Cup Spy – Day 28: America’s Cup Match – Day 2 – Tension and Friction
by Richard Gladwell, Sail-World NZ 14 Oct 07:06 PDT
14 October 2024
A narrow escape for Emirates Team NZ and INEOS Britannia – Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup, Race Day 2 – October 13, 2024 © Ian Roman / America’s Cup
The America’s Defender forged ahead in their effort to retain the America’s Cup with a third victory in as many races held in Barcelona on Sunday.
The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron’s crew navigated a day filled with tension and friction.
While many experts quickly dismissed Kiwi skipper Peter Burling’s match racing skills, he has demonstrated a bold approach thus far in this event, remaining undefeated against the Challenger from the Royal Yacht Squadron.
Emirates Team New Zealand has openly acknowledged their management’s practice of conducting a “brutal” review post-regatta, following the 2021 America’s Cup in Auckland, where the Italian Challenger leveled the score with the Defender after six races, suggesting the Cup might head to Sardinia. This review attributed much of the “fault” to an initially lackluster performance by the sailing team, despite having a boat the management believed was notably quicker than the Challenger.
The disparity largely stemmed from the skills of starting helmsman Jimmy Spithill and coach Philippe Presti, who revisited a playbook they used effectively during the 2013 America’s Cup while sailing for Golden Gate Yacht Club and their team, Oracle Racing.
In Barcelona, the showdown between sailing titans Jimmy Spithill and Ben Ainslie didn’t surface until the Challenger Final of the Louis Vuitton Cup. Ironically, these two had previously sailed together on Oracle Racing in 2013, yet over a decade later, they found themselves entering the starting box from opposite ends. Ainslie appeared to be in peak form, decisively outmaneuvering his former skipper during that series.
Much of this can likely be attributed to the British coach, lawyer, rules authority, and seven-time world match race champion Ian Williams, who expressed frustration when asked about the contentious pre-start incident from today’s contest.
The starting line incident occurred 70 seconds before the race began (easily reviewed on Virtual Eye) when Emirates Team New Zealand, on starboard tack, bore away (turned away from the wind). The British on port tack (the give-way vessel) executed a similar maneuver, aligning the boats on a collision course. Their foil arms came alarmingly close, and the incident could have resulted in severe consequences had the two wing foils locked.
Both teams lodged protests. Williams and INEOS Britannia argued that Emirates Team New Zealand was “hunting” them while they attempted to give way, altering course in a manner that forced the British to make a more drastic adjustment than necessary. From the Kiwis’ perspective, they had right of way and it was the responsibility of the port tack vessel to keep clear.
Reviewing the computer replay from the Umpires’ booth, it was evident that an overlap existed between the virtual boats and someone had to face a penalty for failing to keep clear, which typically falls upon the give-way team.
Williams is known for his serious approach to match racing. One of his guiding principles for the INEOS Britannia crew is “never put a decision in the hands of the umpires.” This reflects a common belief among elite sailors that umpiring decisions are unpredictable, and the best strategy is to outsmart the opponent, achieve a strong start, take the lead, and maintain it throughout.
He appeared genuinely taken aback that Burling and his crew escalated the incident to a point where the umpires had to render a decision based on the relative positioning of two virtual boats on a computer display.
As a result of the incident, a 75-meter penalty was imposed on INEOS Britannia, which they skillfully neutralized while continuing to apply pressure on the Kiwis. However, this approach proved ineffective on a course the British claimed favored one side, allowing the defending team to easily protect their lead, with the race’s outcome again determined by the boat that rounded Mark 1 first.
In this one-sided regatta, it marked at least the 13th consecutive race wherein the leading boat at Mark 1 went on to secure victory.
After the race, an exchange took place between INEOS Britannia Skipper Ben Ainslie and lead commentator Steven McIvor, following Ainslie’s annoyance at a post-race inquiry. Perhaps unaware his microphone was still active, Ainslie labeled McIvor a “f***ing w**ker” as he exited the starboard helmsman’s position, concluding the brief but tense interview.
