Before the next two regattas on Friday of the 36th edition of the prestigious event, which is contested in the best of 13 heats, the two yachts are therefore tied for 1 victory everywhere.
After gaining the advantage in the pre-start after aggressive maneuvers by skipper Peter Burling eliciting cheers from spectators watching over the Auckland waterfront, the New Zealand sailboat quickly took the lead in the regatta of opening.
On passing the first buoy, Team New Zealand was 14 seconds ahead, and then increased this advantage to finish 31 seconds ahead of their opponent.
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But Luna Rossa was not impressed. At the start of the second, it was he who in turn grilled politeness to the defender, to count 13 seconds ahead after the first leg.
The Kiwi crew then came back within 5 seconds of Luna Rossa, who however resisted and even regained some ground at the end of the race.
“We followed our plan, kept our cool and the boat did the rest“said Jimmy Spithill, Luna Rossa’s Australian skipper, who was rejoicing after his crew equalized.”It’s great to be competitive.”
“We seemed to be a little rusty on this last one (regatta). It’s no secret that we haven’t run in quite a while“, conceded Peter Burling, the skipper of Team New Zealand.
“One mistake, and it makes your life hard for the rest of the race“, added the man who already led the crew of the New Zealand boat during the victory in the Bahamas, in the previous edition in 2017.
Luna Rossa, at the head of a huge challenge, for her part defied the predictions: before the start of the America’s Cup, punters and some experts predicted a 7-0 victory for Team New Zealand, given long favorite to keep his trophy.
“The performances of the two sailboats seem to be very close, and this augurs well for other exciting moments.“said Francesco Bruno, co-skipper of Luna Rossa.
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