America's Cup World Series 2011-2012

[mpowlison]

June 28, 2012

ORACLE TEAM USA Spithill strong on day one in Newport



It was a frenetic opening day of racing at the AC World Series in Newport, the sixth and final stop on the global international circuit. In glorious conditions on Thursday afternoon, the overall series leader, ORACLE TEAM USA’s Jimmy Spithill, extended his lead, while his nearest rival, Dean Barker, saw his season championship hopes sink with a dramatic and unexpected capsize.

Spithill had roaring start in the opening fleet race, powering off the starting line in light breezes to lead from start to finish, giving the American team top seeding in the match racing quarterfinals, which started immediately afterward. Pushed to the limit in the match racing, the team responded to advance to the semi finals.

“We went one-nil down, match point down, and I thought this was a great test for the guys to keep cool and fight back,” Spithill said of his match racing. “I’m really happy with how we performed under pressure.”

Conditions were tricky to start the day, with the forecast sea breeze not having filled in by race time at noon. But that didn’t trouble Spithill, who extended a narrow lead at the first mark all the way around the race course. A big wind shift late in the race gave the chasing pack some hope, but Spithill held on for what was doubtlessly a satisfying birthday present for the 33 year-old skipper.

With the sea breeze then beginning to build ahead of the match racing, anticipation was high for an action-packed afternoon. The thousands of fans lining the shoreline at Fort Adams and crowding the race course boundaries with spectator boats on Narragansett Bay were not disappointed.

Paired against Luna Rossa Piranha, Emirates Team New Zealand unexpectedly capsized in the building conditions. More dramatically, the Kiwis couldn’t get their boat upright for nearly an hour, the wing filling with water. At one point, the boat was no longer on its side, but instead had its bows pointing straight up at the clear blue sky, as the boat drifted along in the current. Early indications are that the wing suffered damage in the incident, but the team expects to be racing on Friday.

“It was a close race, we did a normal mark rounding but the runner (one of the control lines) was caught and we couldn’t let the wing out,” Barker explained. “The boat was just too loaded up and we were at the point where we couldn’t turn up or down and the boat just rolled over… These boats have to be treated with the utmost respect. You have any little issue on the boat and it can be very punishing.”

Artemis Racing continued their strong form in the match racing series. The winners in Naples and Venice earned their ticket to the semi finals with a 2-0 sweep over Energy Team. Meanwhile, both ORACLE TEAM USA crews were pushed to the limit by their opponents. But first Coutts (over Swordfish), and then Spithill (over Team Korea), won the deciding third race to advance. This sets up Coutts against Chris Draper’s Piranha team in one semi final and Artemis Racing against Spithill in the other pairing.

“Jimmy and his guys are sailing really well and it’s going to take our best effort to beat them,” Hutchinson said. “It’s sudden death tomorrow and in order to teak one off them we’ll have to put our best foot forward, but I’m optimistic. I think we have a very good team and on the day, any team can win.”

Friday’s program has the one race Match Racing semi finals, followed by a single fleet race. Racing starts at 14:36 EDT and is live on youtube.com/americascup.

Fleet Race One Results

1. ORACLE TEAM USA Spithill
2. ORACLE TEAM USA Coutts
3. Luna Rossa Piranha
4. Artemis Racing
5. Energy Team
6. Emirates Team New Zealand
7. Luna Rossa Swordfish
8. Team Korea

Match Racing Championships, Quarter Final results (winners advance to Semi Finals)

Artemis Racing beat Energy Team, 2-0
Luna Rossa Piranha beat Emirates Team New Zealand, 2-0
ORACLE TEAM USA Coutts beat Luna Rossa Swordfish, 2-1
ORACLE TEAM USA Spithill beat Team Korea, 2-1

AC WORLD Series Newport Match Racing Championships – Results

The top four teams will race in the Semi Finals on Friday

5. Energy Team
6. Emirates Team New Zealand
7. Luna Rossa Swordfish
8. Team Korea

2011-12 AC World Series Overall Championship Leaderboard (after five of six events)

1. ORACLE TEAM USA Spithill…84 points
2. Emirates Team New Zealand…80 points
3. Artemis Racing…71 points
4. Energy Team…65 points
5. Team Korea…56 points
6. ORACLE TEAM USA Coutts…53 points
7. Luna Rossa Piranha…34 points
8. China Team…31 points
9. Luna Rossa Swordfish…21 points

[mpowlison]

June 29, 2012

ORACLE TEAM USA dominates the day



Jimmy Spithill’s ORACLE TEAM USA crew couldn’t have had a better afternoon of racing at the AC World Series in Newport on Friday. First, they won their match race to advance to the Final on Sunday. Then, Spithill’s team stole a win in the fleet race with an impressive, last minute passing move, to deny the Kiwi team a storybook victory.

