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Four teams were still in contention as The Ocean Race Atlantic entered its final 500 nautical miles on 9 September 2026. DMG MORI Global One held the advantage in the inaugural fully crewed IMOCA crossing from New York to Lorient, with fast reaching conditions giving way to the prospect of a tense, lighter-wind finish.
This report covers the organisers’ bulletin of 9 September. Positions are the snapshot at 12:00 UTC that day; the arrival window below is the forecast issued then.
DMG MORI’s southern route paid off
Kojiro Shiraishi’s Japanese team reached speeds close to 30 knots in southerly winds and flat water. Its earlier decision to position farther south than the other leaders delivered a favourable angle towards Lorient, north of a high-pressure system moving south-east.
At 12:00 UTC on 9 September, DMG MORI Global One led Francesca Clapcich’s 11th Hour Racing by 10 nautical miles. Paul Meilhat’s United by the Ocean was third, another 13 miles behind second place. Boris Herrmann’s Team Malizia, the northernmost of the four, trailed the leader by 35 miles.
Speed mattered more than covering rivals
Aboard DMG MORI, Samantha Davies described fast sailing under the J0 headsail, while stressing how hard the crew still needed to push. On United by the Ocean, Portuguese co-skipper Mariana Lobato welcomed the flatter sea after several difficult days below deck. The crew took turns steering, seeking the balance and apparent-wind angle that would keep the boat moving efficiently.
Meilhat explained that the priority was finding the best angle to the finish rather than controlling another boat. Teammate Benjamin Ferré saw four different strategies and four crews still capable of winning.
A final compression remained possible
The bulletin forecast lighter winds near the French coast and warned that the front group could close up again. DMG MORI sailor Nico Lunven cautioned that the lead remained vulnerable. The organisers’ forecast on 9 September placed the first arrivals between 12:00 and 18:00 UTC on Thursday 10 September, equivalent to 14:00–20:00 in Lorient.
Farther back, Oliver Heer’s Embrace the Challenge and Conrad Colman’s non-foiling MSIG Europe appeared able to take a more direct route. Colman reported gains on the newer foiler ahead and, in that bulletin, expected to reach Lorient on Friday afternoon.
Team Malizia secured the Super Sprint series
Team Malizia won Wednesday’s final Super Sprint, its fourth success in eight attempts, and took the overall series ahead of DMG MORI Global One. Team Francesca Clapcich powered by 11th Hour Racing completed the podium. This was the sprint-series result, separate from the transatlantic finishing order.
Lorient welcomed the race ashore
Ocean Live Park opened at La Base on 9 September, with Lorient mayor Fabrice Loher, IMOCA president Antoine Mermod and The Ocean Race chairman Richard Brisius at the ceremony. The programme runs daily from 10:00 until Sunday 13 September, bringing together family activities, ocean-health education, school programmes, sailing opportunities and concerts.
The roughly 3,000-nautical-mile race combines mixed crews and ocean-health work, continuing an offshore racing tradition whose most recent round-the-world edition began in Alicante in 2023.
For current race information and finish coverage, visit The Ocean Race Atlantic’s official website.
Cover photo: © Anne Beauge / DMG MORI Global One / The Ocean Race.
