It was a weak day for the German team. Skipper Jesper Bank's team lost twice, despite decent starts and good boat speed at times. The lost match against Bank's former team Victory Challenge was particularly painful.
The Swedes, who had already beaten the Germans three times last year, were only under pressure on the starting cross. After that, they clearly pulled away and crossed the finish line with a lead of almost 50 seconds. It was their third victory in this act.
After the race, Bank was nevertheless satisfied - if not with the result, then at least with the team: "It's certainly not down to my team, they did a very good job," he said. He did not find an explanation for the defeat, at least not publicly.
In the late afternoon, United Internet faced a much stronger opponent: Luna Rossa, who had beaten serial winners Alinghi in the first race of the day and with a new boat.
Jesper Bank got off to another solid start and crossed the line on the right-hand side almost at the same time as the Italians. As against Victory Challenge, the first cross went well for the Germans. On the left-hand side of the course, they were even able to move slightly ahead of Luna Rossa halfway through the cross, only to fall behind again afterwards. At the windward mark they were already a good 60 metres behind. On the subsequent downwind leg, the gap quickly grew to 200 metres.
The wind weakened during this phase and shifted frequently. Conditions that the Italian team coped with better, impressively underlining their status as one of the big four alongside Alinghi, BMW Oracle Racing and Team NewZealand.
Team Germany only came close once: on the second cross, they put more pressure on the right-hand side of the course and closed the gap to 30 metres. However, Luna Rossa sailed more conservatively in the centre - and benefited from a back-turn, which ultimately gave them a clear lead of almost a nautical mile.
Just bad luck on board the German Cupper in difficult conditions - or signs of tactical weaknesses in the comparatively inexperienced afterguard that Jesper Bank has gathered around him? It is still too early to make a final judgement. But after 5 defeats in 6 races, it is clear that the other teams - even those that are far worse off financially - currently have the better overall package.
The phenomenal turnaround of Team Shosholoza is proof of this. The South Africans, with Hamburg professional Tim Kröger on board as boat captain, won both day races today - first against the French syndicate Areva, and in the afternoon in a highly exciting match against the strong sailing local hero Desafio Espaniol.
The boat sponsored by T-Systems has become faster and more reliable over the winter break. But even more than that, the increase in personnel is clearly having an effect. With Tomaso Chieffi (ex-BMW Oracle) and Paolo Cian, the South African syndicate is significantly better positioned and is realising its potential for the first time.
Meanwhile, BMW Oracle reigns unchallenged at the top. After Alinghi, which started with an old boat, lost a point against Luna Rossa and Teeam NewZealand was defeated by the Americans, Chris Dickson's team is the only one of the Big Four still unbeaten.
In the match against bottom-placed China Team, they were clearly in the lead in the evening when the race had to be cancelled due to the time limit being exceeded. One of the few weather-related cancellations of the acts in Valencia so far.
Jochen Rieker
Herausgeber YACHT
