Land Rover BAR teams up with Langley's Gladiator sailing programme for 2018 TP52 Super Series
Monday October 2nd, 2017
The TP52 Super Series will open Land Rover BAR’s challenge for the 36th America’s Cup. The team announced today that Sir Ben Ainslie will lead his team aboard Langley Holdings’ Gladiator TP52 in the world’s leading high performance monohull race series.
On September 29th, Emirates Team New Zealand (ETNZ) confirmed their defence of the 36th America’s Cup in Auckland will take place in monohull boats, and not the multihulls of the last two editions of the sport’s toughest contest.
The full details of the new boats are expected to be unveiled on 31st March 2018, and they will not be available to race next season. In the meantime, the Challenger teams will look to develop their monohull sailing skills, which are significantly different to those required for the foiling catamarans raced in the 35th America’s Cup.
Tony Langley will continue at the helm of Gladiator, a role he has maintained since 2012. The team tied the latest event in Mahon this month, scoring equal points to the 2017 Series champions Azzurra, only losing out on the regatta victory after the tie-breaker.
Land Rover BAR have already said they will contest the 36th America’s Cup in Auckland , after reaching the challenger semi-finals for the 35th Cup in Bermuda this summer, losing to Emirates Team New Zealand, the eventual winner and the new holder of the trophy.
“The return to monohull racing for the America’s Cup means that the 52 Super Series will be great racing for our sailing team. We are delighted to be working with Tony Langley, he is one of the biggest supporters of British sailing and this will give us a unique opportunity to return to the subtleties of monohull sailing at an extremely high level. This allows not just our sailing team, but also our design and performance teams to start developing our tools and methodology as we begin our 36th America’s Cup campaign,” said Ainslie.
About Land Rover BAR
Ben Ainslie Racing (BAR) was launched on June 10th 2014 in the presence of Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge. The team was conceived by four times Olympic gold medallist and 34th America's Cup winner, Sir Ben Ainslie, with the long-term aim of challenging for Britain and bringing the America's Cup back home to where it all began in 1851. Ben has developed and will lead a British entry capable of winning the prestigious trophy, something Britain has so far never managed to achieve.
Land Rover BAR is a commercial sporting team, with a number of individual private investors alongside corporate partners. The team is made up of some of the best British and international sailors, designers, builders and racing support.
Sports teams represent key role models in society. This privileged position is not taken for granted at Land Rover BAR. The team believes our influence should extend far beyond the race course, and have put sustainability at the heart of operations since launching the team.
The team has set up a permanent headquarters in the centre of Portsmouth, the 74,000 sq. ft. building houses all the team's activities, and welcomes the public into its Tech Deck and Education Centre. The 1851 Trust is the team's official charity, and HRH The Duchess of Cambridge is its Royal Patron.
About Gladiator Sailing Team
In common with all Langley businesses, the group sponsored Gladiator Sailing Team represents the very best technology in its field, attracts highly talented can-do people and conducts itself with the highest standards of integrity.
About Langley Holdings
Langley Holdings plc is a diverse, privately owned engineering and industrial group based in the UK. The group comprises 5 operating divisions, based principally in Germany, France and the United Kingdom, with a substantial presence in the United States and more than 80 subsidiaries worldwide. The operating divisions produce equipment ranging from electrical systems for data centres and machinery for cement and steel plants, to food packaging lines, automotive welding equipment and printing presses. The group was founded in 1975 by the current Chairman and sole shareholder, Tony Langley. With annual revenues of circa $1 billion, Langley Holdings is profitable, entirely debt free and employs around 4,500 people worldwide.
For further information contact
Land Rover BAR dan.wilkinson@landroverbar.com + 44 (0) 7786 223444
Langley Holdings crista.baxter@langleyholdings.com + 44 (0) 7778 412468