Sailing: New Zealand SailGP team building for vital event in Spain as halfway point of season arrives

The New Zealand SailGP team go into this weekend's event in Cadiz second in the overall standings. Photo / SailGP

The New Zealand SailGP team are not settling for their recent success.

The form crew of the global foiling circuit, the Kiwis have nine wins in the last 15 races, with only two finishes outside the top two in that span, while they have won two of the last three events.

It's been a drastic rise for the team who until three events ago had not so much as qualified for a podium race. However, heading into this weekend's event in Cadiz, Spain, wing trimmer Blair Tuke said there was plenty more yet to come.

"We're still introducing new things and refining different areas," he told Newstalk ZB. "That's what's so exciting and part of the reason the group is so motivated now – there are areas across the whole campaign that we can keep getting better at individually and as a team.

"We just have to keep working on those, keep focusing on the next race, the weekend ahead, and on the process. It's been working for us, so we're going to keep our heads down and keep doing that."

On the back of their recent success, the Kiwis now find themselves in the hunt for a spot in the $1m grand final race at the end of the season, sitting just one point behind first-placed Australia heading into the event in Cadiz, which gets underway on Sunday morning.

"It's been pleasing for us to close the gap," Tuke said. "They got off to a ripper start after winning last season and the first season. It's been good to build, obviously a bit slow for us, but we've built nicely and got ourselves right back in the fight.

"It's a long season with 11 events and you have to be consistent throughout, but as we're now just getting over the midway stage once we get through this weekend, it's certainly pleasing to be near the front and we want to keep that pressure on them."

Cadiz is the sixth event on the schedule this season, and brings an end to the packed European leg during which sailors had the luxury of plenty of time on the water.

This will be the fourth event in the last two months, and one the crews will want to take advantage of as there is a near two-month gap before the series returns in Dubai in mid-November.

"We're building off that momentum the league has got, and it's going well for us at the moment," Tuke said.

"We want to be there in the final in San Francisco come April next year, but to do that you have to be consistent throughout. It's been pretty pleasing to get these last few events under the belt and get ourselves back in the mix, but it's time now to keep the hammer down and keep the pressure on."