Pre-start penalty and light winds overshadow day two of America’s Cup Match in Barcelona
by INEOS Britannia 13 Oct 11:34 PDT
13 October 2024
Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup Race 3 – October 13, 2024 © David Maynard / www.alleycatphotographer.com
A pre-start penalty and gentle winds defined Race Day 2 of the 37th America’s Cup Match between INEOS Britannia and defenders Emirates Team New Zealand in Barcelona.
Only one of the day’s two planned races was completed, as racing was called off when the wind fell below the required minimum. The Kiwis won the day’s first race after INEOS Britannia faced a penalty following a disputed maneuver from Emirates Team New Zealand.
INEOS Britannia Team Principal and Skipper Ben Ainslie commented: “That was a tough call; we believed we were maintaining clearance, but clearly the umpires had a different view. We recognized that dwelling on it was pointless, took it on the chin, and concentrated on the rest of the race. I don’t think we’ve performed at our best yet, but I fully trust our team. We have the resilience and determination to discover that performance and rebound stronger. We’ve demonstrated our ability to do that throughout this event, and we’ll keep pushing hard.”
Ainslie’s British team received a penalty after an assertive action by the Kiwis in the pre-start of the initial race. After securing the right of way, the Kiwis positioned themselves against INEOS Britannia, which had been crossing cleanly behind them. The boats came dangerously close, swerving to avoid a substantial collision, with their foils passing just centimeters apart. Both teams lodged protests, prompting the umpires to intervene. They ruled that the Brits had not adequately maintained clearance from the right-of-way boat, assigning them a penalty that required them to fall back 75 meters behind the Kiwis after crossing the starting line.
INEOS Britannia managed to recover impressively from the penalty, reducing New Zealand’s lead from 100m to merely 2m, but the Kiwis defended well, maintaining their edge. The Kiwis then enjoyed the prime choice on wind shifts and advantageous breeze lanes, wisely using this to keep their lead throughout the race, ultimately winning by 52 seconds. This brought the score to 3-0 in favor of Emirates Team New Zealand, leading to the abandonment of racing due to light wind.
INEOS Britannia Trimmer Leigh McMillan stated: “There’s still plenty of time for us to get ahead in this Match. We’re making constant progress and are still eager to compete. It’s incredible to be part of this Match, and these duels are what we thrive on. We’ve done well with the battles throughout this competition, and I’m confident we can replicate that success.”
The Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup Match will continue on Monday, with the postponed Race 4 expected to happen. UK viewers can catch all the live action on the Sail-World.com and YachtsandYachting.com homepages from 13:00 BST (14:00 CEST).
