Dongfeng holds slim lead nearing finish of Volvo Ocean Race fourth leg
With roughly 600 nautical miles to the next port of call in Auckland, Chinese team have a 2.7-nautical mile advantage over their closest pursuers, Abu Dhabi
Chinese pace-setters Dongfeng Race Team clung to a slim lead yesterday as the Volvo Ocean Race's fourth leg looked set for a grandstand finish.
The overall leaders held a narrow 2.7 nautical mile advantage over their closest pursuers, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, with Spain's Mapfre just 12.4 nautical miles adrift.
With a little less than 600 nautical miles to go to the fourth-stage destination, Auckland, the rest of the six-strong fleet were still in contention close behind.
To be in the lead after all the hard knocks we've taken on this leg is without doubt one of my, and the team's, proudest moments
Rarely has such a leg of this length - 5,264 nautical miles - from Sanya, China, to New Zealand - been so closely contested in the 41-year history of the race.
After nearly 18 days of head-to-head racing through the South China Sea and Pacific Ocean, Dongfeng's French skipper Charles Caudrelier admitted he was feeling the pressure.
His boat started the leg with a one-point advantage over Abu Dhabi, but had to bounce back from the serious breakage of some mast equipment a week ago.
The crew dropped back to last place while it was repaired, but within 48 hours had picked off the rest of the six-strong fleet, one-by-one, to claim the lead.