By HELEN TUNNAH
Oracle BMW Racing say documents leaked to damage their America's Cup campaign were incomplete "cut and paste" reproductions.
Oracle, who are just one win away from reaching the Louis Vuitton Cup finals, yesterday produced their own set of letters which cast doubt on the validity of material anonymously leaked to media on Friday.
Those papers were intended to show that Oracle had broken America's Cup rules by buying both the AmericaOne boats from the last cup and the design information and plans for them.
That is strictly banned under the cup protocol, and could lead to a team being ruled ineligible to race. It is not known who leaked the documents.
A former AmericaOne treasurer and now external lawyer for Oracle, Doug Smith, yesterday showed the Herald deed of sale documents which clearly stated no design data was sold with the boats.
Mr Smith said the papers showed the plans, specifications and other design information for AmericaOne's boats were "expressly excluded" in the sale.
He said Larry Ellison had intended to purchase everything under his Team Sayonara, but the rules problem was identified between an early drafting of the sale contract written about June 2000, and the actual deed of sale being completed in August.
A spokesman for OneWorld Challenge said , they had spoken to Mr Smith, and accepted his word there was no breach of the cup's rules.
Ellison bought AmericaOne's assets after winning a bidding war against OneWorld.
Oracle need one more win over OneWorld, who must win five races, to meet Alinghi in the challenger finals.
nzherald.co.nz/americascup
Racing schedule, results and standings
Deed shows Oracle data omitted
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