Dubai: Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, captained by British Olympic silver medallist Ian Walker, continues to be on heels of Dongfeng Race Team as the sixth leg of the 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race enters the home stretch. The team was in second place midday on Wednesday with 225 nautical miles away from the finish line, 4.3 behind the Chinese leaders.

In third position, 19.2nm behind Dongfeng Race Team, was Team Brunel who lead MAPFRE in fourth place by 9.2nm. Team Alvimedica and Team SCA are positioned fifth and sixth, respectively. The sixth leg of the race will conclude in Newport, Rhode Island.

“Ian (Walker) has been in a constant state of tension all day — cover Team Brunel and stay locked into second place or attack Dongfeng if there’s an opportunity,” revealed on-board reporter Matt Knighton.

Dongfeng Race Team, skippered by France’s Charles Caudrelier, has built on their 2.1 nm lead from Tuesday. The race’s 12th edition has been closely contested with narrow finishes to each leg. The fifth leg from Auckland to Itajaí saw the first four boats all finish within an hour of each other. This trend looks set to continue as less than 30nm separates the four leading boats.

“It has happened so many times in this race, that after thousands and thousands of miles spent crossing this world’s oceans, it is the final hundred or so that decide the outcome,” said Team Alvimedica’s on-board reporter Amory Ross.

The boats made a final planned gybe out of a light wind area on Tuesday evening and the crews are unlikely to take any more gambits in order to find favourable winds or currents. The strong southwesterly wind across the Gulf Stream in the morning aided the teams before the final push, where they can expect erratic winds to keep them guessing till the very end.

The ongoing race began on October 4 in Alicante, Spain last year and will finish with the final In-Port Race on June 27 in Gothenburg, Sweden where Volvo is based. The 38,739-nautical mile route consists of stopovers in Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Sanya, Auckland, Itajaí, Newport, Lisbon and Lorient.