GB1 set to race in Naples for the first time, home of the 38th America's Cup
by GB1 24 Sep 08:32 PDT
25-27 September 2026
GB1 sailors, from left to right: Bleddyn Mon, port helm; Dylan Fletcher MBE, starboard helm; Andrea Teresi, starboard trimmer; and Ben Cornish, port helm © GB1
GB1, the British America's Cup Team, is set for the Louis Vuitton America's Cup Preliminary Regatta, as the team takes to the water for the official practice race day. It will mark GB1's first competitive racing on the waters that will host the Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup in 2027, with nine teams representing six nations set to go head-to-head in one-design AC40s.
GB1's preparations have included a dramatic build-up after its AC40 sustained damage following an incident with a Team Alinghi chase boat during training on the Bay of Naples on Tuesday. The team has worked around the clock to repair the damage in time for racing.
Dylan Fletcher said: "In a high-performance, high-speed sport, incidents can happen. This was a perfect storm of unfortunate circumstances, but thankfully everyone is safe. Big thanks to Alinghi for lending us their spare foil arm and to our shore team for getting us back on the water. Now, we race."
Ian Walker added: "No one ever said the America's Cup was going to be easy. Incidents like these certainly shake you up, but it's probably a good learning experience for everyone in terms of the dangers and how we can operate more safely in the practice environment.
"We're a strong team and everyone has pulled together to get us back on the water. Our focus now is firmly on the racing, and we're looking forward to getting out there and competing."
At the helms of the GB1 AC40 will be Olympic gold medallist and 37th America's Cup finalist Dylan Fletcher MBE, alongside three-time Cup campaigner Ben Cornish. Four-time Cup campaigner Bleddyn Mon, who, alongside Cornish, was also part of Britain's America's Cup crew in Barcelona in 2024, takes on the trimmer role alongside Andrea Tesei, who joined GB1 from Luna Rossa in March this year with three Cup campaigns under his belt.
Commenting on the Naples Preliminary Regatta, Fletcher said: "Following our efforts in the first Preliminary Regatta in Cagliari earlier this year, we're eager to get out on the water and put what we've learnt into practice.
"Racing on these waters, the stage for next year's America's Cup, will give us a valuable taste of the conditions and competition, as well as the atmosphere and adrenaline we can expect when the Cup returns here in 2027."
Although not competing in the Preliminary Regatta, newest GB1 sailing squad member Jemima Lines will join the team in Naples in a performance support role. Her combination of high-performance foiling experience and engineering expertise has seen her take on a dual role within GB1, working as both a sailor and a member of the design team to help develop the tools and systems used by the AC75 race crew.
The regatta comes as momentum continues to build towards the Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup, with the newly established America's Cup Partnership providing greater long-term certainty for teams and partners. Seven countries are now represented in the 38th edition in Naples, including the recently revealed American Racing Challenger Team USA, while the new cycle will also feature an increased role for female sailors.
That momentum was further reflected this week as GB1 announced Richard Mille as Official Timekeeping Partner of the team. Building on Richard Mille's commitment to the world of sailing, the partnership brings together two organisations united by a shared pursuit of precision, innovation and technical excellence at the highest level. GB1 Team Principal Sir Ben Ainslie, helm Dylan Fletcher MBE and key members of the team will wear Richard Mille watches throughout the 2027 America's Cup campaign.
Competitive racing begins on Friday 25 September, with up to eight fleet races across the weekend before the two highest-ranked boats go head-to-head in a match-race final on Sunday 27 September.