Super maxi Black Jack was leading a much-reduced Sydney to Hobart race fleet on Monday after strong winds and high seas forced almost a quarter of the boats to retire.
The storm forced 21 of the original 88 starters out of the race, and the other 67 were hoping for less taxing conditions after being battered by heavy southerlies through the latter part of Sunday.
While the three super maxis remained in the race, the big list of casualties included the TP52 Gweilo, which was considered one of the main contenders to win overall honours.
Monaco's Black Jack continued to lead in the battle for line honours. She was ahead of rival super maxis LawConnect and SHK Scallywag 100,
The size of Black Jack's lead was hard to confirm as LawConnect had issues with reporting the boat's exact position.