Racing was scheduled to start at 2pm in Naples, but the fleet remains on hold while the wind builds to the 7.5 knot minimum. The latest from the commentators is that the wind remains inconsistent; it comes up and goes down again.
The Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup Preliminary Regatta Naples background
The Louis Vuitton 38th America’s Cup Preliminary Regatta brings nine AC40s to the Bay of Naples. Official racing begins on Friday 25 September, following practice racing on Thursday. It is the second preliminary regatta of this Cup cycle and the first competitive racing on the waters that will host the America’s Cup in 2027.
Six America’s Cup teams are represented. Emirates Team New Zealand, Luna Rossa and Britain’s GB1 each have two boats entered, including a Women and Youth crew. The Swiss, French and American teams have one boat each. Team Australia is absent from this regatta.
Three fleet races are scheduled for Friday, three for Saturday and two for Sunday. Friday’s racing is scheduled to begin around 2pm in Naples, midnight in New Zealand.
The week before racing
Naples formally welcomed the America’s Cup teams at a ceremony on Nisida on Tuesday. Across the water at Bagnoli, work continued on the bases for the 2027 Cup. On the racecourse, the crews prepared for conditions that could prove harder to read than those they met in Sardinia. Wind shifts around Posillipo and the waterfront were already a talking point among the sailors.
Tudor Team Alinghi arrived with Kiwi Phil Robertson on port helm. Skipper Paul Goodison said the Swiss boat had become more reliable through training. GB1’s preparations took an unexpected turn in Naples when its AC40 was damaged in a collision during training. Thursday then gave the fleet its clearest form guide: Peter Burling’s Luna Rossa 1 won all three official practice races, at times building a lead of about 500 metres. Practice results carry no points, but the performance put the Italian crew firmly in view before Friday’s first scoring race.
Weather watch
Friday 25 September: Light and changeable wind is the main concern ahead of the opening fleet races on the Bay of Naples. Showers and thunderstorms are possible, while the forecast calls for brighter spells later. Crews will be watching whether the afternoon breeze reaches the AC40’s 7.5 knot starting threshold. The race committee will make that call using measurements on the course.
Saturday 26 September: The city forecast is sunny and around 26°C. The marine forecast still indicates light winds, so the teams will be carefully watching the conditions.
Sunday 27 September: Mostly sunny conditions and a high near 26°C are forecast. Wind remains the point to watch for the last two fleet races and the match race final.
The New Zealand interest
Who are the Kiwis racing in Naples? Alongside Emirates Team New Zealand’s two crews, New Zealand sailors are aboard Luna Rossa, Tudor Team Alinghi and La Roche-Posay Racing Team.
Emirates Team New Zealand
Emirates Team New Zealand enters two crews. Nathan Outteridge and Seb Menzies helm its principal boat, with Andy Maloney and Iain Jensen trimming. Jake Pye and Erica Dawson helm its Women and Youth boat, joined by Serena Woodall and Josh Armit. The principal crew finished runner up at the first preliminary regatta in Sardinia, losing the final to Luna Rossa.
Kiwis on the Naples racecourse
The New Zealand interest reaches well beyond the two Emirates Team New Zealand boats. Nine New Zealand sailors are in the named AC40 crews, spread across four teams.
| Boat | New Zealand sailors aboard |
|---|---|
| Emirates Team New Zealand Principal crew |
Co-helm Seb Menzies and trimmer Andy Maloney |
| Emirates Team New Zealand Women and Youth |
Co-helms Jake Pye and Erica Dawson; trimmers Serena Woodall and Josh Armit |
| Luna Rossa 1 Principal crew |
Co-helm Peter Burling |
| Tudor Team Alinghi | Co-helm Phil Robertson |
| La Roche-Posay Racing Team | Trimmer Jason Saunders |
The name to watch across team lines is Burling. He won three America’s Cups at the helm of Emirates Team New Zealand before joining Luna Rossa. He now races against his former team in the Italian boat. Robertson gives the Swiss challenger a Kiwi at the helm, while Saunders brings New Zealand experience to the French crew.
Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Nathan Outteridge and trimmer Iain Jensen are Australian.
Louis Vuitton 38th America’s Cup Preliminary Regatta Naples teams and crews
Nine AC40s from six America’s Cup teams will race in Naples. The table below lists each boat’s two helms and two trimmers, including the three Women and Youth crews.
| Boat | Co-helms | Trimmers |
|---|---|---|
| 🇳🇿 Emirates Team New Zealand Principal crew |
Nathan Outteridge Seb Menzies |
Andy Maloney Iain Jensen |
| 🇳🇿 Emirates Team New Zealand Women and Youth |
Jake Pye Erica Dawson |
Serena Woodall Josh Armit |
| 🇮🇹 Luna Rossa 1 Principal crew |
Peter Burling Marco Gradoni |
Maria Giubilei Gianluigi Ugolini |
| 🇮🇹 Luna Rossa 2 Women and Youth |
Margherita Porro Massimiliano Antoniazzi |
Giovanni Santi Maria Vittoria Marchesini |
| 🇬🇧 GB1 | Dylan Fletcher Ben Cornish |
Bleddyn Mon Andrea Tesei |
| 🇬🇧 Cobham-Ultra GB2 Women and Youth |
Hannah Mills Ellie Aldridge |
Matt Beck Sam Webb |
| 🇨🇭 Tudor Team Alinghi | Paul Goodison Phil Robertson |
Nicolas Rolaz Pietro Sibello |
| 🇫🇷 La Roche-Posay Racing Team | Quentin Delapierre Diego Botín |
Jason Saunders Florian Trittel |
| 🇺🇸 American Racing Challenger Team USA | Harry Melges IV Lucas Calabrese |
Hans Henken Michael Menninger |
Note: Luna Rossa changed its boat numbering after Sardinia. Peter Burling’s principal crew races as Luna Rossa 1 in Naples, while the Women and Youth crew races as Luna Rossa 2. Burling’s winning boat was labelled Luna Rossa 2 in Sardinia.
A look back at Sardinia
The first preliminary regatta of the 38th America’s Cup cycle took place off Cagliari in May. Eight AC40s raced across three days, giving the teams their first competitive measure of one another before Naples.
Luna Rossa left Sardinia with both titles. Its Women and Youth crew, led by Marco Gradoni and Margherita Porro, won that classification after leading the overall fleet standings for much of the regatta. A disqualification in the seventh race and an early start in the eighth ended its chance of reaching the match race final.
The final instead brought Peter Burling’s Luna Rossa crew up against Emirates Team New Zealand, helmed by Nathan Outteridge and Seb Menzies. The New Zealand boat incurred an early start penalty. Luna Rossa took the lead and held it to win the regatta, leaving the defender as runner up. Emirates Team New Zealand’s Women and Youth crew finished fifth
Naples adds a new boat to that comparison: American Racing Challenger Team USA will race at a preliminary regatta for the first time this cycle.
