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The New Zealand team will not be too disappointed to miss a race day due to light wind conditions.
The two races on Sunday were canceled because the wind did not exceed the constant 6.5 knots needed to start. Multiple postponements ended on the day it was finally abandoned at 5.45pm
It was a painful couple of hours to come to that foregone conclusion, but it might not have been all bad for the defenders.
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New Zealand team ace Blair Tuke takes it easy alongside Peter Burling during the fruitless wait for the race wind.
The weather gods have smiled at Luna Rossa throughout the commercial finale of this regatta.
READ MORE:
* America’s Cup: Both races canceled due to the sea breeze staying away
* America’s Cup: ‘The mother of all fights’ is now a mind game as Team NZ and Luna Rossa square off for rounds seven and eight
* America’s Cup: Jimmy Spithill savoring the moment while the competition is on the line
They got the light winds they wanted for the Prada Cup final to beat Sir Ben Ainslie’s Team UK boat, which had been oriented for the upper limits of the 21 knot wind range.
And the Italians have had light to moderate winds to capitalize on their boat’s favorite performance zone in the America’s Cup match, surprising all experts by drawing at 3-3.
The New Zealand team has also been more than competitive in this lower range, as demonstrated by their spectacular performance in race six, which set the momentum a bit back in this swinging battle.
But you get the feeling that they are eager for a decent breeze to really show the true strength of Te Rehutai.
Whether that happens depends on the weather, of course, and an improved forecast raises hope.
So a day lost is a day won in many ways for defenders.
Don’t forget, there is no time limit for this regatta in terms of days, it will last until someone gets all seven victories to lift the America’s Cup.
They would have loved to have put on a show for the huge fleet of Sunday spectators gathered at the edge of the race track and the thousands of fans in the Cup village, as well as those in front of the televisions.
But, as Team New Zealand skipper Peter Burling put it: “That’s a yacht race for you. You can’t choose the weather, can you?
Had Luna Rossa been able to choose the weather, they would have chosen to continue in what has kept them so competitive.
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Luna Rossa skipper Max Sirena keeps an eye out for the wind on Sunday’s Copa América course.
This is a razor’s edge contest, but you wouldn’t know it by watching the sailors lounging around, Burling in his shoes, chatting in the sun with his good partner Blair Tuke.
A closer look revealed that not everything was on hold. The New Zealand team’s technicians were taking advantage of the unexpected downtime to keep looking for ways to get more out of their boat.
There was quite a bit of attention around the mainsail sheet, the rear lower corner connecting it close to the deck in this boomless configuration.
It’s an area where Luna Rossa’s setup looks particularly clean and the kiwis will do their best to get more out of their system.
Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa will continue to tweak things where they can under strict measurement rules.
“We feel that we have improved in these first days, but there is still a lot to come, it is an even score. Every little detail makes a big difference, ”Burling said.
Back at Team New Zealand headquarters, the analysts will have deepened their research on the comparative data of the two boats and the emphasis will have increased compared to last Wednesday’s first Cup match which was held in better winds than Monday. could reproduce.
Ironically, there had been talk of a day off coming if this contest got tighter, only to give the ships more in-depth maintenance.
Apparently that never seemed like a reality as it required an agreement between the two teams, something that hasn’t been happening all this summer. Also, why would one team want to give another an advantage if they felt that racing served them better?
But now there has been a little respite, a hiatus in the Groundhog Days that have consumed everyone with their constant 1-1 scores. Whoever uses this little bonus the best could have a big influence on a contest this tight.
It was a bad day, but The Match is still going on.
