America's Cup: "Luna Rossa" on the brink - three match points for "Britannia"
Tatjana Pokorny
· 02.10.2024
Has Ineos Britannia gained the decisive advantage in the battle for the Louis Vuitton Cup on one of the toughest sailing days in the Louis Vuitton Cup so far? Just one day after the annoying pre-start mishap in race 8, Ben Ainslie, his co-pilot Dylan Fletcher and their crew looked like a changed team on Wednesday off Barcelona. Races 9 and 10 were on the programme in the finale of the challenger round before Barcelona.
With the score tied at 4:4 between Ineos Britannia and Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli, the sixth day of racing in the final of the Louis Vuitton Cup got underway. Just the evening before, four-time Olympic champion Ben Ainslie had to put up with tough questions about the penalty. In race 8, "Britannia" had come too close to the course boundary in the pre-start phase, then skidded in the strong winds and crossed the imaginary line. The penalty had caused the Brits to start the race on the wrong foot, lose and not look good.
America's Cup match in sight?
Would his team only be able to win with gifts from the Italians? Ainslie had to parry such and similarly provocative questions afterwards. He did so calmly and politely. But anyone who knows him a little better knows that pressure of this kind has generally only made Ben Ainslie stronger in the past. There are even Ainslie experts who say that the 47-year-old needs high pressure of a special kind to be able to call up his best form.
Ainslie countered Tuesday's adversity on Wednesday with determination and conviction. The British team won twice in two races. Ineos Britannia's CEO, skipper and helmsman Ainslie gave a dry commentary on this directly after the double victory on the water: "That was also a bit of an answer for the Italian media, who asked whether we can win races on our own. I think we were able to show that quite well today."
There is no doubt about that. The Brits secured victory in the final race 9 early on Wednesday afternoon outside Barcelona with some biting good groundwork in the pre-start phase. They forced "Luna Rossa" to the right-hand side in the last-minute split start, while they themselves were heading for the left-hand side of the course. The duel remained very exciting until the near-simultaneous rounding of the first gate. After that, the Italians, who continued to attack, paid tribute to their smaller headsail compared to the British.
An incorrectly chosen headsail makes all the difference
"It looks like we're dealing with a slight difference in the sails here. That's why the guys are struggling a bit. We were expecting a bit more wind, but we're still in the game. The guys are fighting hard. Anything can still happen," admitted "Luna Rossa" coach Philippe Presti honestly during the race. But "nothing" happened.
"Luna Rossa" could not get past the consistent Brits. The Azzurri finished 23 seconds behind. "It was a really nice race," said Francesco Bruni with his characteristic passion. However, Jimmy Spithill's Italian co-pilot immediately admitted: "We had a bit of trouble with the headsail." According to Bruni, it was also extremely difficult to maintain rudder control in the choppy sea that day. The less than ideal sail set-up exacerbated this problem.
We were constantly at the control limit, constantly having to fight for the right balance." Dylan Fletcher
Race winner Dylan Fletcher also described the conditions on Barcelona's America's Cup stage as extremely challenging. "It was the winds from the east-south-east that led to this harsh swell. They cause a much shorter and sharper wave than the Garbi. So we couldn't sail the boat the way we did yesterday."
Flawless performance by the "Britannia" crew
His boss Ben Ainslie also described Wednesday's duels as a "nightmarishly difficult task not to fall off the foils". Whilst the winds of 16 or 17 knots were lighter compared to the 20 to 23 knot powerplay the day before, the rough seas made the foiling extremely difficult. Like stunt kites, they were repeatedly seen to jerk slightly off course - and the crews had to bring them back onto the ideal line.
With the score at 5:4 for Ineos Britannia, race 10 in the final of the challenger round of the 37th America's Cup began the second duel on 2 October. The "Britannia" secured a valuable advantage right at the start. Francesco Bruni would later say: "We didn't have a great start. We simply gave away a few metres and some speed off the line. They had the front slightly in front. I don't think they made a single mistake after that."
The race itself was fiercely contested. Peter Lester, America's Cup veteran and TV legend from New Zealand, observed a change in style from race 9 to race 10 among the Italians, who repeatedly attacked "Britannia". The gaps between "Britannia" and the chasing "Luna Rossa" sometimes melted down to 20 or 30 metres, but the elegant-looking Silver Arrow was unable to get past the British car. And "Britannia's" co-drivers Ben Ainslie and Dylan Fletcher were neither rattled by the constant attacks from Jimmy Spithill and Checco Bruni nor provoked into making mistakes.
Two mistakes in two races cost two points
Francesco Bruni drew the unfortunate conclusion from Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli's point of view in the America's Cup harbour of Port Vell in the evening: "We made two different mistakes in two races today and lost two points. It's as simple as that." What will it take for Patrizio Bertelli's racing team to turn things around in their seventh America's Cup attempt? Bruni said: "I know we can do better. We have to deliver that on Friday."
On 4 October, Ineos Britannia will start what could be the last day of racing in the Louis Vuitton Cup final at 2.10 pm with three match points. According to Bruni, his team will dedicate 30 per cent of the scheduled rest day on 3 October to recovery, as they have done in the past. The rest of the day will be dedicated to "intensive analysis" and "maybe even sailing". "We'll decide that as a team," said the 51-year-old co-driver from Palermo, whose racing team has its back to the wall.
Naturally, the British team took stock in the evening after two victories and three match points: "It's a fantastic day for the team. The tie has finally been broken. We've waited a long time for this day," said cyclist Neil Hunter, who pedalled for Ineos Britannia's Power Group.
Decision on course for America's Cup ahead
For him and his team-mates, the 24-hour break set before the start of the series is just right: "The last few days have been relentless. The work has never stopped. That doesn't just apply to the races. We have got everything out of the boat that we possibly could. It was a great week for the team."
The question that preoccupied both teams and their fan camps that evening: Will the light of the "Red Moon" go out in this Cup cycle on Friday, or can the Azzurri even strike back with two wins and earn themselves another match point?
On the America's Cup stage, lighter winds may be blowing again on 4 October. "We expect winds from a similar south-easterly direction as today. Maybe a bit more southerly and lighter. It could be similar conditions to the race we were leading when it had to be cancelled," said Dylan Fletcher.
