Emirates Team New Zealand has confirmed the two crews that will sail at the second Louis Vuitton 38th America’s Cup Preliminary Regatta in Naples, Italy, from 24–27 September 2026.
Following a valuable first Preliminary Regatta in Cagliari in May this year, the team will once again field two AC40s, with the senior crew and the Emirates Team New Zealand Women & Youth crew returning to competition as the fleet expands to nine boats in Naples.
Cagliari provided the first opportunity for the two crews to test themselves in a live racing environment ahead of the Louis Vuitton 38th America’s Cup, building race experience, refining crew combinations and gathering valuable performance data against the other America’s Cup teams. The senior crew progressed through to the Match Race Final to finish runner-up, while the Women & Youth crew secured fifth place.
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Racing in a tight fleet environment placed a premium on communication, consistency, manoeuvres, starting technique, racecraft and quick decision-making under pressure. Those insights have since been taken back into training, helping both crews refine their sailing and develop their race strategies ahead of the next Preliminary Regatta on the same waters where the America’s Cup will be contested in 2027.
The senior entry will again feature Skipper Nathan Outteridge and Seb Menzies sharing the helm, with Andy Maloney and Iain Jensen on trim.
“It’s less than two weeks until we race here in Naples,” said Seb Menzies during a training session last week. “We are currently focussing on sharpening the AC40s ahead of the second Preliminary Regatta, and the whole team is super happy. It is a great atmosphere here in Naples.”
Andy Maloney reflects on the recent training blocks in the race venue and anticipates an exciting regatta ahead. “The conditions in Naples are really dynamic. So, we can expect different teams to be leading every race in the Preliminary Regatta,” said Maloney. “There may be a lot of movement on the scoreboard and being consistent across the three days of racing will be the key to making it into the Match Race Final.”
The Emirates Team New Zealand Women’s & Youth crew will once again feature Jake Pye (skipper) and Erica Dawson on the helm, alongside trimmers Serena Woodall and Josh Armit. For the second Preliminary Regatta the helm and trimmer sides are swapped and part of a planned rotation from PR1 to PR2, with Pye and Woodall on starboard, and Dawson and Armit on port.
For the Women’s & Youth crew, Cagliari provided invaluable first-hand experience of the demands of racing an AC40 at the highest level, from managing the pressure of the start line to maintaining consistency through the fleet. Since then, the crew has spent significant time training in Naples, using the opportunity to build its knowledge of the local conditions and further develop its crew work ahead of the regatta.
“We’ve spent a lot of time over here in Naples over the past few months. We did a big block in July where we tried to take in as much as we can to learn about Naples itself,” said Jake Pye. “It has been really cool to have the core group here at the venue, and sailing alongside the ‘A-team’ has been really good for us. So, we are really excited to see how this positions us for the second Preliminary Regatta.”
Serena Woodall shares the excitement of racing again in the AC40s: “We are really excited to be getting back into racing with the Women’s and Youth team. It is such an awesome opportunity to be lining up against, the best in the sport. It is great to be getting more time in the boat together and excited to see what we can do on the racecourse.”
The second Preliminary Regatta will also see the fleet grow from eight boats in Cagliari to nine in Naples, with American Racing Challenger Team USA joining the competition. GB1 and Luna Rossa will again field two entries, alongside single boats from La Roche-Posay Racing Team and Tudor Team Alinghi: all of who are making the most of the extended training period available in the lead up to the first regatta on the Louis Vuitton 38th America’s Cup racecourse.
The Preliminary Regatta Naples will feature three days of racing, plus dedicated practice sessions, as the world’s leading America’s Cup teams return to the AC40s. The event culminates on Sunday with a winner-takes-all Match Race Final, where the top two teams from the fleet racing will battle for the regatta title.
For the first time, racing will take place on the very waters that will host the Louis Vuitton 38th America’s Cup in 2027. The event offers teams a crucial opportunity to refine their knowledge of the venue and race strategies, while feeding crucial data and insights back to their design and development teams. For fans, meanwhile, it offers an exciting first glimpse of what to expect when the AC75s arrive in Naples for the main event from May to July 2027.
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