In the original Deed of Gift of 1857 there’s wording at the end, and I paraphrase, that states that the America’s Cup should always be a ‘friendly competition’ – well today on the Bay of Angels, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli brought their weapons-grade LEQ12 prototype out to do battle against their bantam-weight one-design flyer, the AC40, for a thoroughly entertaining morning of battle where the gloves were clearly left in the corner.
Marco Gradoni paired with Jimmy Spithill on the LEQ12 whilst Francesco Bruni joined Ruggero Tita on the AC40. The Flight Control trio of Bissaro/Tesei/Molineris welcomed youth sailor Rocco Falcone to the hot seat of the AC40, a sailor who holds dual nationality between Italy and Antigua and has been coming through the foiling ranks fast.
It was a morning that promised little in terms of sea-state or wind but ended up delivering spectacularly with both boats able to play to their merits and strengths in the sub 10 knot breeze that permeated a flat bay. In many respects, ideal conditions for developing the all-important pre-start playbook whilst also confirming the get-ahead-stay-ahead tactics that dominate foiling racing. Over a series of nine pre-start and short course drills, the recon team scored it 4-2 to the AC40 with two dead even starts and then a remarkable, and highly photogenic sequence unfolded before their eyes.
Coming into the final approaches to the line, the AC40 got high on its foils on a luff and came across the LEQ12’s bow but, desperate to kill speed, bore away at a scarily high height to match the LEQ12s angle and hold the windward position. As the starboard helmsman dialled away, the rudder was getting dangerously close to the surface and with little flow, suddenly released and sent the AC40 barrelling into a nose-dive that saw more than two-thirds of the yacht immersed.
Fortunately, no contact was made with the LEQ12 sitting just beneath and no injuries onboard – all part of the fabulous game of AC40 sailing. Time was sensibly called with the team recording some 125 minutes of foiling time from a day that promised little initially – good effort again from the dynamic Italians.
