Defenders Team New Zealand gained an early psychological edge over their America’s Cup rivals yesterday when they beat challengers American Magic and Italy-based Luna Rossa to clinch the America’s Cup World Series off Auckland, New Zealand.
The World Series is not part of the actual Cup regatta, which is to begin next month with a series to find the top challenger who are to race Team New Zealand in March in the 36th Cup match.
However, the series was the first chance for the defender and challengers from the UK, Italy and the US to race against each other in the high-tech, foiling AC75 class yachts.
Photo: AFP
Team New Zealand laid down an early marker with their win.
American Magic and Team New Zealand came into yesterday’s final round of races jointly atop the leader board with matching 3-1 records. The US challenger had an advantage on count back from having beaten New Zealand when the teams first raced on Thursday, the opening day of the series’ double round-robin.
That win onboard Patriot was heartening for the challengers as it tarnished the image of invincibility that has begun to grow around the New Zealand team onboard Te Rehutai.
Photo: AFP
With two race wins yesterday, Team New Zealand again showed that they have a fast boat, perhaps the fastest among the four competing teams at this stage, and that they are hard to beat if they do not make tactical or boat handling errors.
There was drama in the final race of the round-robin series — each team raced the others twice — when Luna Rossa took what appeared to be a winning lead over Team New Zealand, threatening to come from behind to snatch the World Series title.
Luna Rossa pulled off a superb pre-start maneuver to push Te Rehutai beyond the pin end of the start line and raced away to an early lead.
Photo: AFP
The Italian team seemed to have achieved a winning break when, in a failing breeze, New Zealand had to pinch up to lay the first gate and lost all speed, falling off its foils.
Team New Zealand sat becalmed as Luna Rossa sailed away to what looked like a win in the race and series.
However, the Italian team sailed into a hole in the wind and in turn were becalmed, allowing New Zealand to regain the lead as they built back speed.
The race remained close and New Zealand were only 18 second ahead at the final gate, finally crossing the finish line just 16 seconds ahead.
On a day of fluctuating winds the key to racing was to pick the shifts as the breeze tracked from northeast to north, rising to 13 knots (24kph), but also falling to about 6 knots or less.
Rangitoto Island cast a wind shadow over the course, which made reading the shifts more difficult.
In their race against Patriot, New Zealand also lost the start, but sailed into a patch of pressure on the first upwind leg, closed, then crossed meters ahead of the US yacht near the middle of the course.
American Magic team protested that New Zealand had changed course slightly, forcing Patriot to turn its bow down, but umpires dismissed the protest.
The race was decided when American Magic put in a bad tack near the first gate at the top of the course and plunged off the foils, losing all speed.
New Zealand sailed away as the US team worked to get Patriot back onto its foils and up to speed.
Te Rehutai made gains around the course and crossed the finish line 1 minute, 19 seconds ahead.
Britain’s INEOS Team UK had another bad day, losing their races against Luna Rossa and American Magic by wide margins.
The Britannia is known to struggle in light airs and it repeatedly dropped off its foils, conceding large margins and becoming the first boat to lose a race by more than a full leg of the course.
New Zealand take top seeding into today’s Christmas Cup regatta.
They are to race Britannia in the semi-finals while Patriot takes on Luna Rossa, the winners of each race facing each other in the final.
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