High Stakes For America's Cup Win

More America’s Cup intrigues and skulduggery are likely as January-February’s Prada Cup for challengers looms in Auckland, New Zealand, followed by an early March contest for the auld mug itself.

- Bruce Maxwell

Stakes are high as defender Emirates Team New Zealand and challengers Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli, NYYC American Magic and INEOS Team UK try to assess the only four days of racing, 17-20 December, that have been possible so far.

The so-called Prada World Series was left to act as a curtain-raiser for these coming events, in literally the first time that revolutionary 75-foot foiling monohulls have raced against each other, because the worldwide pandemic prevented scheduled warm-ups at other venues in Sardinia and Cowes.

So it came as quite a shock to belatedly realise how super-critical the foils on these strange “yachts” would be, particularly at lower wind speeds. They perform best when their aerodynamic hulls don’t touch the water at all, allowing speeds approaching 50 knots to be achieved.

It was a little reminiscent of 1983, when Australia 11 used a secret and highly controversial winged keel to finally defeat New York Yacht Club, after they had held the America’s Cup since a race around the Isle of Wight in 1851.

The new 75-footers have alternating winged keels too, now called foil arms, and the construction of their stocks, fairings, wings and flaps have suddenly become ultra-important to anybody associated with or remotely interested in the America’s Cup.

None more so than the British, hoping to win the trophy for the first time in 170 years, and not for the want of trying. The latest effort headed by multi-Olympic gold medallist and AC boffin Sir Ben Ainslie, and backed by Ineos, Belstaff clothing and Grenadier 4x4s among others, crashed and burned at lower wind speeds.