“We got off the starting line well and the boys just dug in the whole way around and never gave up,” Spithill said. “We thought we had a shot at it (making the late pass), it was just a fantastic race track. There were a lot of passing opportunities out there; it was never over. But full credit to Team New Zealand, they did a lot of work last night and they got out there and were straight up to pace.”

Emirates Team New Zealand made an impressive recovery from Thursday’s capsize and wing damage, bursting out of the starting gate to lead the fleet race from the first mark until the very final moments, when Spithill pounced, to grab a seven second victory.

But the second place finish will be a measure of consolation for Dean Barker’s team which had spent much of Thursday night in the boat shed, repairing damage to the wing that was incurred after it filled with water following the capsize. The team launched before noon on Friday with a fully repaired wing, ready to race, and eager to prove they could challenge for the top of the table.

“For us it was important to put it all back together on the water today,” Barker said. “The guys really battled hard all through the night last night. There was a lot of damage and it was a massive effort just to make the start today. It would have been nice to give them a win, but second is okay.”

Racing took place in front of big crowds along the north shore of Fort Adams, as well as on the water. Organizers counted nearly 9,000 people through the gates on Friday.

Sea breeze conditions ensured good competition, with winds in the 10 to 14 knot range.

At the beginning of the afternoon, ORACLE TEAM USA set up an all-American match race showdown on Sunday when both crews won their semi final races on Friday afternoon.

Terry Hutchinson’s Artemis Racing hadn’t lost a match race yet this year, but made an error by breaking the starting line early and picking up a penalty which allowed ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL to take an early lead that they would never relinquish.

Then, Russell Coutts proved the value of experience in the pre-start as the Cup veteran made an aggressive move moments before the starting gun fired to take a narrow advantage off the line in his match against Luna Rossa Piranha. Chris Draper’s Italian team kept it close for much of the race, but was never able to cross ahead of Coutts’ ORACLE TEAM USA.

Quotes:
Governor Lincon D. Chafee, after racing with Luna Rossa Piranha: "It was a thrill to see first hand the best sailors and fastest boats. This is the next generation of innovative, competitive sailing. I'm looking forward to showcasing Rhode Island as the host city for the Americas's Cup World Series on national television during the finals on Sunday."

Terry Hutchinson, skipper, Artemis Racing: “Making it into the Semi Finals secured us the overall Championship for the year in the match racing… (But) we still feel we have a long way to go to match ORACLE TEAM USA and Emirates Team New Zealand. We're a fairly young team and we have to get better, plain and simple.”

Russell Coutts, skipper, ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS: “It’s always been a challenge to engage the US audience in sailing. But I think we’ve got a racing format that people are interested in. The crowds are clearly enjoying it and I think it’s a great opportunity to grow the sport.”

Chris Draper, helmsman, Luna Rossa Piranha: “We were pretty much in control in the pre-start until the last 30 seconds but couldn’t fool Russell… It’s a bit of a shame (the match racing format) is a best of one.”

Nathan Outteridge, skipper, Team Korea: “In the practice racing we were getting a lot of firsts and seconds, and it was just about getting around that first mark and getting yourself down to the bottom mark in good shape… But I think the fleet is getting better with every regatta.”

Loick Peyron, skipper, Energy Team: “Our start was not good, but the way we came back was interesting… Our crew did a tremendous job today.”

Saturday’s program begins with the AC500 Speed Trial, followed by fleet races three and four. Racing starts at 14:36 EDT and is live on youtube.com/americascup.

Match Racing Championships, Semi Final results (winners advance to Final)
ORACLE TEAM USA Coutts beat Luna Rossa Piranha, 1-0
ORACLE TEAM USA Spithill beat Artemis Racing, 1-0

AC WORLD Series Newport Match Racing Championships – Standings

The top two teams will race in the Final on Sunday

3. Luna Rossa Piranha
4. Artemis Racing
5. Energy Team
6. Emirates Team New Zealand
7. Luna Rossa Swordfish
8. Team Korea

2011-12 AC World Series Overall Championship Leaderboard (after five of six events)

1. ORACLE TEAM USA Spithill…84 points
2. Emirates Team New Zealand…80 points
3. Artemis Racing…71 points
4. Energy Team…65 points
5. Team Korea…56 points
6. ORACLE TEAM USA Coutts…53 points
7. Luna Rossa Piranha…34 points
8. China Team…31 points
9. Luna Rossa Swordfish…21 points

[mpowlison]

June 30, 2012

Spithill continues to impress in Newport

Jimmy Spithill’s ORACLE TEAM USA continues to impress in Newport, but were denied a fourth consecutive fleet race win by a hard-charging Emirates Team New Zealand.

