All Tied Up in Knots: America’s Cup Produces an Exciting Day of Racing in Barcelona

¡La final de la Copa Louis Vuitton va començar el dia 3, les curses 3 i 4 d’una manera dramàtica amb controvèrsia dins i fora de l’aigua a velocitats mai vistes abans a l’Copa America!

The Louis Vuitton Cup commenced Race Day 3 with Races 3 and 4 off Barcelona, in a dramatic way with controversy on and off the water at speeds never seen before in the America’s Cup. It was a spectacular afternoon as INEOS Britannia and Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli concluded racing all knotted up at 2-2. (Following this report of the weekend racing, two more hard-fought races were held today (Monday) with one each going to Italy and England, bringing the score to 3-3.)

In a complete turnaround from the day before, when the massive spectator fleet plus the jam-packed America’s Cup Park Pavilions were left waiting and wanting all day through multiple race delays due to lack of wind, yesterday’s limits were breached on the high side (normal for San Francisco Bay) before the Race Committee pulled the trigger and gave the teams the green light to race.

The blustery conditions were on the extreme side for the foiling monohulls as winds pushed past 25 knots, and, with the sea state hovering around a meter, the races were put on hold for most of the afternoon until Race 3 was given a go. But then it was a no-go for the Italians as they broke a batten in their twin-skinned mainsail and were disqualified when extra crew came onboard to effect repairs and hoist a new main.

Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli (LRPP) suffered broken battens in the upper sections of the twin-skinned mainsail and started to hoist a new main in a race against the clock, which had been resetting all afternoon. Not this time, as the wind sampling was complete and at three minutes, the race was called to start.

Unfortunately, LRPP was still changing their sails with extra hands on deck, and with two minutes to go, Chief Umpire Richard Slater disqualified the Italians, awarding the “freebie” to INEOS, which just had to cross the start line.

It was in the second race of the afternoon that the fireworks exploded. The Italians had a new main, and with a few more wind limit delays the British suspected a batten issue in their jib and threw a new one up.

Whitecaps blew across the racecourse, and it was finally game on as both boats came flying into the pre-start box at a blistering pace after multiple delays. The British protested their first encounter with LRPP, but did not have enough overlap and were green-lighted by the umpires, in the first of four controversial protests by INEOS.

At the start line, the Italians were clear ahead but both boats were pushing the limits in the most extreme sailing conditions AC75s have ever raced in.

Both teams flew across the racecourse at heart-pumping speeds as Italy controlled the race, winning by 4 seconds and leaving the Brits frustrated as “bloody hell” with no penalty calls going their way as the series evened up at 2-2.

Luna Rossa continued to lead with INEOS breathing down their neck every step of the way, but the passing lanes were few and far between as Jimmy Spithill and Francesco Bruni did a brilliant job of covering their opponent at warp speed. The British kept it close, but the race finished with the Italians thundering across the finish line just 4 seconds ahead and evening the series at 2-2. But it is not finished in INEOS’s mind.

It was a brilliant display of racing by both sides. Match-race tactics are back!

“Probably the most frustrating part of the day was just the wind limit, but we did get the race off and from there, the boys just bounced back brilliantly, especially after that unfortunate issue with the mainsail,” LRRP helmsman Jimmy Spithill said.

“It was an awesome race, just a full-on street fight. and we love that sort of stuff, it was a lot of fun. It’s just great for the team to be under that sort of pressure, that sort of stress and load, because you need to be able to go through that as a team,” Spithill continued. “Once again, the guys just didn’t falter, just kept their heads up and executed, but also full credit to INEOS Britannia. They just kept coming, but ultimately that’s a good one for the team to take away.”

“It was a cracking race; we’ve had some good ones against Luna Rossa over the years, but clearly frustrated with the pre-start call, which we thought was a penalty, but one thing you know about yacht racing is that the umpires are always right,” INEOS helmsman Sir Ben Ainslie said.

Of the four protests initiated by INEOS Britannia, three were daft, but it was the fourth and last one that prompted Slater and Regatta Director Iain Murray to sit up and take notice.

The animated chatter aboard INEOS was in stark contrast to conversations that took place when the boat reached shore and had a chance to analyze the data, which happens at 50 knots in 25-knot winds, with incredible closing speeds.

“A real joke with some of those umpire calls,” said Fletcher, onboard after crossing the finish line.

“They clearly have no idea the risks we (as sailors) take (on these boats) in these conditions. It is unbelievable,” Ainslie retorted. “That’s why they are umpires, boys!”

To which Murray responded this morning: “The skipper is responsible for his boat.

“But if Ben [Ainslie] had been on the port side [and not Fletcher] there would have been a different outcome!”

“I haven’t seen the Umpire’s App, and the App really can often tell a different story, and that’s obviously what the umpires are going off,” Ainslie said in response. “The pre-start one I thought was very, very close and in our view, it was a penalty. The other two I need to look at because it’s just the nuances of whether you get an overlap or not and I’m sure it was very tight.”

“There are dynamic situations on these boats (at these speeds) and we have to learn,” Chief Umpire Slater said, adding that this was just the third time that they have had to umpire these races with the modified AC75 Class and their extreme speeds. “We have to learn and get feedback from the teams. If we get more time to umpire, we will get better!”

That is what is important to remember: The 2024 AC75s are dramatically faster and more sophisticated compared to the 2021 versions, and aggressive, great match-racing sailors like Spithill and Ainslie are starting to learn how to be just as competitive at 50 knots as they were at 5!

Adding to the dramas of the day, Red Bull Alinghi was out practicing (for what, I don’t know) in the early afternoon and capsized. Significant damage was done, and the boat took on a lot of seawater. There appeared to be damage to the hull, but unlike American Magic three years ago, Alinghi did not seem to be in danger of sinking.

We were the first media boat to arrive, and it was at least an hour before Alinghi was righted and towed back to base.

Thankfully there were no reports of injuries.

Ineos Brittania and Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli are now tied 3-3. They have two more races scheduled for tomorrow in this best-of-13 series.