It’s day eight of the Round Robin stage of the Louis Vuitton Cup and for Orient Express Racing Team, who take on the hard-charging INEOS Britannia in the first race of the day, the deal is simple. Win and they have every chance of forcing a sail-off against Alinghi Red Bull Racing. Lose and they are eliminated from the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup.
For the Swiss, who face a dangerous Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli after their first Challenger defeat yesterday to the British, they face a tricky battle but will know their fate or exactly what they need to do with their race being the second on the schedule behind ‘Le Crunch.’ If the French secure a win, then it’s maximum pressure on Alinghi Red Bull Racing who would need a win against the Italians to avoid a winner-takes-all race-off.
Meanwhile at the top of the standings, Luna Rossa Prada and INEOS Britannia could be locked in a tie for first place if the British win against France and the Italians lose to the Swiss. That also would force a sail-off for the top spot in the Louis Vuitton Cup semi-finals with the winner getting a significant advantage in being able to select both their opponent and the side of entry in the opening match. Whoever tops the standings after the second Round Robin will announce their selection of opponent in the scheduled Press Conference on Friday 13 September at 11am.
For shoreside spectators in Barcelona this is a raceday not to miss. The free-to-enter Race Village and Fanzones at the Plaça del Mar and Bogatell will be filling up from midday as fans of the Louis Vuitton 37thAmerica’s Cup secure the best viewing spots and settle down for an afternoon of pure high-octane AC75 entertainment. Barcelona truly is the epicentre of the yachting world right now.
All eyes today are on the weather with overnight distant rumbles of thunder in the hills behind Barcelona and rain showers this morning in the city, clearing by the afternoon to leave a north-easterly wind flow that various models are predicting anywhere between 6-10 knots. The sea-state should be greatly reduced from what we saw on the racecourse yesterday with Iain Murray, Race Director, expecting 0.8 metre swells from the east.
A defining day to come with variables and permutations aplenty at both the top and bottom of the Louis Vuitton Cup fleet. This is going to be fascinating.
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Ian Roman, Ana Ponce / America’s Cup
