Naples Preliminary Regatta was billed as a form guide for the AC75 era, and by the time the fleet packed up it had delivered exactly that. Sailors kept returning to the same theme in interviews: next year's big boat has been the priority all along, but Naples was a sharp reminder of how ruthless the competition will be once the America's Cup itself is on the line.
Shore team performance stood out early. With the AC40s largely one-design and development tightly restricted, the shore crews could work from a settled template, a comfort that disappears entirely once the AC75s arrive with their bespoke systems and design quirks. That will load far more onto the specialists tasked with getting boats race-ready every time they hit the water. There was real camaraderie between shore teams in Naples. Don't expect that to survive the step up.
Plenty was at stake beyond the trophy itself. Momentum, belief, confidence heading into the next phase, all of it mattered as much as the result on the water. As ever in this event, where there is famously no second, some walked away regretting costly errors while others left buoyed by genuine flashes of speed. Here's how it went, team by team.
**Luna Rossa 1: Winners**
There was plenty of noise before the regatta when CEO Max Sirena reshuffled his sailor pack around skipper Peter Burling. Marco Gradoni came in on co-helm, joined by his 2024 Youth America's Cup-winning partner Gianluigi Ugolini on trim, with Women's America's Cup winning trimmer Maria Giubilei sat behind Burling as the first woman to break into a principal team purely on merit.
Any concern about chemistry proved unfounded. They were magnificent from the outset, winning the first three practice races and then the opening race of the regatta, a clear statement of intent. By the final day they led the leaderboard by a distance, then delivered a masterclass, never trailing at a gate, taking the last two fleet races and the match-race final.
Even in victory, the sailors were talking about where they could improve. That habit of never being satisfied is becoming this team's calling card. The real question now is what it means for crew selection on the AC75. Has Gradoni done enough to push past double Olympic gold medallist Ruggero Tita for the co-helm role? Does Ugolini get a trimming seat? Giubilei looks a strong bet for the fifth sailor spot, likely combining trim with systems and data work. Everyone will be watching the recon closely over the coming months.
**Emirates Team New Zealand: Runner-up**
Nathan Outteridge was kicking himself after the final. An execution error in the closing countdown handed Luna Rossa the positional edge at the start, and ETNZ struggled to find rhythm in the early fleet races, often fighting back from the pack.
There's some comfort in their resilience, they forced results when it counted. They'll also know how close they came to missing the final altogether, with La Roche-Posay Racing Team a capsize away from getting there first.
On the positive side, new co-helm and designated AC75 driver Seb Menzies was strong all week. The trimming pair of Andy Maloney and Iain Jensen remain world-class. Jensen was Outteridge's 49er crew when they won gold at London 2012, and his tactical influence and trim calls shouldn't be underestimated. The Kiwis head home to focus fully on AC75 development, with plenty of extra time booked in the simulator for match-racing craft.
**La Roche-Posay Racing Team: 3rd**
Both Burling and Outteridge had tipped the French team to go well before Naples started. They were right. La Roche-Posay took two race wins and nearly had a third, only for a poor gybe to trigger a capsize while leading on the final leg. Two further podiums followed.
Quentin Delapierre and Diego Botín made for compelling listening on the onboard comms, working through tactics and reading the wind together. It was a genuinely collaborative effort. Trimmers Florian Trittel and Jason Saunders were constantly in the loop too, making this the most vocal four-way communication of any team in Naples.
They'll take plenty from this. Speed was there, and so was their knack for finding clean air off the start. With their AC75 now in Naples and the team based there permanently, this winter's development block looks set to be significant. Plenty are already picking them as the dark horse for the main event.
**ARC Team USA: 4th**
Nobody really knew what to expect from ARC Team USA after their Pensacola training block. The opening race answered that question emphatically, a stunning win that sent American fans wild.
The team brought an infectious positivity and a flat hierarchy that stood out. There's no nominated skipper. Helming duties are shared between Harry Melges IV, runner-up in the 2024 Youth America's Cup, and Lucas Calabrese, co-helm on the American AC75 during the 2024 Louis Vuitton Cup semi-final. Trimmers Michael Menninger and Hans Henken matched that quality, and the communication loop between the four was solid throughout.
