Emirates Team New Zealand were composed, smooth, and had both races under control despite the swapping of the lead in race two. Ineos Britannia, on the other hand, looked like they were battling to hang in there.
This is not how it was predicted to pan out. The Kiwis haven’t raced in over a month, while the Brits have been battle-hardened through the challenger series.
It looked to be the other way around as the Kiwis won the first start, got to the favoured left side and won the all-important first cross. From there they sailed impressively, managing the racecourse and shutting down any passing lane for the trailing Brits.
The issue with a late battery replacement on the British boat is being touted as a reason that Sir Ben Ainslie and co were beaten in that start.
Quite frankly, that’s an excuse. Yes they entered around 20 seconds late as a result but they still had a minute and 40 seconds to go – which is an age in these boats. The reason they lost that first start is because they got beaten by the Kiwis, who were confident to lead back early and Ainslie conceded the fight to win the left almost immediately.
In the second start, both teams wanted the right-hand side of the course. The Kiwis managed the approach to the start line beautifully and were able to tack away for the side they wanted and again win the first cross, coming back off the right-side boundary.
It’s an unfamiliar scenario for the Brits, who dominated the starts during the Louis Vuitton Challenger Series finals.
What it shows is that the Kiwi team have been doing an enormous amount of work developing their pre-start playbook. Most of this will have been done on the simulator with virtual opponents. In that simulator, they will have put in all the data they have been able to capture on Britannia from their racing to date, especially their most recent races in the Challenger Series finals.
Racing against a virtual Britannia has been the “rust-killer” they needed to prepare for the real thing. This practice showed – and the Kiwis are much sharper than they were when they started the last America’s Cup finals in 2021 against Luna Rossa.
The first race of an America’s Cup is always filled with uncertainty, tension and curiosity.
Which boat is faster? How are the performances relative to one another in tacks, gybes, upwind, downwind? What are the relative strengths and weaknesses of each of the design packages the teams have come up with?
The answer to these questions is the Kiwis are fast in the light wind conditions we saw on day one. They are not only fast in a straight line but have an extremely versatile boat that can reliably stay up on the foils at low speeds, they glide through the tacks beautifully, accelerate well and appear extremely stable. Do they have any weaknesses? Potentially.
If they get their jib choice wrong and end up sailing under-powered, they look like they are not at their optimum downwind. That said, this scenario is true for any of the AC75 teams.
While Taihoro clearly has an edge in the lighter wind strengths, it is probably not enough to be able to successfully attack and pass Rita if the Brits are able to get their nose in front. The Brits will need to win the start and the first cross and then shut down any passing lanes, as they did against Luna Rossa, to beat the Kiwis in light winds.
The unanswered question at this point is how will the boats stack up if it is windy with a big sea-state? Potentially this is where Ainslie and co could have an advantage. They have a design that is oriented towards these conditions and they have shown confidence to push hard.
That said, the Kiwis know this and they have been working hard sailing in extreme conditions off Barcelona over the past weeks, including even during the Challenger Series finals when the race committee postponed racing for Luna Rossa and Britannia because the wind was above the 21-knot maximum limit for racing.
While the challengers were postponed and waiting for the wind to drop, seeing Team New Zealand ripping around looking completely comfortable and in control just outside of the racecourse was impressive. It also delivered a clear statement to all watching: 25 knots and big waves, no problem, we’ve got this.
Sailing is a sport with an enormous number of variables beyond the control of the competitors. It’s not over until it’s over.
Team New Zealand will be confident with this start, but not cocky. They are far too experienced to get carried away with a 2-0 start to the 37th America’s Cup. The Brits will keep fighting and try to force the Kiwis to make mistakes and they will likely succeed on a few occasions.
That said, given what we saw on day one, I know which team I would rather be.
