New Zealand have won the Sail Grand Prix season four opener after edging rivals and reigning champions Australia at Chicago.
Despite not winning any of the previous five qualifying races, Peter Burling's team saved their best for last in the Grand Final.
New Zealand qualified for the third and final spot after consistent performances over the two-day event.
But in stark contrast to season three's finale, where Australia pipped New Zealand at San Francisco, it was the Kiwis that shut out their rivals on this occasion.
As the teams approached the final turn, New Zealand held firm to deny Australia the inside and take the honours.
With the wind offering little assistance to the boats, day two's first race saw Spain claim an unlikely win.
Jimmy Spithill's USA overcame a starting penalty to finish second, with New Zealand rounding out the top three.
That was enough for the Kiwis to all but book their passage through to the Grand Final alongside Australia and Canada.
With the final spots sewn up, the top three teams used the day's penultimate race to regroup, which saw Switzerland come home first.
In the day's final race, it was the Canadians that got out of the starting blocks the quickest, only for New Zealand to overrun them in seconds.
It then became a battle for second place, as New Zealand's superior timing and positioning saw them hang on to deny Australia for gold.
The next Sail GP event will stay in the USA and be held at Los Angeles from July 23 (NZT).
Tune into Three or ThreeNow for live, free-to-air coverage of all 12 SailGP events this season.