“We had a good solid day,” Barker said. “It’s nice to win one and we have some good momentum going into tomorrow. The ORACLE TEAM USA guys are sailing well, but we’ll do what we can do and if we can win the race we’ll be happy.”

Newport delivered another perfect afternoon of racing conditions, with a sea breeze near 15 knots under sunny skies. Thousands took advantage of the warm afternoon to enjoy the sight from Fort Adams as well as in the hundreds of spectator boats crowding the Narragansett Bay course boundaries.

In fleet race three, Spithill threaded the needle at the start, barely squeezing between the Race Committee boat and two of his competitors, hitting the starting line as the gun fired at top speed.

“It was a risky start, but in this type of racing you really have to push things now and then,” Spithill said. “We knew if we got off the starting line well we’d have a shot for being top three in the race, so we’ve been pushing hard.”

From there, Spithill extended away while his rivals were engaged in battle behind him. Young Nathan Outteridge and his Team Korea crew had an impressive race in second place, holding off Emirates Team New Zealand, as Dean Barker threatened early, but couldn’t make the passing move and settled for third. Artemis Racing made its way up from near the back of the fleet to take fourth.

Fleet race four started like the previous one, with Spithill barging across the starting line to take an early lead. But this time Dean Barker’s crew had an answer on the first upwind leg, working a favorable path up the shoreline, away from the adverse current running down the race course, to take steal the lead. Loïck Peyron’s Energy Team too, passed Spithill and then Nathan Outteridge squeezed by on the next leg. But the ORACLE TEAM USA crew fought back to ease around the top mark just behind the Kiwis. Barker and crew held their position however all the way to the finish, with Spithill relegated to third, his worst result of the series.

With a second and a fourth place finish, Nathan Outteridge’s Team Korea climbed off the bottom of the leaderboard and now sits just two points out of a podium position.

“It was much better today,” Outteridge said. “I think we got what we deserved. We had some better starts and gave ourselves a chance in both races. There was a bit more breeze so we were really able to be more physical on the boat. The guys on our boat are awesome when the breeze is up, there’s never an issue with the crew work on our boat. Today has given us a good chance to get right in there and if we sail like we did today, we have every chance of getting on the podium and that’s what we’re here for.”

Meanwhile ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS withdrew from the first race of the day at the halfway point with equipment problems, after hitting one of the turning mark boats.

“I never did like the anchors on those boats,” Coutts joked. “But at least the hull that I was sitting on missed it!”

Coutts went in for repairs, and although he made it out for race four, he was late to start and never in contention, with the last place finish dropping the team to the bottom of the leaderboard.

Before racing started, the teams engaged in the AC500 Speed Trial. Here too, Spithill proved the class of the fleet, his second run setting the standard ahead of Energy Team and Team Korea.

Racing starts at 1430 on Sunday with the final of the Newport Match Racing Championship between the two ORACLE TEAM USA crews.

“It’s a high-pressure race,” Spithill joked. “For whoever loses, it’s going to be brutal!!”

Then it’s the fifth and final fleet race to determine the Newport Fleet Racing Champion as well as the overall 2011-12 AC World Series Championship. There are 30 points on offer to the winner of race five, meaning the Newport fleet racing title is wide open.

Sunday’s racing program is live, coast to coast in the United States on NBC, beginning at 1430. This means it will not be shown live on YouTube.com/americascup in the United States. However, the race replay and highlights will be posted after the live broadcast has concluded.

AC500 Speed Trial

1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL - 24.77 knots
2. Energy Team - 24.00 knots
3. Team Korea - 23.79 knots
4. Artemis Racing - 23.72 knots
5. Luna Rossa Swordfish - 23.59 knots
6. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS - 23.54 knots
7. Luna Rossa Piranha - 23.48 knots
8. Emirates Team New Zealand - 23.17 knots

AC World Series Newport Match Racing Championships – Standings

The top two teams will race in the Final on Sunday
3. Luna Rossa Piranha
4. Artemis Racing
5. Energy Team
6. Emirates Team New Zealand
7. Luna Rossa Swordfish
8. Team Korea

2011-12 AC World Series Overall Championship Leaderboard (after five of six events)

1. ORACLE TEAM USA Spithill…84 points
2. Emirates Team New Zealand…80 points
3. Artemis Racing…71 points
4. Energy Team…65 points
5. Team Korea…56 points
6. ORACLE TEAM USA Coutts…53 points
7. Luna Rossa Piranha…34 points
8. China Team…31 points
9. Luna Rossa Swordfish…21 points

[mpowlison]

July 1, 2012

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL wins 2011-12 AC World Series

Newport proved to be a statement event for the US defender of the America’s Cup as ORACLE TEAM USA was prominent in all areas of the leaderboard. Jimmy Spithill’s team earned the overall 2011-12 AC World Series Championship with a strong second place finishes in both the match racing and fleet racing in Newport. Spithill also claimed the overall season Fleet Racing Championship while Sweden’s Artemis Racing won the inaugural season’s Match Racing Championship.

