America's Cup Recon: June 13 - "A very positive day" - Luna Rossa - Day 3
by Richard Gladwell, Sail-World NZ 14 Jun 19:36 PDT
Luna Rossa - Sailing Day 3 - AC38 Recon - Luna Rossa Team - June 13, 2026 - Cagliari, Sardinia © Ivo Rovira / America's Cup
Luna Rossa sailed on Saturday from their base in Cagliari, Sardinia.
This is their third day of sailing the AC75, this week, with three-time America's Cup champion, Peter Burling, on the helm, while the opposite side is shared between Ruggero Tita and Marco Gradoni.
Port side trimmer, Umberto Molineris commented: "I think we're still on an early phase kind of commissioning day. We're slowly testing all the systems on board. I think it was a very positive day, and we started to run a few manoeuvres, a few kinds of pre-start and around the course. So, it was a very positive day for the team."
The Italians started in a light breeze, which slowly increased during the day, enabling the team to work through their jib inventory, starting on the largest J1 and finishing the day on a J4. The J3 did the heavy lifting for the day, being hoisted for almost two hours.
There have been no changes under the water, with the Italian's foil and rudder package remaining the same for all three sailing days to date. It would seem that Luna Rossa is going through a similar commissioning process to that followed by Emirates Team NZ, the first launched AC75, where the AC75 stays in its 2024 America's Cup configuration to check the performance numbers, and build a new base, accounting for the weight reduction that has taken place since.
Perhaps surprisingly, Luna Rossa still features a similar "anvil" at the lowest edge of their foil arms, as used by the Italians during the 2024 Cup in Barcelona. Emirates Team NZ have all but removed their "anvil"
The purpose of the "anvil" was to bring the foil and boat up to the required weight under the class rules. The reason for the difference between the two AC75s is not clear. There is no requirement for the AC75s to be "in class" or compliant with the AC75 class rule at this stage.
The Italians appear to be going through a phase of working up some crew combinations, with Peter Burling coming aboard, and the departure of two former co-helms, Jimmy Spithill and Francesco Bruni. Bruni is now in a coaching role with the team, while Spithill is focused on the Red Bull Italy SailGP team, of which he is the CEO.
Currently, it would seem almost certain that Burling will skipper and helm the boat in the upcoming Cup, with the up-and-coming Marco "Antonelli" Gradoni being evaluated against double Olympic Gold medalist Ruggero Tita. Having three very capable helms, plus Margherita Porro, who co-helmed the Womens and Youth team with Gradoni, is a real strength for the Italians.
There is a heavy Team New Zealand culture being injected into the Italian group with Josh Junior, who was in a coach sailor role with Team NZ in 2024, and also top coach Hamish Willcox, who has coached previously with Luna Rossa, before moving to Team NZ for the 2021 campaign and then back to Luna Rossa for 2024.
Willcox is also a highly successful coach at the Olympic level, for New Zealand and international teams. In the past, he has worked with America's Cup teams in a weather prediction/strategic role - vital knowledge when calls have to be made on jib choice between races in an America's Cup series.
Based on the foiling time - 115 minutes on Saturday, compared to only 70 minutes airborne on Friday, the work is now going in on sailing co-ordination. There were a significant number of tacks and gybes in Saturday's session, with 35 tacks and 53 gybes being recorded.
On both of the last two sailing days, the sea state on the Gulf of Angels has been flat- ideal for foiling and working up new crew combinations.
Crew List:
- Port Helm: Marco Gradoni/Ruggero Tita
- Starboard Helm: Peter Burling (NZL)
- Port Trimmer: Umberto Molineris (ITA)
- Starboard Trimmer: Vittorio Bissaro (ITA)
- Positions 5 & 6: Maria Giubilei ( Port) Gigi Ugolini (Stbd)
Wind & Sea Conditions:
Summary: .
1225hrs Wind: 165°: 10-12kts
1350hrs Wind: 190°: 11-13kts
1440hrs Wind: 200°: 10-12kts
1550hrs Wind: 210°: 11-13kts
PM Sea State: Flat
Dock Out: 1210hrs
Dock In: 1650hrs
Time sailed: 4hr.20min
Foiling time: 115mins
Recon Report – 13th June 2026
LR rolled out at 10:30 and splashed in by 11:15. The usual cameras were centered on each wing's upper and lower sections, while the GoPro cameras were removed from the starboard wing.
Once docked out at 12:00, the following crew was on board: on port, Ruggero Tita (helm), Umberto Molineris (trim), and Maria Giubilei (5th); and on starboard, Peter Burling (helm), Vittorio Bissaro (trim), and Gigi Ugolini (6th). Later during the sailing session, Gradoni swapped with Tita.
Conditions looked similar to the previous sailing day, with a 10–12 kt sea breeze and a flat sea state. As the legacy MN1-8 mainsail was hoisted, the team seemed to struggle to insert the lower battens into the mast track. At 12:35, the mainsail was up and paired with the legacy J1.5-6. The first short session started with a weak tow from the chase boat. B3 gained speed and self-took off on starboard tack. Once up foiling, the boat was trimmed bow-up a couple of times before locking it upwind. Considering the building breeze, the team perhaps expected less pressure in the Gulf but ended up lowering the J1.5 shortly after the first tack. The J2-9 was hoisted instead.
The second session started with another self-takeoff. The boat sailed mostly straight-line upwind with a small number of tacks. Once locked in, the usual windward heel was noted while sailing upwind, with leeward heel induced when entering tacks. RU had a minor technical issue and could not cover the first downwind leg sailed by the team. At 13:45, the J2-9 was lowered and the J3-9 was hoisted.
The third session focused on mostly straight-line upwind boards with series of gybes downwind. On some gybes, the rudder appeared to stall and the boat touched down briefly exiting the manoeuvre. On the next bear-away, the team lost ride height, excessively immersing the transom before recovering shortly afterwards. Once again, windward cant was used to balance the boat in certain straight-line modes.
The fourth session appeared to focus on pre-start routines, with sharper manoeuvres within a virtual starting box. At 15:32 during a gybe, the stbd board did not drop, boat recovered quickly. After the sailors debriefed, the J3-9 was lowered at 15:45 and the J4-5 was hoisted. For the fifth session, the team headed southwest towards Sarroch, finding slightly more pressure and sailing mostly long upwind legs before heading to the harbour sailing much shorter boards downwind.
Overall the team is looking strong on the water. The team docked in at 16:50, concluding their day with approximately 115 minutes of foiling time, 35 tacks, and 53 gybes.
Additional Images: