America’s Cup: everything is set for the preliminary races – the challenges, the teams and the boats taking part

The defender is Emirates Team New Zealand, which is competing with a slightly different line-up to the one that won in Barcelona. The chief helmsman, Peter Burling, has in fact moved to Luna Rossa, and his role is now filled by Natan Outteridge, who was born in Australia and is married in New Zealand. The other helmsman is the very young Sep Menzies. The trimmers are Andy Maloney and Iain Jensen. ETNZ is also fielding a Youth crew, with helmsmen Jake Pye and Erica Dawson; the trimmers are Serena Woodhall and Josh Armit. Although they lost in Cagliari, the Kiwis are still “the ones to beat”.

Among the challengers, let’s start by mentioning Luna Rossa, which is changing 75 per cent of its crew, retaining only regular helmsman Peter Burling: one might quip, ‘Who would dare drop a three-time Cup winner, the first Youth Cup winner and a two-time Olympic medallist?’ “The rotation on board was planned as far back as Cagliari,” said Luna Rossa CEO Max Sirena. “We have the opportunity to try out different combinations, and that’s what we’re doing.” Quite right, especially as second helmsman Marco Gradoni is said to be the fastest on the simulator. He’ll be at the port helm. On board, the trimmers are Maria Giubilei and Gianluigi Ugolini, two very talented young sailors. Ugolini is an excellent Nacra 17 helmsman and a rival of Ruggero Tita, who is currently on the bench for these races. Luna Rossa’s youth crew consists of Margherita Porro, a former Women’s America’s Cup winner, and Massimiliano Antonazzi, with Maria Vittoria Marchesini and Giovanni Santi as trimmers. Needless to say, all eyes are on Luna Rossa. “We’ve worked hard,” continues Max Sirena, “these crews are also the result of our work with the young people we’ve brought into the team. Some, like Marco Gradoni, have been developing with us for years.”

These are the four boats to watch closely. The other teams do not seem quite so impressive at the moment. The Challenger of Record, which refers to its boats as GB1 and GB2 in Cagliari, has not exactly shone and is facing some internal issues. The long-standing sponsor, Ineos, has initiated legal proceedings over ownership of the AC75 boat (formerly Britannia), which could bring the team to a standstill next year. The current team principal is Peter Dubens, a sailing enthusiast who, amongst other things, owns North Sails, the company that manufactures the sails for all the teams. However, in Naples – where, for history lovers, we recall that Admiral Horatio Nelson lived for a long time at the court of the Bourbons, ordering, amongst other things, the hanging of the rebel Francesco Caracciolo, after whom the seafront promenade is named, from which the regatta will be visible. Sailing on GB1 are Dylan Fletcher, Ben Cornish and the trimmers Bleddin Moon and former Luna Rossa crew member Andrea Tesei. On Cobhan Mills’ GB2, the helmswomen are Hannah Mills OBE and Ellie Aldridge, whilst the trimmers are Sam Wenn and Matt Beck.

So far, these are the teams fielding two boats with senior and junior crews. The other key contenders are Tudor Alinghi, the team founded by Ernesto Bertarelli, who – following an unhappy partnership with Red Bull in Barcelona – is back with a team of his own. The helmsmen are Paul Goodison and Phil Robertson. The trimmers are Nicolas Rolaz and Pietro Sibello.

The French team La Roche Posay is back following the Barcelona event with a major overhaul. As for next year’s Cup, this is an interesting team, because the design of their boat is the same (not the upgrades) as New Zealand’s – the winning design that demonstrated great speed. Quentin Delapierre and Diego Botín are the helmsmen, with Florian Trittel and Jason Saunders as trimmers.

Finally, the American team, born from the ashes of American Magic – it uses the latter’s equipment but has an entirely new crew. The team is led by Ken Read, a highly skilled sailor and former chairman of North Sails. It is no longer supported by the New York Yacht Club and its members, who are in fact taking legal action before the New York Supreme Court against the new format of the Cup. The team’s founders are Karel Komárek and Chris Welch. The former attempted to take control of the Ferretti Group by wresting it from the Chinese group Weichai. On board are helmsmen Lucas Calabrese and Harry Melges IV. Note the surname: he is the grandson of Harry “Buddy” Melges, who, with America Cubed, defeated Il Moro di Venezia in 1992 – a veritable legend of American sailing. The trimmers are Hans Henken and Michael Menninger.