After the New Zealand America's Cup defenders from Emirates Team New Zealand and the US team American Magic, the Italian "Challenger of Record" has now also presented its first new yacht for the 36th America's Cup cycle. In Cagliari, "Luna Rossa" ("Red Moon") was christened on Wednesday by Miuccia Prada with a bottle of Ferrari Maximum Blanc de Blancs. The wife of Team President Patrizio Bertelli courageously burst the bottle on the bow of the innovative flying monohull at the first attempt, after Arrigo Miglio, Archbishop of Cagliari, had blessed the boat. For the passionate Cup hunter Patrizio Bertelli, the campaign marks his sixth attempt at the summit after five unsuccessful attempts. The Italian has even surpassed the legendary Brit Sir Thomas Lipton, who unsuccessfully challenged the American defenders five times between 1899 and 1930 with his yachts named "Shamrock", going down in Cup history as one of the fairest losers and making his tea world-famous with the help of the sport of sailing. Perhaps Patrizio Bertelli's perseverance will now bring him success?
"This cup will be everything for us"
The Italian overture to the regattas of the 2020 World Series, the 2021 Challenger Series and the 36th America's Cup duel from 6 to 21 March 2021 also ennobledItaly's Prime Minister Giuseppe Contewho had the team headquarters and the yacht shown and explained to him by his sailing compatriots towards the end of the ceremony. "Luna Rossa" skipper Max Sirena had already addressed clear words to the team and the sailing-enthusiastic public before the christening: "Let me make one thing clear to everyone and especially to the new members of our team: This Cup is not a trial. It is not a test run for future races. This Cup will be won now. This Cup will push our boundaries. This Cup will be our obsession and our course. This Cup will be our biggest dream and our worst nightmare. This Cup will be everything to us, our day, our night - our here and our now. We are Luna Rossa. And we are challengers. For the moment."
78,000 hours of work went into "Luna Rossa"
The new Cup yacht attracted a lot of international attention, just like the competing boats at the previous premieres. "Luna Rossa" was built at the Persico shipyard. 90 people were involved in its construction, including 37 designers from the team. The construction took almost two years and consumed around 78,000 hours of labour. The hull was made from 7000 square metres of carbon fibre and 400 square metres of aluminium-reinforced honeycomb structure. The two foil arms weigh 500 kilograms each and are designed for loads of up to 27 tonnes. The first regatta for the new "Luna Rossa", as well as for its rivals, will be the start of the America's Cup World Series on 23 April in its home waters off Cagliari.
At the presentation in Sardinia, 73-year-old Team President Patrizio Bertelli said: "This is our sixth America's Cup challenge, but the day of the christening is as exciting as ever: it's the magical moment that represents the many months of work, dedication and anticipation of what was previously just a design and is now finally being put to use on the water. This time, the revolutionary and innovative nature of the overall reinterpreted monohull concept ensures that expectations are even higher."
Team director and skipper Max Sirena emphasised his boss's words: "We can't wait to familiarise ourselves with the AC75. It's a boat that will barely touch the water, which will allow us to reach top speeds. We have put a lot of work into the transition phase between the time when the hull is completely in the water and the flight phase; this balance is not easy to find. We will continue this work in the upcoming development phase."
Miuccia Prada delights fans
For observers in Cagliari, it quickly became clear that the Italian design was yet another interpretation of the rules than that of the opponents. The bow even reminded some experts a little of those from the time of the International America's Cup Class (IACC). The stern view shows indentations. The yacht appears to have a kind of keel that leads into a skeg in front of the rudder. More detailed technical analyses will not be long in coming.
The comments on social media went into overdrive that evening. Italian fans particularly praised Miuccias Prada's successful handiwork at the christening. Other teams sometimes use specially made christening devices with bottle holders for big events, but they don't always work. Just think back to the less than perfect christening of Sir Ben Ainslie's new Cup yacht "Rita" two and a half years ago. The Brits want to do better this time. They will be able to demonstrate this at the christening of their new Cup yacht on Friday morning (4 October) at their headquarters in Plymouth.
