Off Bermuda's pink-sand beaches arch rivals Emirates Team New Zealand and Oracle Team USA will spar bare-fisted in the opening race for the America's Cup on Sunday morning (NZ time).
Therein lies a mouthwatering rematch and a golden window to atone for the 2013 capitulation where Team NZ squandered an 8-1 lead over Oracle to lose by a single race.
In a manner we've become accustomed to, Oracle's firebrand skipper Jimmy Spithill yesterday posted a cartoon on Instagram of an American bald eagle swooping on a kiwi.
Off water and on I admire his style. Spithill is master and commander. He's neither villain nor cocky - he's just playing the game.
That's why after watching a recent post-race press conference I formed the opinion that the Kiwis should switch from their entrenched etiquette of humble rhetoric.