KEY POINTS:
Team New Zealand's weatherman Roger Badham always says weather teams don't win races, they lose them.
But up until the fifth race this morning in the Louis Vuitton challenger series final, the man known as Clouds has yet to lose one.
The weather team can advise the race
crew up until the five-minute gun. After that it is up to the team's afterguard to get their heads out and look for wind shifts and pressure.
In yesterday's light, fickle conditions, the Kiwis' confidence in the left up the first beat paid off.
Entering from the port side, James Spithill crossed in front of Team NZ nullifying their starboard advantage.
In a split tack start, Team NZ headed out to the left, Luna Rossa to the right. The Kiwis held an early advantage but the Italians nabbed a right-hand shift and were well ahead at the first cross.
But they opted to protect the right, which proved to be their downfall as, a little further up, the beat on the left came through for Team NZ.
Team NZ strategist Ray Davies said his team were confident in the left. "We were confident there would be more left to come than what we started off at the line with.
"It didn't go our way in the first half of the beat and Luna Rossa did a good job at sticking to their guns and got fully into that right hander."
Luna Rossa tactician Torben Grael said his team got what they wanted at the start.
"We had a good call from the weather team, we got what we wanted at the start, we had big separation with a nice shift and only managed a small lead.
"They had little separation with a big shift and managed to get a bigger cushion on it. It is disappointing. Obviously, they are sailing pretty well."
Again, the New Zealand boat looked quicker in the lighter air.
"We are not slow but we are not a rocket," Grael said. "Certainly tacking the boat, it doesn't like that too much in the light stuff. We are hoping for better conditions tomorrow."
Luna Rossa mainsheet trimmer Jonathan McKee said if there was anything obvious they could have done they would have already tried it.
"We might make a technical change, that is certainly a possibility. They are going well. Especially in that wind range. We seem to be a little more competitive with more wind.
"Our hats off to them. They have outsailed us so far in this series and that is all you can say. We are not going out with a do-or-die strategy with our boat, with the wind conditions expected, we are going out to sail smart and fast the way we have up until now."
