All to do for Oracle
Welcome to day two of the America’s Cup Match, presented by Louis Vuitton.
Emirates Team New Zealand went 2-0 on the first day. In spite of errors on their part, a huge hull plant turning on to the finish leg in race one and getting out of phase and losing a 300-metre lead at the last windward mark on a wind shift in race two, the Kiwis managed to win two and, after whipping off the point against them at the start, now sit 1-0 against Oracle Team USA.
Can the Kiwis pull off another sweep for the day or will Oracle stage an early come back?
Both helmsmen, Peter Burling and Jimmy Spithill were guarded after the first two races of the America’s Cup Match. They know the match will be a marathon, not a sprint.
Emirates Team New Zealand jumped out with two wins but Burling was not ready to celebrate. “We made many mistakes and have a lot of work to do,” he said. “No doubt these boys [Oracle Team USA] will not make this easy.”
Spithill conceded that his day did not go as planned — between the poor starts and lack of boat speed. He said there is a lot of racing ahead and many opportunities to take an advantage. “We are only down one,” he said.
Schedule
Race 3: Emirates Team New Zealand v Oracle Team USA (2.08pm)
Race 4: Oracle Team USA v Emirates Team New Zealand (3pm)
Weather prediction
Expecting an easterly or east southeasterly breeze at 10-12 knots.
Racing conditions today are expected to be just like yesterday. It will be interesting to see if Oracle pull out some new foils to match the kinkers that New Zealand showed yesterday.