​​Seconds from the finish line ETNZ’s lead evaporates in the blink of an eye

Emirates Team New Zealand led Race 3 at every gate of the final lap. They had clear air, a working margin, and two jibes to go. Then the bow drove under, the foils lost rhythm, and the boat stopped.

The rest of the fleet flew past. ETNZ crossed the line in eighth. Luna Rossa’s Women and Youth crew took their second win of the day, and lead the competition heading into tomorrow’s second day of racing.

A messy start

Multiple boats were over the line early. Athena Pathway were caught worst, forced to sail all the way back and re-cross the start from scratch after going well before the gun. La Roche-Posay and GB1 were also over. Luna Rossa’s principal boat crossed early and then collected a boat-on-boat penalty, leaving Burling and Tita with two punishments to clear before the race had properly begun.

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ETNZ got out clean, Nathan Outteridge, Seb Menzies, Andy Maloney and Iain Jensen taking clear air down the right side from the gun.

GB1 settled quickly after their start line trouble. Fletcher had called the crossing early, held his nerve, cleared three boats, and the British team found themselves leading at the top gate. After two retirements, it was a different race entirely.

ETNZ takes the lead

GB1’s lead didn’t last. ETNZ worked through and took the front as the race moved into its final stages, building a gap that looked solid. The race committee had shortened the course as the chop on the right side kept building, but the Kiwis looked to have it managed.

Erica Dawson, Jake Pye, Serena Woodall and Josh Armit on the ETNZ Women and Youth boat were sitting comfortably in fourth, their best result of the day taking shape.

The crash

On the final downwind run, two jibes from the finish, ETNZ principal’s gybe went wrong. The porpoising that had been catching boats all day got them. The bow went down hard, the foils unloaded, and the hull buried itself. Speed dropped from over 40 knots to nothing. For a moment there I thought the boat may have had a fatality the bury was so deep. But they emerged again. The boat sat stopped and very wet as the rest of the fleet came through.

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ETNZ had sailed a clean, controlled race and had the win within seconds in front of them. The right side of the course had been rough all afternoon. It had caught others earlier. On this occasion it caught ETNZ at the worst possible moment.

Luna Rossa Youth crew member Marco Gradoni was gracious after their finish, saying, “New Zealand deserved to win this race.” But as Outteridge and the rest of the crew watched the remainder of the fleet pass them by, they would know that they made a mistake, and that mistake cost them the win and potentially the lead going into tomorrow’s racing.

But don’t let the ETNZ near win distract from the performance of Luna Rossa Women and Youth team. They are on fire! They’re showing their class. They’re fast when they need to be, clean when others aren’t, and collect points when the rest of the fleet handed them opportunities. They are definitely the team to watch in this round in Sardinia.

Day 1 Standings After 3 Races

Luna Rossa Women and Youth lead the regatta with two wins and a second. Luna Rossa’s principal, ETNZ Women and Youth, Tudor Team Alinghi and ETNZ principal, are all 9 points further back, each on 20 points with La Roche-Posay only one point further back again. This is turning into a heck of a watchable competition.

Racing resumes tomorrow, four more fleet races on the Bay of Angels from early morning New Zealand time.