LV America's Cup World Series – Poised to pounce for Super Sunday
by Oracle Team USA on 23 Jul 2016
LV America’s Cup World Series 2016 Sam Greenfield/Oracle Team USA
http://www.oracleteamusa.com
Oracle Team USA showed determination and fightback in claiming two second place finishes from the first two races at the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series in Portsmouth on Saturday.
Unfortunately, in the third race, the team was pushed right to the back of the pack and couldn't recover.
The results leave the team on equal points for third place with SoftBank Team Japan, just three points behind the leaders, Land Rover BAR and Groupama Team France.
'It was pretty tough out there, with the light conditions and trying to keep clear of the other boats,' said skipper Jimmy Spithill after racing.
'I though we sailed better than during practice yesterday, but we still have a ways to go. We’ll go back tonight, look at our mistakes and tidy it up.'
In light winds ranging from 6-8 knots, getting off the starting line clear was critical but the team was over early and penalized off the line in each race.
But the team showed great form in picking up places to earn second place finishes. One key was in keeping clear of the pack and sailing clean. In the third race, a tussle with Artemis Racing proved the wisdom of that approach as the incident left the team well behind the fleet.
'It’s difficult to make up ground,' Spithill admitted. 'The boys kept fighting. We had tough one in the last race, but it’s all up for grabs tomorrow. Three double-point races, maybe a bit more wind, it will be great if we can get the boats foiling. But either way we’ll be ready.'
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