Tudor Team Alinghi level on points with second after day one in Sardinia

Tudor Team Alinghi's Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup Preliminary Regatta campaign in Sardinia opened on Friday with three fleet races off Cagliari, the Swiss crew working through a testing Gulf of Angels in conditions that produced both encouraging signs and costly lessons. By the close of the opening day, the team sat fourth overall, level on points with the side placed second.

The first race offered genuine cause for optimism. Tudor Team Alinghi made a strong start and carried real pace throughout, climbing as high as second at stages and keeping the leaders well within range. A single boundary penalty mid-race caused a brief disruption, but the crew regrouped and pushed hard to the finish, crossing third behind Luna Rossa and La Roche-Posay Racing Team.

Race 2 was a far more gruelling affair. Three boundary penalties on the opening upwind leg immediately undid the gains from another solid start, leaving the Swiss crew buried deep in the fleet and battling through disturbed air and building chop. They found a cleaner rhythm in the second half, threading forward as rivals made errors ahead of them. A late capsize for Athena Pathway opened a further opportunity, and Tudor Team Alinghi came through in fifth, in a race won by Emirates Team New Zealand.

"Tricky race for sure. We had a few crashes in the chop, and with the breeze up it wasn't easy out there. But there are some big learnings for us to take into the next race. Let's Go!" – Pietro Sibello

With the breeze continuing to build and the sea state roughening further, the third and final race of the day produced another tightly compressed contest. Paul Goodison, Phil Robertson, Nicolas Rolaz and Pietro Sibello traded positions with the Italian, Kiwi and British crews across the course, the session as a whole appearing to sharpen the team's communication and consistency. A capsize for Team New Zealand on the final run brought Tudor Team Alinghi another place up the leaderboard, and they finished fifth for the second successive race.

The three results left Tudor Team Alinghi fourth in the overall standings at the end of day one, though level on points with the team sitting second, a solid foothold in one of the most competitive AC40 fleets assembled for a preliminary regatta. The points gap to second place amounted to nothing, leaving the Swiss crew very much in contention.

The Tudor Team Alinghi line-up racing in Sardinia: Paul Goodison (GBR), Skipper and Starboard Helm; Phil Robertson (NZL), Port Helm; Nicolas Rolaz (SUI), Starboard Trim; Pietro Sibello (ITA/SUI), Port Trim.

When the fleet returns to the Gulf of Angels, clear skies and a building south-easterly are forecast to set up another fast and physical afternoon of racing. With wave heights expected to increase through the session, boat handling and consistency across all three races may prove every bit as decisive as raw boat speed.