“Consistency had been the key,” Spithill said moments before he was handed the newly commissioned AC World Series trophy. “We were the last team to arrive here, but we came out and performed under pressure. For us it was very satisfying to see us step up and the other guys fall back when the pressure came on.”

His veteran stable-mate very nearly stole the day in front of a capacity crowd of spectators at Fort Adams. Russell Coutts won the Newport Match Racing Championship over Spithill and almost took out the fleet race as well, but was denied that honor by Chris Draper’s Luna Rossa Piranha team, who took advantage of a penalty to the Coutts team to grab a lead they would extend to the finish, to grab the Newport Fleet Racing Championship. Coutts was under intense pressure in the latter stages of the race from the Italian Swordfish team, but just held on for second place.

“Today just happened to work out for us. We got some nice breaks, but I wouldn’t give us too much credit for it,” Coutts said. “As a team, we’re really happy. Jimmy and his guys won the World Series and that’s what we came here to do… We’re always out there to win, we’re not there to just sail around the buoys - we want to win.”

For Chris Draper, the fleet racing win was a nice turn around after a difficult week: “We’ve had a tough week, the team’s been pretty down, but I’m pleased that both boats did well today. We needed that result to prove to ourselves that we could do it, so we’re happy.”

Terry Hutchinson’s Artemis Racing placed fourth in the Newport Match Racing Championship this week, which earned his team enough points to win the Match Racing title for the season.

“It’s a nice milestone for the team,” Hutchinson said, his mood tempered somewhat by a poor fleet race on Sunday. “But I think we have a lot of work to do. There are a lot of areas we can do better. But we have 14 months to do it and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”

The Newport event marks the end of the first season of AC World Series racing and follows previous events in Cascais (POR), Plymouth (UK), San Diego (USA), Naples and Venice (ITA). Regatta Director Iain Murray and his team have conducted 130 races over 30 days of racing in the six international venues. Over the time, only one day of races has been postponed due to weather.

Sunday’s racing was broadcast live, coast to coast, in the USA on NBC, marking the return of the Cup to network television for the first time in more than 20 years. The final day of racing in the opening two events of the 2012-13 AC World Series in San Francisco in August and October will likewise be shown on NBC.

Racing will start anew next month with the 2012-13 AC World Series in San Francisco from August 21-26. The new Ben Ainslie Racing will join the circuit as it comes to the host city of the 34th America’s Cup.

Quotes:
Loïck Peyron, skipper, Energy Team, reflection on the season: “After six events and almost one year of racing, we need to improve still in our match racing, but in the fleet racing we are happy to be third overall for the season, which is good. Now, we look forward to the racing in San Francisco in August and October.”

Dean Barker, skipper, Emirates Team New Zealand, on a tough day: “We had a nice start and we’re second at the first mark and then we just blew it. We made a couple of mistakes and fell back to fifth or sixth and from there it was very difficult to fight our way back through.”

Nathan Outteridge, skipper, Team Korea, on his team’s performance: “We didn’t have an ideal start, but we kept moving forward and on the last leg upwind we really nailed it and made up some places. I think we’ve performed better than we were initially hoping. This week I think we sailed the best we’ve sailed the whole time. So we’re really looking forward to San Francisco.”

2011-12 AC World Series Overall Championship Leaderboard
(Team, Match Racing Points, Fleet Racing Points, Total Points)
1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL…47 – 55 – 102 points
2. Emirates Team New Zealand…41 – 52 – 93 points
3. Artemis Racing…50 – 32 – 82 points
4. Energy Team…38 – 36 – 74 points
5. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS…39 – 29 – 68 points
6. Team Korea…33 – 33 – 66 points
7. Luna Rossa Piranha…26 – 26 – 52 points
8. Luna Rossa Swordfish…15 – 16 – 31 points
9. China Team…15 – 16 – 31 points

AC World Series Newport Match Racing Championships – Standings
1. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS
2. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL
3. Luna Rossa Piranha
4. Artemis Racing
5. Energy Team
6. Emirates Team New Zealand
7. Luna Rossa Swordfish
8. Team Korea