Ainslie’s reaction shouldn’t have shocked anyone, given the nature of several insensitive questions directed at losing skippers during critical moments of this series.
Most have held back their reactions, but this time was different.
As the teams conducted their debrief, the winds failed to meet the necessary minimum strength multiple times, appearing to wane as predicted. After several delayed start times, racing was ultimately called off for the day. During the Britons’ on-camera debrief, double Olympic Gold medalist and current Head of Sailing, Giles Scott remarked, “we were told that the wind was going to drop significantly around 3:30 pm,” which proved to be accurate.
One race is scheduled to take place on Monday, commencing at 2:10 pm CET.
During the time off overnight and with a day of rest on Tuesday, INEOS Britannia will engage in deep reflection on how to counter the Kiwis’ advance in the standings. Giles Scott believes a “momentum shift” is necessary and expressed his intuition that the gap the British need to close isn’t vast. From performance data patterns observed, given that there have been only four races so far, including one in the Round Robin phase of the Louis Vuitton Cup, a few issues stand out. The first is that INEOS Britannia seems to lag at the lower end of a tack compared to the Kiwis. During the Round Robin race, in light winds, this difference was significant, and while data from Saturday’s racing indicates they are closing the gap to the Kiwis, the trend still appears to be there.
In terms of Speed over Ground, the Kiwis seem to have a consistent advantage. However, when analyzing a couple of charts—Speed over Ground and True Wind Speed and Direction recorded on the AC75s—it becomes evident that the British excel in recognizing wind shifts and pressure increases, effectively ‘puddle jumping’ around the course. The conclusion drawn is that during speed surges not captured in the ETNZ data, the Brits were benefiting from increased wind speed. This phenomenon was particularly noticeable in onboard discussions during the British boat’s Final series against Luna Rossa.
Race 3: INEOS Britannia (GBR) (Port Startbox Entry) vs Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL) (Starboard Startbox entry) Start: 1410hrs CET
Start:
Mark 1: 05m 17sec NZL led GBR margin 19sec
Mark 2: 09m 33sec NZL led GBR margin 27sec
Mark 3: 15m 16sec NZL led GBR margin 32sec
Mark 4: 19m 15sec NZL led GBR margin 33sec
Mark 5: 24m 00sec NZL led GBR margin 43sec
Finish: 27m 06sec NZL led GBR margin 52sec
INEOS Britannia Dockwalk
“Clouds” in today’s weather forecast – what he’s indicating to Emirates Team NZ: www.facebook.com/EmiratesTeamNZ/videos/856692886587974
Course Location:
Weather Prognosis:
America’s Cup Weather Partner PredictWind has set up a dedicated Race Weather Center providing fans access to comprehensive daily weather breakdowns, live webcams, and historical weather data, along with daily reports written by meteorologists.
Current Forecast Race Day 28:
Forecasts for Sunday by Arnaud Monges, former America’s Cup Team Meteorologist
Sunday October 13
Winds of 5 to 10 knots from the East are anticipated in the afternoon, accompanied by calm sea conditions. The morning sky, which is overcast, should clear partially by afternoon, with temperatures rising to 24 degrees C.
America’s Cup Race Schedule – Races 3 and 4: Sunday October 13, 2024
Race 3: INEOS Britannia (GBR) (Port Startbox Entry) vs Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL) (Starboard Startbox entry) Start: 1410hrs CET
Race 4: Emirates Team New Zealand (Port Startbox entry) vs INEOS Britannia (GBR) (Starboard Startbox Entry) Start: 1515hrs CET
Virtual Eye
Following the race, you can replay key moments or the entire race using Virtual Eye from ARL. This tool is being utilized by Inside Tack to illustrate various concepts – using the actual paths of the AC75s.
You can access the Virtual Eye America’s Cup coverage by clicking here and selecting “Watch Previous” to pick the race you want to review. Virtual Eye operates as a 3D viewer, allowing you to zoom in, out, and navigate freely as if viewing from a helicopter.
Crew Lists –
Additional Images:
Live race coverage – Louis Vuitton America’s Cup – Day 2 of the 37th Match – October 13, 2024.
