A tight match
Ineos Britannia won the Louis Vuitton Cup on Friday, winning seven races to four against the Italian team Luna Rossa.
In this decisive final run, the English quickly took the lead and effectively managed Luna Rossa's attempts to regain control of the game. Up to the sixth gate, the Italians remained in a trailing position, even coming back to within a few seconds when winding the fifth gate. In the end, Luna Rossa crossed the finish line 15 seconds behind Ineos Britania.
A fine progression since the start of the Round Robins
Few observers had predicted this epilogue to the Louis Vuitton Cup. Since the start of the regattas, Luna Rossa had shown great mastery of her AC 75, even managing to beat the Kiwis in the preliminary races.
Ineos Britania, on the other hand, struggled to keep up with the competition at the start. But under the leadership of four-time Olympic medallist Sir Ben Ainslie, the crew put in place a winning strategy to catch up.
On the other hand, the Luna Rossa team experienced a number of technical problems. A broken mainsail carriage, hydraulic problems, a violent buffet stop: the Italians suffered from the unreliability of their AC 75, despite a technical team that always performed miracles, repairing in record time.
Luna Rossa returns, but without James Spithill
Max Sirena, the director of the Italian team, has announced that his team will continue its participation in the America's Cup, which will take place in 2026 or 2028. This is good news for the top level of Italian sailing, and for the economic microcosm gravitating around the Cup. This will be the 7th e the Italian syndicate's bid for the Cup.
Jimmy Spithill's admirers, however, were surprised to learn that their champion had decided, at the end of the regatta, to put an end to his racing career. This decision was taken with a view to fostering the emergence of new generations of sailors.
