The wind took pity on us and stayed between 12 and 17 knots. The tide was initially rising, which had a defusing effect. But nothing helped the Italians, who endeavoured to get out of the affair with decency. The New Zealanders are simply two steps faster. "The positive thing is that we are improving every day," said Luna Rossa skipper Max Sirena. "But I'm starting to worry because we need another four to five months. We're not that far away (from the New Zealanders), but the Cup starts in a few weeks."
Only once was there anything like a hint of tension: on the fifth run, the New Zealanders chose the wrong side of the leeward gate, allowing Chris Draper and Luna Rossa to drastically reduce the gap. But Dean Barker and Team New Zealand tacked back in time and covered the Italians in the best match race style throughout the entire cross, only to sail to the finish line with a lead of almost a minute and a half. In both races, the performance data showed that the Italians had far less top speed and also travelled significantly more distance because they had to go higher on the beam in order to have enough speed for foiling.
The Cup match between Oracle and Team New Zealand, which has long been predicted by uninvolved observers, is slowly becoming an official topic. US sailing legend and Cup factotum Gary Jobson, a TV commentator paid by the organisers, observed how the New Zealanders had matched up with both Oracle boats for a few moments in training a few days ago and predicted an extremely close Cup match. Except for the gybe, where the New Zealanders allegedly gained a boat length, the VMG values were practically identical, he wrote. And: "I'm sure the losers will win some races too. I'm looking forward to it." Well then, Mr Jobson. I hope you're right.
Race 5 & 6
The rest of the programme:
Fri 23 Aug Race 6 (start time TBD)
Sat. 24.8. Race 7 (13:10/22:10), Race 8 (14:10/23:10)
Sun. 25.8. Race 9* (13:10/22:10) Race 10* (14:10/23:10)
(* if necessary)
