Victorious New Zealand set up semi-final with struggling Ineos Team UK in Prada Christmas Cup

[ASFN Admin]

New Zealand emerged victorious from the round robin stage of the America’s Cup World Series event in Auckland on Saturday, setting up a semi-final against struggling British challengers Ineos Team UK in Sunday’s Prada Christmas Cup. Sir Ben Ainslie’s team endured another torturous day on the water. They had looked to have turned a corner on Friday, showing reasonable boat speed and staying up on their foils for the most part. But they are really struggling with their manoeuvres in light airs, and Saturday’s patchy conditions - 7-13 knots - did not suit them at all. After a late shift of the racecourse further up the Rangitoto Channel to get the best of what breeze there was, Ineos Team UK lost both their races, to American Magic and Luna Rossa, by heavy margins, their boat Britannia frequently falling off its foils during manoeuvres. They are now six defeats out of six. One of the learnings from this first week of racing with these AC75s, is that each time a boat goes down, particularly in light winds, it can take a long time to get back up on its foils. That can equate to hundreds of metres, sometimes as much as a kilometre, in terms of gains or losses on the race course. Huge distances. Staying up is therefore of paramount importance.

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