American Magic Fight On in High-Stakes Louis Vuitton Cup Semi-Final Showdown
by New York Yacht Club American Magic 18 Sep 18:53 UTC
September 18, 2024
NYYC American Magic pulled off a stunning double victory against their Italian rivals, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli, to bring the scoreline in the first-to-five-point Louis Vuitton Cup Semi-Final to 3-4. Both of the day's matchups were sailed under cloudy skies, with the wind for the first race at the lower end of the America's Cup-prescribed wind limit of six and a half knots.
After a closely fought prestart, the American crew got away well off the line as the Italians tacked immediately to the right side of the course, where they found a little extra breeze to take the lead. At the windward gate, although Luna Rossa was first to round, it was "Patriot" that found the best breeze on the left and was able to overtake. With the breeze becoming patchy, both boats dropped off the foils more than once before the first leeward gate, where the pair rounded in an absolute dead heat at opposite markers.
After several tight crosses, there was still nothing between the two AC75s at the second windward gate, but when NYYC American Magic managed to cross ahead on the starboard lay line, the effect of the wing wash from Patriot's mainsail dropped the Italians off the foils. With Luna Rossa stranded in a wind hole at the top of the course and unable to finish, the Americans carefully picked their way around the rest of the course to take a well-earned win.
The second race of the day was sailed in slightly windier conditions, and after another close start, the two teams resumed the ultra-close racing we had seen in the previous race. Just seven seconds separated them at the windward gate, where NYYC American Magic rounded first, and at the leeward gate, the gap was down to four seconds. The second windward mark saw another dead heat, with the two boats tacking simultaneously to round opposite marks at the same time.
With the scene set for more of the same nip-and-tuck racing over the final three legs, disaster struck the Italians with a major failure in their mainsail system, crashing them off their foils and out of the race. This left American Magic to race unopposed around the rest of the course to take the team's second victory of the day.
With the series hanging by a thread, American Magic's back-to-back wins have set up what could be an explosive final showdown. The pressure is mounting on both teams and with no room for error, the next race promises to push them to their absolute limits.
Tom Slingsby, helmsman of NYYC American Magic, was measured in his response to the Italian breakdown, saying: "It's not the way you want to win those races. And our thoughts are with Luna Rossa. We've had gear failure as well, and it's not nice. It's not a nice way to lose. But hats off to our guys as well. We get the pressure on, and the guys are sailing well. Luck went our way this time, and there is still plenty of work to do. We want to get faster than we are today. We are happy with the way we're sailing. We can still improve. Luna Rossa is still an unbelievable team, and we've got to remember that heading into tomorrow's races."