Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 3
by Mark Jardine 14 Oct 2024 13:55 BST
14 October 2024
Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Race 4 - October 14, 2024 © Ricardo Pinto / America's Cup
A one-race day in Barcelona, after the wind dropped below the minimum limit on Sunday after race 3.
The feeling is that it could be pivotal. A win for the Kiwis would put them 4-0 up, whereas if the Brits could put their first point on the board then it would change morale within the team and give them momentum in the game.
Race 4: Emirates Team New Zealand vs. INEOS Britannia
Racing started on time in 11 knots of wind.
In the pre-start we saw INEOS Britannia tail Emirates Team New Zealand after entry, then choosing to tack when the Kiwis gybed, putting them high on the approach, looking to keep it clean with a time-on-distance battle.
The Brits came off the line slightly quicker at the committee boat end, with the Kiwis 100 metres to their left. At the first boundary tack, INEOS Britannia tacked perfectly on Emirates Team New Zealand's lee bow, forcing the Kiwis into a double tack to clear their air.
At the first cross the British team made it hard for the Kiwis, forcing them to make a bigger duck than they'd like. At the next engagement it was Emirates Team New Zealand who executed a perfect lee bow tack, sending INEOS Britannia into a tack to the windward mark.
At the first windward gate there was nothing to separate the boats, rounding opposite marks at exactly the same time.
On the first cross downwind, Emirates Team New Zealand were ahead and dialled up INEOS Britannia, leading Ben Ainslie to protest, with no penalty given.
At the next cross, with the Brits on starboard, the protest button was pressed again, but the Kiwis were well ahead.
At the first leeward gate Emirates Team New Zealand were three seconds ahead and we were being entertained with the best race of the America's Cup Match.
The Kiwis benefitted from a nice right shift on the second upwind leg to eke out an 80 metre lead, bouncing the Brits out to the left on each tack, extending slightly every time - Burling and Outteridge once again proving to be superb match racers once ahead.
The cyclors were worked to the absolute limit in the tacking battle, with Emirates Team New Zealand rounding the second windward gate thirteen seconds ahead, with both teams choosing the same mark.
Listening to Burling and Outteridge calmly discuss tactics and wind was again enlightening. How they remain so calm, working in perfect harmony showed the strength of this awesome pairing, each 49er Olympic gold medallists and Moth World Champions.By the second leeward gate the lead was extended to fifteen seconds.
The third upwind leg saw the Kiwi's "keep their foot on the throat" of the Brits, as Emirates Team New Zealand coach Ray Davies put it. They simply weren't giving INEOS Britannia any opportunities whatsoever.
At the final windward gate the Kiwis led by 24 seconds, with the Brits choosing the opposite mark to try and find an opening, but that's hard to do when your opponent is sailing faultlessly.
Emirates Team New Zealand went on to win by 23 seconds and move to 4-0 on the overall scoreboard.
A glimmer of hope for INEOS Britannia is that this was a closer match, and the speeds looked relatively even, but time is running out to turn this one around against an awesome Kiwi team.
Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Peter Burling said after the finish, "Every win on the board is obviously a super nice one, but it felt a lot more like a boat race today than the one yesterday. Nice to keep marching forward and feels like we're improving a lot as a group as we go through these races. I'm excited to keep pushing forward."
INEOS Britannia skipper Ben Ainslie added, "It was a good race, a good start, and we got the first cross, but they're just going well, going really well, so for us it's just a matter of trying to figure out how we can make some of these performance gains to take it to 'em."
Races 5 and 6 will be held on Wednesday 16th October.