America’s Cup 2021: Italian experts claim to have discovered a foiling problem with the Ineos Team UK boat

A pair of Italian sailing experts who claim to have discovered the problem with the British boat, Ineos Team UK, the America’s Cup challenger, received a potential lifeline.

Quantum Sails president Vittorio d’Albertas and his colleague Pietro Pinucci, who have become YouTube stars this America’s Cup season, have discussed the problems of thwarting the British team’s second-generation AC75 Britannia.

Sir Ben Ainslie’s team from the UK has struggled to get on the foil and stay there, as demonstrated by their disappointing World Series campaign.

It culminated in a shocking performance in the Christmas regatta against the New Zealand team when they were defeated by the Kiwis as Britannia struggled to get frustrated. The light winds finally avoided their blushes as both teams were unable to complete the course before the 45 minute time limit.

In their latest video, d’Albertas and Pinucci discussed how to solve Team UK’s problem in the short time available before the Prada Cup that starts on January 15.

As reported by the British website SailWeb, the Italian duo’s theory is that “the problem with light wind, where Britannia requires considerably higher speed before they can start to foil, is due to an incorrect angle of attack of the arm. blade, leading to excessive fin angle “.

“They conclude that the bow shape of the Britannia generates less lift in light airs than other boats when trying to lift off the blades.

“And to overcome this, they are applying excessive flap and / or rudder angle, which actually slows them down.

“This poor angle of attack could also be slowing them down during maneuvers, with the result that they lose distance with every tack and jibe.”

Vittorio notes that the British were actually the fastest boat in a straight line on the second windy day of the World Series, but were the worst in light wind.

They believe that the British would have already solved the problem and, if correct, will be able to fix it in time for the Prada Cup.

The Prada Cup kicks off on January 15 and consists of four rounds of three races each, a seven-race semifinal and a 13-race final between the two leading teams. Each victory earns a point.

The highest ranked Challenger at the end of the round robins will automatically qualify for the Prada Cup final; the remaining teams will compete in a seven-race semi-final and the first team to score four points will qualify for the Prada Cup final.

The Prada Cup final will determine the 36th America’s Cup Challenger against the New Zealand team.