America's Cup - Emirates Team NZ bounces back to become first Finalist

by Richard Gladwell Sail-World.com on 8 Jun 2017 Emirates Team New Zealand kept their fans on tenterhooks for the third day of racing in the Semi-Finals of the Louis Vuitton Trophy section of the 35th America's Cup Regatta.

After pitchpoling their AC50 at the start of their second match against British challenger Land Rover BAR, the support crew put in a solid effort to have Aotearoa New Zealand ready to race on the following day. They got a break with the cancellation of all racing yesterday allowing a thorough work-over, followed by a 90 minute on the water sailing session this morning.

It was therefore not surprising to see the Kiwis caught with some gremlins at the start of their first match against the Brits when the port side dagger board popped up. Coupled with being caught at the back end of the starting box, Emirates Team New Zealand got away 26 seconds after the British and then started what should have been an impossible chase.

The Kiwis chopped out that deficit by the fifth mark after pulling almost 30 seconds out of the Brits on that leg alone. Certainly, they were helped by a couple of errors from the British - but mostly it was a combination of speed and smart strategy that pulled the New Zealanders through.

They knew they were in a fight in the second Match against Ainslie, the most successful Olympic sailing champion ever. In contrast to the previous race, the British took control of the race, got in front of Emirates Team New Zealand and made sure they stayed there.

A former world match champion British skipper Ben Ainslie kept the Kiwis on a short leash as Land Rover BAR employed the classic match racing strategy to contain Peter Burling and his crew. The Kiwis broke through at Mark 4, but Ainslie dug deep and got the lead back by the next mark with a 26 second gain on the leg. That was a big turnaround from the previous match.

The British were content to finish almost 20 seconds ahead to go 4-2 in the first to five wins, or best of nine race series.

The question for the final Match of the day was whether Ainslie could repeat the feat and get the score back to 4-3, and stay alive to the final day of Friday with the forecast of strong winds.

Burling bolted out of the start of Race 7, starting to leeward of Ainslie in an uncontested time on distance start in the 12-13kt breeze. The Kiwis had a six-second advantage at the start and once again lit the afterburner on the beat opening the gap to 32 seconds and then just kept in control as the margin flicked between 32 and 42 seconds, finishing 45 seconds ahead of the British - eliminating them from the 35th America's Cup regatta.

Lessons for Oracle Team USA from the day's racing would be stopping Burling from being allowed to sail his own race. Let the Genie out of the bottle, and you'll never get him back. But in a tight match race situation, the Kiwis are still very vulnerable.

Burling and his crew did not sail with the same bravado that has previously been a feature of their sailing. One suspects that there are still some wrinkles with the boat after the nosedive, and for the first two races at least they played it very cautiously. The crews' nerves must still be a little frayed after the nosedive and need to get confidence back into themselves, and the boat will be a task for the next couple of days.

Getting back on the horse after a fall is a trite comment - and doing this in the context of an AC50 in the semi-finals of a Louis Vuitton Trophy against the most accomplished sailor in the sport and a world match racing champion to boot is a big ask. To their great credit, the young Kiwi crew rose to the personal and competitive challenge.

The training session this morning was short and probably not enough for a full check. After the race, they sat off the course with their tender presumably checking systems - and took it quietly on the way home, coming in at the same time as the boats in the race behind them.

Reports from those who saw the morning training sail say that Emirates Team NZ popped their rudders out of the water again, which would have caused palpitations on the team tender.

What the team does on Friday with their day off ahead of the Finals on Saturday will be interesting. Strong winds are forecast for tomorrow, Friday - with 30kt gusts promised. That being so, more shed time is the likely outcome.

A benefit of the Semi-Final going to three races was that the Kiwis got more much-needed race time and starting practice, and whether they were sandbagging Ainslie in the second race will be in the back of mind of some observers.

The fact that the first and third races were so markedly different to the second leaves that question hanging unanswered.

The breeze will moderate for the three days of the Finals starting Saturday and be light on the last day, Monday,

Although not really tested in competition, Emirates Team New Zealand is expected to be a rocket-ship in the light, with her ability to foil early being a significant factor.

To date, Defender included, no boat has shown a marked speed edge in a particular condition, and for this reason, Emirates Team New Zealand's performance will be watched with great interest.

In the other half of the draw, Artemis Racing dealt with Softbank Team Japan in three races - and pulling the score in the other half of the Semi-Final back to 3-3.

If racing is not possible tomorrow, then Artemis Racing will progress to the Final because they won the latest race sailed between the two.

Sailing in winds of 14kts, Softbank Team Japan was penalised at the start of their first race against Sweden's Artemis Racing

Nathan Outteridge stretched Artemis Racing's lead to 13 secs on the first beat, with Dean Barker chopping that to a close 9secs at the end of the second beat, but then slid back to be 38 secs astern at the finish.

The second match was more of the same but closer, with Japan trailing at the first mark by 10 seconds and then holding that gap until the final windward mark when it stretched to 17secs and then going to 26-27secs at the final mark and finish line.

The third and final race of the day was the most closely contested and certainly the best of the day, with Barker keeping the game tight, staying ahead of trailing Artemis by 6-12 secs until the final beat as the wind lightened down to 11kts.

At the windward mark for the last time, Artemis came in on port, with Softbank Team Japan on starboard. On the final approach to the mark, Artemis was the inside boat and entitled to room at the mark, which Barker appeared to be allowed.

However, Nathan Outteridge on Artemis looked to hold on for a fraction of a second more than necessary, making a point to the Umpires before crash tacking to round the mark.

The Umpires called it the way of Sweden for once given that on at least two occasions Artemis Racing has been on the sorry-side of marginal or incorrect calls. For all the grief between Artemis Racing and the Umpires this regatta, this was a call they had to win - and did.

Softbank Team Japan dropped back to be 44 seconds astern at the final mark and dropping back to 105seconds at the finish as they throttled back on the final leg to the finish, as the wind shifted into the South and dropped to just over 10kts.

Artemis Racing achieved the unlikely - going to four wins over Softbank Team Japan - with just one race required to become the other Finalist.

Softbank Team Japan need two wins to sew up the second Finalist spot.