Ed Baird (USA), of Alinghi, and Dean Barker (NZL), of Emirates Team New Zealand, each won their first six races in the Group B round robin to lead the group of eight crews.

They’re slated to meet in the last match of Flight 7, which is scheduled for tomorrow morning. The race committee postponed the flight this evening when the winds went light and rain continued to fall on Marstrand.

“We were very lucky today,” said Baird, the co-leader of the Swedish Match Tour. “We were trailing in our first three races, but won them. We won one race when we couldn’t steer.”

While Baird thanked his lucky stars, Barker and crew were confident coming off the boat.

“We sailed well today, we’re pleased,” said Barker. “It’s been a few years since I’ve been here, and we haven’t sailed these boats (Swedish Match 40) before.”

The winner of tomorrow’s showdown match will advance straight to the quarterfinals, scheduled for Saturday. Peter Holmberg (ISV), of Alinghi, advanced to the quarterfinals yesterday when he won the Group A round robin with a 6-1 record.

Whoever loses tomorrow’s match will advance with five other crews to the knockout round, scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. The second through seventh-place finishers from Group A and B advance to the knockout round. The last place team in the group will be eliminated.

Surprisingly, that team could be Russell Coutts (NZL) and his Danish crew. Coutts, the event’s defending champion, posted a 1-5 record today. The crew’s lone victory came against Ian Williams (GBR), a novice match-racer, and they needed two penalties against Williams to gain enough separation for victory.

Coutts Racing will have to win tomorrow’s match against Iain Percy (GBR), of +39 Challenge, to guarantee advancement. If he loses he could still advance, but would do so through a tiebreaker. But Coutts can never be counted out. He won the 2004 Toscana Elba Cup – Trofeo Locman after being placed last on Day 3. And he won this year’s Elba Cup after advancing through the repechage round and sailing the maximum number of races possible. Coutts likes a tussle, and he’s got one on his hands.

Johnie Berntsson (SWE) is third with a 4-2 record, followed by Kelvin Harrap (NZL), of Emirates Team New Zealand, at 3-3. Björn Hansen (SWE) is sixth, also at 3-3, followed by Coutts, Williams, 1-5, and Percy. Percy failed to win a race today in six starts.

The crews began the day in an easterly breeze between 12 and 15 knots. It built to about 18 knots as the sun warmed the land to about 85 degrees when the crews returned to the water for the afternoon session. But it was very shifty.

Around 3:00 p.m. a squall blew through and the race committee sent the teams to the harbor as the wind gusted up to 25 knots and lightning filled the sky. The crews returned to the water about two and a half hours later, but the wind was very light from the northeast and only Flight 6 was completed.

Baird led his race against Coutts in Flight 3 when his steering broke. Sailing up the second beat, the pair was working the right side of the course in the easterly wind. There were large right-handers, and Baird was trying to block Coutts from getting to the right of him.

“We went into a tack and the steering broke,” said Baird. “Dean (Phipps) dove below and put it back together as we luffed head-to-wind. But then it broke again because he needed a wrench to tighten the bolts. So Dean sat below holding the thing together as we finished the race.

“We’re lucky to have the results that we have. It looks a lot stronger than it felt,” Baird said.

Despite his first time in the Swedish Match 40, Barker seemed pleased with the design. “They’re quite maneuverable, but we’re still learning what we can do with them,” said the two-time Swedish Match Cup champion (2000 and ’02). “Some of the other guys who have sailed them know what they can do.”

Swedish Match Tour partners include Swedish Match, BMW and the Match Race Association. Swedish Match Tour Official Sponsors include Musto, Sebago, Travel Places, Trident Studio and Wedgwood.

For more information on the Swedish Match Tour, its competitors and events, please visit the official Tour Web site, www.swedishmatchtour.com. Swedish Match Tour television programs may be viewed by clicking on the Tour television button on the home page of the Web site.

Source: Sean McNeill