In one of the most thrilling races of the 37th America’s Cup so far, INEOS Britannia picked up their third win of the event against Orient Express Racing Team.
The British Challenger of Record, racing for the Royal Yacht Squadron Ltd, faced the French team in Match 13 of the Round Robin stage, and Ben Ainslie must have wondered if it was going to be unlucky for his crew as they suffered both an early start and an upwind penalty. After four lead changes throughout the race, INEOS Britannia came through on the final lap for the win.
It was an aggressive pre-start and the British led the French boat to the line, but as they picked up speed on the approach, they had some time to kill before they could cross the start. All eyes were on the clock, and unfortunately for INEOS Britannia they crossed the start line 0.05 seconds too early. Their AC75 race boat, Britannia, was just 40cm over the line but the Brits were handed a penalty. By the time the penalty was cleared, INEOS Britannia was 100m back and positioned directly behind the French boat.
Despite this compromising start, the British crew managed to keep the deficit down to just 13 seconds at the first gate. They accelerated as they turned downwind, and as the boats came together for the final time before the second gate, INEOS Britannia had right of way. Orient Express Racing Team had to avoid them, making for a slow and ugly rounding. The British boat had completed the pass as they turned onto the third leg.
It was far from over though, as the British tried to lock in control going upwind, they tacked too close and fouled. Another penalty to wipe off, and once again the French led onto the downwind leg with INEOS Britannia 12 seconds behind.
Ben Ainslie’s crew had it all to do, but great speed, boat-handling and tactics on the fifth leg put the French under pressure again. This time Orient Express made the mistake of trying to get control of the race. They tacked underneath, and in front of the British boat, but INEOS Britanna had great speed and managed to hold their position above them and make gains.
This was bow-to-bow racing, and with the French forced to put in an extra tack, there was an 11-second lead for INEOS Britannia at the last gate. A clean, and almost perfect final leg secured the win for the Brits and finally calmed the pounding hearts of their supporters.
INEOS Britannia Team Principal and Skipper Ben Ainslie said: “That was a good one for the viewers, not so much for the boys on board, but it was a bloody good race. Hats off to the French, they did a nice job making it hard for us. It was a strange one on the start, we were in a strong position but just got the time and distance wrong there with the tactical app and made a mistake with the penalty on the second upwind leg. We are getting there though, I think all teams are progressing as they get more and more time on the water, so it will be interesting to see how it plays out next week.”
Elsewhere, Alinghi Red Bull Racing was late for their race against Emirates Team New Zealand after problems hoisting the mainsail, which led to them being disqualified. The Swiss team later conceded a second defeat, but one that they raced for, and that counted for points, at the hands of the Italians. While Emirates Team New Zealand took their second win of the day against the Americans in the final race.
All teams have now raced each other once, which means the first Round Robin is complete. INEOS Britannia sits second on the Challengers Leaderboard having won three of their races. The Brits claimed victory over NYYC American Magic, Alinghi Red Bull Racing (SUI) and Orient Express Racing Team (FRA), but were defeated by Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli (ITA). Ben Ainslie’s crew also registered a win against Emirates Team New Zealand after the Kiwis damaged their boat and couldn’t race on Friday, however points for races with New Zealand do not count for the Challengers Leaderboard.
INEOS Britannia Co-Helm Dylan Fletcher said: “We feel like we’re in a good place going into the second Round Robin. We are finding more and more performance in Britannia and building momentum but we are still frustrated with letting Luna Rossa get the win yesterday. It’s been some great racing in this round with teams incredibly close so everyone will be looking to up their game which should make for some seriously good racing next week.”
The second Round Robin begins on Tuesday, with the team at the bottom of the scoreboard after this being eliminated from the competition. The four remaining teams will then progress to the Louis Vuitton Cup Semi-Final, with the winner of the double Round Robin being able to choose who they race. The two winning teams will battle it out in the Final, which will determine who takes on Defender Emirates Team New Zealand in the America’s Cup Match. INEOS Britannia will race NYYC American Magic on Tuesday and UK viewers can catch all the action live on TNT Sports from 13:00 BST (14:00 CEST).
