America's Cup: Excitement ahead of the Louis Vuitton Cup showdown - Bruni: "Dream with us!"

Four well-mannered helmsmen answered questions at the big press conference on Barcelona's Cup stage the day before the first starting signal for the final of the Louis Vuitton Cup.

For Ineos Britannia, co-pilots Sir Ben Ainslie (4th America's Cup) and Dylan Fletcher-Scott (1st America's Cup) and their team are going for victory. And for the right to challenge New Zealand's Cup defenders in the 37th America's Cup match. For Ben Ainslie, this will be his third attempt with his own team under the British flag after the legendary Comeback Cup victory in 2013 with Oracle Team USA.

There is a brilliant and quite brutal poetry in the fact that both Italy and Great Britain have never won the America's Cup." Jesse Tuke

Only the winner can fight for the Cup with the Kiwis

Jimmy Spithill (8th America's Cup) and Francesco Bruni (6th America's Cup) are sailing for Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli. Both teams - British and Italian - are hungrier than ever for the showdown. Both want to win the America's Cup for their country for the first time. The Azzurri, under the direction of Patrizio Bertelli, are making their seventh attempt with the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli team. However, only the victorious challenger will be granted entry to the Cup match from 12 October.

The final of the Louis Vuitton Cup has a great reputation in international sailing. Reaching it is a great achievement for any team. But we want more." Ben Ainslie

The final of the Louis Vuitton Cup will be played in "First to win 7" mode. The first team to win seven points in the Louis Vuitton Cup final, which will last a maximum of 13 duels, will advance to the 37th Cup match. Both teams have at least publicly stated that they regard the upcoming series of duels as a match of equals. "The teams are much closer together than in the past. That can only make for great racing," said Jimmy Spithill. Ben Ainslie also said: "We believe these are two evenly matched teams. It's going to be a fantastic finale."

Each of the two teams stands broad-shouldered in the way of the other in the assault on the summit. The Italians had made a brilliant start to the Louis Vuitton Cup, showing themselves to be a strong force in the final pre-regatta and in the double round-robin round, but were narrowly beaten by the British at the end of the qualifying round. In the hard-fought semi-final against NYYC American Magic, "Luna Rossa" had more to contend with: the American opponents, who were very strong at times, their own mistakes and breakages on board. The Azzurri ultimately prevailed 5:3.

Ineos Britannia with biggest leap in development

Ineos Britannia initially had a somewhat easier game in the semi-final against Alinghi Red Bull Racing. But here, too, the Swiss suddenly got into better and better shape in light winds and challenged the favourites. The Swiss were able to wrest two winning points from the British before Ben Ainslie, Dylan Fletcher-Scott and their crew won the match 5:2 in their team's favour. It is not only since these wobbles that the British have been recognised as having a slight weakness in calmer winds and rougher seas.

Technically, the America's Cup began in 1851 in British waters around the Isle of Wight. As we all know, we haven't seen it again since. That's the motivation for our team." Ben Ainslie

The British "Challenger of Record" has recently developed a lot of momentum. The experts agree that Ineos Britannia has made the biggest leap in development from its still unconvincing performance and fourth place in the pre-regatta in August to victory in the challenger qualification and beyond.

Even opponent Jimmy Spithill said: "The Brits have done a great job. They have clearly made a big step forward between the pre-regatta and now. I'm expecting a real fight. Two very, very evenly matched teams will meet. That's what we want: to send a challenger into the match against the Kiwis who is very well prepared and gets the job done."

Who will win the Louis Vuitton Cup: the British or the Italians?

Tension and anticipation are also growing among the fans of both teams. Francesco Bruni said in Barcelona: "In Italy, the America's Cup is a big dream. We have been chasing this dream for many, many years. Even before I was born. We now have a chance and we must seize this opportunity." Checco Bruni said to the fans: "Keep dreaming with us! That's what we need. We need the support of the Italian fans. They've always been by our side. We have to win together."

Checco" Bruni described the "best performance" as the decisive factor in the battle for the Louis Vuitton Cup. The seven-time world champion said on his fifth outing for Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli: "If we deliver our best performance, then we will win. If not, then we will lose. It's as simple as that."

The Louis Vuitton Cup final is something fantastic! It gives you the opportunity to qualify for the America's Cup." Francesco Bruni

According to Wednesday's weather forecast, the first day of the final of the Louis Vuitton Cup should not cause too many worries. Winds of between 12 and 18 to 20 knots are expected. If this turns out to be the case, there is little standing in the way of two fast and spectacular opening races on Thursday. Long-time companions and rivals will meet on the water, who know each other and their strengths and weaknesses well.

Long-standing companions, old rivals

Ben Ainslie remembers: "Checco and I sailed against each other in the Laser at the 1996 Olympic Games." Ainslie won silver at his first Games before going on to win four gold medals at his home Games off Weymouth in 2012 and becoming the most successful Olympic sailor in the sport's history. Francesco Bruni sailed to twelfth place at the 1996 Olympics off Savannah. "I also have a long association with Jimmy in match racing, racing with and against him. Jimmy and Checco are very experienced professionals in our sport."

I believe we have what it takes to go all the way." Dylan Fletcher-Scott

New to the game is Dylan Fletcher-Scott as Ben Ainslie's co-pilot. The 49er Olympic champion, whose former co-skipper Stuart Bithell is part of Erik Heil's Germany SailGP team, is making his debut as helmsman in an America's Cup cycle. The 36-year-old said: "I am very happy to be part of this team. It's fantastic to see who is here, how many Olympic, World Championship and European Championship medals they have won. It was always my dream to be part of a British Cup team."

Challenging America's Cup territory

Both finalists were on the water again on Wednesday to test and warm up before the starting gun for the Louis Vuitton final is fired on Thursday at 2.10 pm (Click here for the live broadcast). Ben Ainslie reminded us once again: "This is a very, very demanding area. Not only the wind forecast, but also the choice of mainsail and headsail is crucial. Most teams have four or five different headsails to choose from. It's quite difficult to make the right decision here."

The negotiations behind the scenes about when exactly the final of the Youth America's Cup between Italy and the US team should be held were apparently not easy either. The original idea was to hold it between the first two Thursday races in the Louis Vuitton Cup final. It is now scheduled for 26 September at 12.20 pm, before the start of the first race of the big AC75s.

Replay of the press conference with the skippers and helmsmen of the Louis Vuitton Cup finalists: