Sam Davies and her DMG MORI sailing team are deep into an intensive training period as they familiarize themselves with their new IMOCA 60 and prepare for a transatlantic delivery to the start of the Ocean Race Atlantic.
The British-born, France-based skipper confirmed that the team is working at pace to build cohesion and boat handling skills aboard the foiling machine, with the clock ticking before they must cross the Atlantic to reach the race’s start line.
“Starting to learn how to sail this amazing new boat with a great team,” Davies said. “No time to lose as soon we will head off across the Atlantic to the start of the Ocean Race Atlantic.”
A Career Defined by Ocean Racing Excellence
Sam Davies is one of the most experienced and respected figures in offshore sailing. A veteran of the Vendée Globe — the solo, non-stop, unassisted race around the world — Davies has built a reputation for resilience and tactical intelligence across decades of ocean racing. Her previous campaigns, including her dramatic dismasting aboard Initiatives-Cœur during the 2020-2021 Vendée Globe, have only cemented her standing as one of the sport’s most determined competitors.
The partnership with DMG MORI, the Japanese-German precision engineering giant, represents a significant chapter in Davies’ career. Major industrial sponsors of this caliber signal both the commercial appeal of IMOCA racing and the confidence the brand places in Davies as a skipper and ambassador.
The IMOCA Class and a New Generation of Foiling Machines
The latest generation of IMOCA 60s are among the most technologically advanced ocean racing yachts ever built. Equipped with large foils that lift the hull partially out of the water, these boats are capable of sustained speeds that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. However, the performance gains come with increased complexity, making the training phase aboard a new boat critically important.
Learning the nuances of a new IMOCA — understanding its foiling behavior in various sea states, optimizing sail combinations, and developing emergency protocols — demands hundreds of hours on the water. For a crew preparing to race across open ocean, this familiarization period is not optional; it is the foundation upon which safety and performance are built.
The Ocean Race Atlantic: A New Chapter in Offshore Competition
The Ocean Race Atlantic represents one of the marquee events on the IMOCA Globe Series calendar. As a major transatlantic race, it tests teams across thousands of miles of open ocean, requiring navigational precision, weather routing expertise, and the ability to push hard while managing fatigue and boat preservation. For Davies and the DMG MORI team, it will serve as both a standalone competitive challenge and a crucial building block for future campaigns.
Transatlantic races have historically played a pivotal role in the development of offshore sailing teams. They offer the intensity of ocean racing in a compressed format compared to a full circumnavigation, providing invaluable data on boat performance, crew dynamics, and equipment reliability.
Building Toward the Bigger Picture
Davies’ urgency is understandable. The IMOCA Globe Series rewards consistency across multiple events, and strong results in the Ocean Race Atlantic could set the tone for the remainder of the season. With the fleet growing increasingly competitive — featuring a mix of new-generation foilers and experienced skippers — every day of preparation counts.
The coming weeks will be pivotal for the DMG MORI campaign. As the team logs more miles and refines their systems aboard the new boat, the Atlantic crossing itself will double as an extended shakedown before the racing begins in earnest. For Davies and her crew, the journey to the start line is already part of the challenge.
