America's Cup: Old rivals set to take on Team New Zealand

Team Dennis Conner competed at the 2003 America's Cup.

The New York Yacht Club is expected to announce their challenge for the 36th America's Cup tomorrow.

Sailing website sailinganarchy.com reports a syndicate funded mainly by the DeVos family (Quantum Racing, Amway) and long-time maxi competitor Hap Fauth is poised to re-enter the Cup.

The club, which has a long history with the America's Cup has not competed since 2003 in Auckland with Dennis Conner and Stars and Stripes.

Britain, Australia and Switzerland have expressed interest in the 2021 Auckland event and Challenger of Record Luna Rossa of Italy will be on the startline.

Sailinganarchy also reports that a US west coast challenge is being talked about and Swiss
syndicate Alinghi has also hinted it may be involved.

Groupama Team France also intends to be in Auckland.

New York won the first America's Cup challenge in 1851 and held it until 1983 when businessman Alan Bond's Australia II brought it Downunder.

Team France's Franck Cammas has said they will do everything to get to Auckland.

"The Cup remains the Cup, with major technological developments, and I like it. If we have the means, we will go with motivation. We will work hard to get there. "

Cammas admitted they would have preferred to continue in the 50-foot foiling catamaran class but believed they could be competitive in a high-performance monohull, noting he and his Groupama team had won the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race, beating Team New Zealand's entry Camper.

"It is a return to a tradition of the Cup. I'm not saying it's good news, we have to adapt. The last time we built a boat (except for Bermuda), it was a monohull, and it was the fastest in the world. The monohull is not unknown to us in France. You do not have to have a complex. "

Having largely relied on French sailors for Bermuda, Cammas liked the nationality clause brought in by the Kiwis around the crew. The biggest obstacle would be finance, predicting his team's budget of $25m for Bermuda would need to increase by a further $12m to be competitive.