Melges and Calabrese both spoke about the team's ability to bounce back from a poor race with a strong one, and that opening win set the tone. Results settled mid-table before improving, with a third in the final race capping an impressive debut. ARC Team USA leave Naples as a genuine dark horse for next year, and with that comes fresh expectation.
**Emirates Team New Zealand Women & Youth: 5th**
A swap of helming sides saw skipper Jake Pye move to the starboard pod with co-helm Erica Dawson on port, and there was plenty to like, including a sensational, opportunistic race win. This is a team building for both the Women's and Youth campaigns, and they were in the mix throughout, improving visibly day by day.
Self-critical, sharp, analytical, this young crew impressed a lot of people.
Olympian Josh Armit and match-racing specialist Serena Woodall trimmed with real distinction, both now heading off to their respective campaigns for next year. The final race turned into a straight shootout for the Women & Youth title, and ETNZ showed composure well beyond their years, edging the Italian Luna Rossa Women & Youth crew by the narrowest of margins to win on countback. A statement performance, and thoroughly deserved after a week of highs and lows.
**Luna Rossa 2: 6th**
Skipper Margherita Porro was disappointed to miss out on the Women & Youth trophy by such a slim margin, but she knows this group of young talent is well placed for both campaigns next year. Co-helm Max Antoniazzi looks like another serious talent in the making, and trimmer Giovanni Santi has impressed consistently since his debut in Sardinia in May.
Those two will form the bedrock of Italy's Youth team, with fast-driving Lorenzo Sirena the likely addition alongside Antoniazzi on co-helm. The Women's side looks just as strong. Porro is quick and can hold her own against the principal teams, as Naples proved, while Maria Vittoria Marchesini, trimming this week, could easily slot into the port-helm role. She was part of the winning Women's America's Cup team in Barcelona in 2024.
There's a lot to work on around big fleet racing execution over winter, but the raw materials are clearly there. Expect fireworks in Cagliari once the Youth and Women's line-ups are locked in and go head-to-head.
**Tudor Team Alinghi: 7th**
Heading into the final day, Tudor Team Alinghi sat third on the podium with a real shot at the final. It didn't happen, and new skipper Paul Goodison's frustration was obvious afterwards, rueing execution errors at the worst possible moments.
Still, there's plenty to build on. They were fast around the track and could hold lanes and angles with the best of them. Co-helm Phil Robertson and Goodison combined well, and the communication loop with trimmers Pietro Sibello and Nicolas Rolaz was noticeably sharper than their first outing back in Sardinia in May.
Two seconds and a third across races two to four were the clear highlights, proof they can sit with the front-runners and stay there. With their AC75 on track for delivery this winter, it's shaping into an intense training block. The result on paper says one thing. The sailing said something rather different. Worth watching.
**GB1: 8th**
GB1's week started badly, before it had even properly started. A collision with the Tudor Team Alinghi chase boat damaged the starboard foil during pre-regatta practice, forcing a swap to a Swiss spare while the shore team carried out repairs. Then, on the opening day, a flap on the newly repaired foil fell off, leaving the boat short of grip and pace.
They didn't fold. A podium finish opened day two, and three fourth places by the end of the regatta hinted at real underlying potential. Skipper Dylan Fletcher and co-helm Ben Cornish both pointed to a lack of time in the boat, with training hours weighted heavily towards AC75 development work rather than AC40 racing.
Trimmers Bleddyn Mon and Andrea Tesei impressed again, and there's a strong sense this was a blip rather than a true reading of the team's form. "It never rains but it pours," Fletcher said wryly.
**Cobham-Ultra GB2: 9th**
This is a team building squarely for next year's Women & Youth regattas, and Naples opened well with a morale-boosting third in race one, proof they could hang with the favourites. A run of mid-fleet results afterwards dropped the British crew, led by Hannah Mills OBE, to the bottom of the table, with small mistakes proving expensive at this level.
The bright spot was the partnership between Mills and co-helm Ellie Aldridge, who combined well with sharp communication and strong boat-on-boat awareness throughout the week. Trimmers Matt Beck and Sam Webb showed real promise for the future, taking plenty from the experience heading into their next block of training.
