LV America's Cup Worlds - Land Rover BAR in action after two events

by Land Rover BAR on 31 Aug 2015 The second and final day of racing at the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series in Gothenburg produced some of the toughest conditions in the series so far, with a light and shifty wind.

There was concern that there wouldn't be enough breeze, but two races were completed and Land Rover BAR worked hard to come back from a couple of difficult starts. The team recovered to third in Race three, but had to settle for a frustrating fifth in Race four. The results placed them third overall at Gothenburg, just behind Emirates Team New Zealand and Oracle Team USA, and second overall in the series. It's all to play for going into the final event of the year in Bermuda, October 16-18th.

Overall thoughts on the day

Skipper and Team Principal Ben Ainslie: 'It was a tough day today, the wind was a lot lighter than it has been for the previous racing, and it was a new dynamic for all of the teams. We struggled a little bit, we didn't have great starts and we struggled to get through the pack in both races today. We fought our way through and finished up on the podium overall which we are happy with – of course we would have liked to have been on top of the podium, but this is another step along the America's Cup journey for us, and it's good to be competing at the top of this circuit.'

'For a new team we're performing well, we've certainly got plenty of gains that we can make, and we need to keep working on that for the next event in Bermuda coming up in October.'

Sailing Team Manager, Jono Macbeth: 'This event in Gothenburg is the first time that the team has competed away from home, and it's been a fantastic regatta. We haven't had the result we wanted but we were right in the hunt until the very end. Going into the last race there were three teams all tied on the same points. The boys sailed really well in incredibly tricky conditions, and all in all I think it's been a good result for the team.'

Race One

Skipper and Team Principal Ben Ainslie: 'In both races today the start was critical, and in both races we weren't great. We started at the bottom end of line, it was an all or nothing start and it didn't come off; it put us on the back foot. We were coming back from a difficult position in both races. We wanted to be higher up the podium, but that is the nature of racing, dealing with the conditions and trying to get it right on the day. These are difficult boats to sail, and in some ways, it's harder today than when we are flying around, balancing the boats on the foils. These are all fantastic sailors in all the teams, and the standard is getting better and better as we move forward.'

Wing Trimmer, Paul 'CJ' Campbell-James: 'We didn't have the best of starts or first reach, but Giles picked some good shifts, and we were sailing the boat fast so we managed to pick off a few boats.'

Race Two

Skipper and Team Principal Ben Ainslie: 'When we were at the back of the fleet the guys really dug deep. I was pleased with how we kept pushing hard, trying to get every place back. We were very close to getting Oracle Team USA right at the finish, which would have got us second place overall in Gothenburg. And although we weren't at the right end of the fleet today, overall we're on the podium and I was pleased with how the team dealt with the difficult conditions and we will move forwards from here.'

Wing Trimmer, Paul 'CJ' Campbell-James: 'We started a bit further up the line and we could have hit the line a little bit earlier, and we managed to get rolled just at the start. Then the gybe set at the first mark could have really paid for us, we saw the New Zealanders in Portsmouth do that gybe set and make massive gains. Unfortunately, the gust didn't quite come down quick enough and we ended up pretty deep at the bottom mark and we had to work hard to get back up. We battled with Artemis Racing until the top of the final run, and we weren't giving up on Oracle Team USA until they crossed the finish line, and there was only a few seconds in it at the end. I think that's a really good part of this team, that they will fight to the end.'

Overall results Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series Gothenburg - four races:

1. Emirates Team New Zealand- 54
2. Oracle Team USA- 48
3. Land Rover BAR- 46
4. SoftBank Team Japan- 43
5. Artemis Racing - 42
6. Groupama Team France - 37

Overall results Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series - Two events

1. Emirates Team New Zealand- 72
2. Land Rover BAR - 65
3. Oracle Team USA - 64
4. SoftBank Team Japan- 56
5. Artemis Racing - 53
6. Groupama Team France - 50

Land Rover BAR Gothenburg line up:

Ben Ainslie - Skipper and Team Principal
Paul Campbell-James - Wing Trimmer
David 'Freddie' Carr - Runner
Nick Hutton - Trimmer
Giles Scott - Bow/Tactician
Andy Mclean - Race crew reserve
Jo Lees - Boat Captain
Richy O'Farrell - Shore support
James Chapman – Rib driver and Shore support
Ian Boag - Shore support