GB pay penalty for near-crash as New Zealand tighten their grip

The odds of Britain securing the America's Cup for the first time lengthened a little further yesterday after the New Zealand team established a three-race lead in the first-to-seven, 13-race competition.

- Stephen Burgen

The planned fourth race was cancelled as winds failed to reach the minimum 6.5 knots and will be held as a one-off today. Weather permitting, the two-race schedule will resume on Wednesday. Britain's Ineos team may feel relieved that yesterday's second race was cancelled after a New Zealand display of superiority over the first three races that the Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo described as “almost insulting”.

On the second day of the showdown, race three proved to be pretty much a replica of the first two contests. On a warm day with a light north-easterly wind of 7-10 knots, the Emirates Team New Zealand boat made a better start and established a comfortable lead. The two boats almost collided at the start line, for which the British team paid with a 75-metre penalty for failing to keep clear.

By the end of the first stage, New Zealand were 150m ahead, extending their lead to 400m by the fourth leg before crossing the line with more than 600m of clear water, 52 seconds ahead of Ineos Britannia, having led at every stage. At each turn they seemed to have better acceleration than their rivals.