06/18/2026
by James Pacheco
The SailGP Rolex SailGP Championship moves to Canada this weekend, and there are some intriguing plots developing when it comes to the betting, not to mention some interesting questions.
Such as: why are the Bonds Flying Roos SailGP Team a bigger price here than ahead of the last two events? How can the Canada Sail Grand Prix defending champion driver and the leader of the home team be the biggest outsider of the lot? And which team are the surprising third-favorites to win it? Let’s find out.
Can They Do It In Canada?
Ahead of the Canada Sail Grand Prix, many SailGP fans are all asking the same question: they couldn’t do it again, could they?
By ‘they’ we mean the BONDS Flying Roos, and by ‘it’ we mean win yet another Rolex SailGP Championship event, something they have done four times already this season and at each of the last three events.
The bookies are going 3.57 that they make it four in a row; that’s an interesting price.
It’s a shorter price than what they were ahead of the Enel Rio Sail Grand Prix back in mid-April, when they were 3.98 second-favorites behind Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team.
But curiously, it’s a better price than what they were going into the Apex Group Bermuda, when they were 3.45, and also ahead of the Mudabala New York Sail Grand Prix a couple of weeks ago, when they were 3.33.
So why are they a bigger price now, ahead of this one, now that they’re clearly in the form of their lives and have two more wins under their belts?
Bookmaking 1.01 Helps Explain Why Aussies Aren’t Shorter
Now is as good a time as any to point out that odds-compiling is a delicate balancing act.
On the one hand, the bookies are cautious about offering too big a price on a BONDS Flying Roos team that has looked to be in a league of its own over the last couple of months.
On the other hand, to balance their books, shortening the price on the Aussies means lengthening their odds on the rest of the field. A bookmaker can’t shorten their odds on the favorite and leave the odds on the other teams the same, or else they won’t attract any business from savvy punters who will swerve unfair prices.
So the bookies need to be careful about laying inflated odds on the likes of Emirates GBR. Because if the Brits were to go on to win it, they’d be facing big payouts given the generous odds on an Emirates GBR team that are always well-backed.
Now you know.
Has Tom Slingsby Been Riding His Luck, and If So, When Will It Run Out?
Winning SailGP events is easier said than done, and a lot needs to go your way for you to go all the way. Despite Tom Slingsby and the Bonds Flying Roos’ heroics over the past few weeks, it’s true that they’ve had the rub of the green on occasion, especially in New York last time out.
The first day’s results were dismissed after the Australians had failed to race, the United States SailGP Team crashed in the last fleet race, or else the BONDS Flying Roos may not even have made the final, and a decision from the umpires went their way in the Final when they overtook Dylan Fletcher’s Emirates GBR team right at the death.
So the bookies’ thinking may be something along the lines of: something has to go wrong for them sooner or later.
And if they’re to avoid another potentially big payout on the favorites, the odds-compilers may also be looking for some assistance from the venue.
When the ROCKWOOL Canada Sail Grand Prix was held back in 2024, the Australians managed just seventh in a field of 10 teams as Emirates GBR won the event, so they don’t have the best memories of racing here.
Then again, they didn’t necessarily have a great historical record at some of the other events recently, and that didn’t stop them from winning.
The Defending Champion Who’s the Biggest Outsider
Interestingly, the man who led the Emirates GBR to that win in 2024 will not be the one driving the Brits’ F50 this weekend. Back then, it was Giles Scott who was the driver of the team, so he’s the defending champion of sorts, but he’s now moved onto the NorthStar SailGP team, the home favorites.
Home advantage and the Scott connection seem to be factors lost on the bookmakers, who have somewhat bizarrely made the Canadians the outsiders of the lot at 66.67.
Whereas they’re currently just ninth of 13 in the Championship standings, so haven’t had the best of seasons to date, it’s also true that the two factors just mentioned can only be seen as positives for the Canadians, so maybe they’re being underrated here.
And if actually winning it seems a bit far-fetched, then at least making the final may appeal to some at 18.18.
Black Foils SailGP Team Shown Respect On Their Return
Back to the winner market and hot on the Aussies’ heels in the betting are Emirates GBR.
Fletcher may be feeling that it’s they, rather than the Aussies, who should be coming into the Canada Sail Grand Prixas the winners of the last event after being in control for much of the Final in New York, and they’ll have the bit between their teeth here.
They’re 4.76, but next in the betting is a name we haven’t seen in a while.
The Black Foils SailGP Team have had nothing if not time on their hands to think about this event, having been ruled out of action with a badly-damaged F50 since February, when they collided with DS Team France.
After completing successful commissioning sessions in Halifax this week, they’re finally back on the water and mean business. At least that’s what the bookies reckon.
Despite their long absence from the Championship and possible rustiness, they’re showing Peter Burling and his team plenty of respect by making them the 4.88 third-favorites and odds-on at 1.74, to make the Final.
This is one of the best sides in the championship’s history, and their presence in the fleet after a long absence is yet another reason why the Australians aren’t a higher price than they are. After all, the Black Foils represent one more elite team they’re going to have to go out and beat.
Los Gallos SailGP Team are joint fourth-favorites at 10.53 to win in Canada, the same price as the U.S SailGP Team.
The latter might be worth an interest. A reminder that they won in just the same sort of tricky conditions we might get here in Halifax back in Sydney, and they were looking in great shape in New York a couple of weeks ago before that crash in Sunday’s final fleet race.
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