Andrew: Everyone Should Be Extremely Proud Of Our Progress
Andrew Campbell reflects on a weekend that saw the U.S. SailGP Team catch the eye in Germany…
Published 08/22/2025
Andrew Campbell was pleased by signs of progress from the U.S. SailGP Team after going 3-9-4 on Day 1 of the Germany Sail Grand Prix in Sassnitz.
After five productive days of practice together on the Baltic Sea, the U.S. SailGP Team started with an impressive P3 - almost hauling in eventual winners Germany SailGP Team presented by Deutsche Bank as they went through the last gate.
“I think the team, especially our onboard team and the shore team - every single person that contributed to this week in Sassnitz - should be extremely proud of themselves for how much progress we made,” Andrew said. “That mistake was separate from that.”
He continued: “That first race, we were only like six lengths from winning. So we stayed right in that race the whole time, and if one shift goes one way or somebody has a funny maneuver, all of a sudden we’re winning that race. So I don’t think we’re far off where we want to be.
“You saw it play out in a couple of races. Even in the P9 in the second race, we were fighting the whole time. We knew there were points to be gained, and we beat the Canadians right on the finish line. That’s what we’re here for: racing, not just settling for 10th.
“We hit all our maneuvers, and we were racing the boat well. I’m really enthusiastic about how the tide changed there.”
The mistake Andrew referenced is the collision between the U.S. SailGP Team and Emirates GBR which ended both teams’ Day 1 early. After donating part of our hull to enable Britain to race on Sunday, Dylan Fletcher’s crew went 1-1-3 to reach the Final in impressive fashion, narrowly missing out to the France SailGP Team.
“We were back in the pack but still in the mix, with quite a few boats in that middle part of the pack,” explained Andrew. “We were going forward and backward with a few really competitive teams, and we came off that port boundary, and that’s the most exposed to the traffic you’re going to be on the entire course.
“When I got a good look at them, I knew we had to get behind them and then deal with Mark 1 somehow. I was trying to guide Taylor (Canfield) through there, but it was too little, too late. Those guys were doing like 65 or 70 km/hr getting underneath Mark 1.
The U.S. SailGP Team F50 in action at the Germany Sail Grand Prix
“So it was a bit of a compressed reality. I put my hand up, and we just have to figure out a way to do better moving forward. I learned a lot from this situation, and will be adjusting how I communicate and position myself on board. I think we all learned a fair amount from the scenario.”
But Andrew was keen to emphasize the positives of a weekend that saw the U.S. SailGP Team in the points in three straight races and well positioned going into Super Sunday.
He said: “It’s just the cold reality that we made a mistake, and any team could have done it.
“But you can’t let yourself get dragged down by that. We’re buoyed by the fact that we were out there racing with the best teams and were competitive - that’s the balance we have to strike right now.
“You see us on the footage - we walk through the boat, and each teammate looks each other in the eye and says, “All right, we can do this. And we’re going to have each other’s back and go get it again’.”
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