 May – Palma, Mallorca – Palmavela Regatta
1 – 3 June – California US – Cal Race Week
7 July – Isle of Wight, UK – Round the Island Race
4 – 11 August – Isle of Wight UK – Cowes Week
28 – 30 Sept – San Francisco – PAC52 Cup
Land Rover BAR Gladiator crew list:
Tony Langley, Helm
Ben Ainslie, Tactician
Andy McLean, Navigator
Giles Scott, Runner
Andrew Escourt, Main
Jono Swain, Downwind Trim
Joey Newton, Trim
Geoff Povey, Grinder
David Carr, Grinder
Jono Macbeth, Grinder
Tom Wilson, Pit
Nick Hutton, Mid-bow
Matthew Cornwell, Bow
Support team:
Rob Wilson, Coach
Ben Durham, Coaching team
Fergal Finley, Boat Captain
Doug Newell, Boat Builder
Callum Colroy, Shore Crew
Carlos Perdiguero, Shore Crew
