Team New Zealand have blown out Luna Rossa in race four of the America’s Cup, after an early mistake proved fatal for the Italians.
It was a polar opposite performance from the first race of the day for the Italians, who had the chance to go into the weekend with a commanding 3-1 lead.
Having been flawless in the first race of the afternoon, Luna Rossa poorly executed a gybe early in race four, causing them to fall off their foils and lose a large amount of speed.
One mistake has proven to be all that is required for a team to lose a race in the 36th America’s Cup, and there was simply no way back for the Italians as Team New Zealand eased to a huge victory.
It was a strong statement from the Kiwis, who looked to be under significant pressure having dropped race three earlier in the afternoon.
It's 2-2 between the Italians and the Kiwis in the race for the Auld Mug. (Source: Other)
Team New Zealand had port entry as they looked to even the best-of-13 match.
The wind had dropped to just over eight knots between races, placing even more importance on each team’s manoeuvres and decision-making.
It was nearly disaster for Team New Zealand in the pre-start, as they dropped off their foils for a brief moment, but just recovered in time to resist an advancing Luna Rossa and take a slight advantage off the line.
There was nothing in it during the early stages of the first leg, but a well-timed tack by Team New Zealand pushed Luna Rossa into dirty air, giving the Kiwis a valuable advantage as they headed towards the first gate.
The difference was nine seconds after leg one, Team New Zealand hoping to extend that gap in their favoured downwind leg.
And sure enough they did.
Luna Rossa succumbed to the pressure as they tried to cut into the Kiwis’ early advantage, failing to execute a gybe and touching down on the water.
The mistake cost them significant time, falling to 34 seconds behind Team New Zealand through the second gate.
From then on nothing but a Team New Zealand mistake could save the Italians.
Peter Burling and the Kiwis refused to oblige and cruised through the rest of the race, making sure not to take any unnecessary risks.
The result makes the weekend’s racing even more interesting.
Two races are scheduled for both tomorrow and Sunday, with either team able to take the opportunity to get one hand on the cup if they can string together a series of strong performances.
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