America’s Cup Luxury Yacht Charter & Superyacht News

Billed as “event-ageddon”, the second leg of America’s Cup World Series regatta in San Francisco was part of a weekend which attracted plenty of visitors who gathered in the city.

Mayor Lee thanks America's Cup for showcasing San Francisco in an international setting © ACEA/Gilles Martin-Raget

According to Mayor Ed Lee, who visited the America’s Cup World Series on “Super Sunday,” the America’s Cup showcased the city in an international setting.

“It’s fabulous for our city, and a million people came out to watch it,” said Mayor Lee. “They wanted to be near the waterfront so they could see the blend of sky and water, fast racing boats, the Blue Angels. The America’s Cup races next year will be the only international event we have in the U.S., if not North America.”

Similar to the August America’s Cup World Series, another gold medalist took a turn in the guest racer seat aboard an AC45. Three-time Olympic gold medalist swimmer Natalie Coughlin rode with Emirates Team New Zealand and, like Michael Johnson (the gold medalist track and field star) before her, she came away with awe at the athleticism involved to race the AC45.

“It was quite fun, but there was a lot that went into it. I don’t know the terms, but those guys were working their butts off,” said Coughlin. “What was amazing was how closely the boats crossed one another.”

Some highlights of the five-day regatta included:
- A crowd estimated at 1 million visited San Francisco for the America’s Cup World Series and Fleet Week, and a spectator fleet nearing 1,500 vessels was on the water for Saturday and Sunday
- 177 accredited media on-site from 14 countries
- More than 2,600 stories were published in more than 1,000 outlets in 46 countries
- More than 300,000 unique visitors viewed more than 1 million pages on the America’s Cup website at an average duration of 3 minutes
- America’s Cup TV produced 38 videos that have been viewed more than 360,000 times
- The America’s Cup app for iPhone and iPad has been downloaded more than 14,500 times, and more than 2,700 times for Android
- The America’s Cup Facebook page grew by 20 percent and now has more than 118,000 “likes”
- The America’s Cup Event Authority distributed 2,000 gallons (7,570 liters) of water on site, which prevented the use of more than 15,000 single use (500mL) plastic bottles
- Lexus, the official vehicle of the America’s Cup, provided a fleet of hybrid cars that helped save fuel and reduce emissions
- The Healthy Ocean Project had 40 volunteers including teams, fans and HOP members help the Parks Conservancy at Fort Mason restore and clean up the coastline.

ORACLE TEAM USA’s double victories by skipper Jimmy Spithill in the match and fleet racing championships closed out the 2012 calendar year for the America’s Cup World Series.

The next event is scheduled for Italy in April 2013, and America’s Cup Event Authority officials are hoping to organize an event in New York City next June before the summer of racing in San Francisco kicks off on July 4, 2013.

2012-13 America’s Cup World Series Season Championship
Team (Skipper) SF1-SF2 – Total
1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) 86-79 – 165 points
2. Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper) 85-36 – 121
3. Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) 48-72 – 120
4. J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) 37-79 – 116
5. Team Korea (Peter Burling) 65-40 – 105
6. Energy Team (Loïck Peyron) 55-47 – 102
7. Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) 43-57 – 100
8. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts) 42-56 – 98
9. Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) 38-52 – 90
10. Luna Rossa Swordfish (Iker Martinez) 51-20 – 71
11. China Team (Phil Robertson) 15-28 – 43
(Scoring is based on points accumulated at event fleet racing championships.)

2012-13 America’s Cup World Series Match Racing Championship
1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL – 19 points, 2. Emirates Team New Zealand – 16, 3. Artemis Racing – White – 16, 4. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS – 16, 5. Energy Team – 11, 6. Artemis Racing – Red – 8, 7. J.P. Morgan BAR – 7, 8. Luna Rossa Piranha – 6, 9. Team Korea – 5, 10. Luna Rossa Swordfish – 5, 11. China Team – 3

The “Super Sunday” fleet race finale at America’s Cup World Series San Francisco was marked by a great success of ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL, winning the ACWS San Francisco Championship.

The two ORACLE TEAM USA crews on Final Race Day© ACEA/Photo: Gilles Martin-Raget

Sailing yacht Spithill and crew Dirk de Ridder, John Kostecki, Jono MacBeth and Joe Newton were “dead last” off the start line, but fought their way back through the fleet. They rounded the last windward gate first and held on for a 17-second win over teammates ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts).

Spithill won 40 points for the race and totaled 79 points for the series. That put the crew in a tie with J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) for the series championship, which placed fourth in the final race. Spithill won the championship based on the final race finishes.

“The difference is the four guys on the front of the boat,” said Spithill, referencing his crew. “We were dead last off the start line but it didn’t faze these guys. We have a real team of fighters here. We’re really, really happy.”

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL Winner of the ACWS San Francisco© ACEA/Photo: Gilles Martin-Raget

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL put an emphatic stamp on this regatta. Yesterday the crew won the Match Racing Championship after capsizing and breaking frames in the wingsail during a fleet race. The crew also won the August AC World Series San Francisco Championship by 1 point, previously the closest finish at an AC World Series event. The tiebreaker surpasses that mark.

“We’ve always said we need to be able to come from behind and overcome adversity,” said Spithill, who skippered the team to victory in the 2010 America’s Cup. “I thought I gave them that yesterday with the capsize, but it’s really a sign of a strong team. The shore crew, our coaches, it’s been a fantastic team effort.”

Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) placed third in today’s race and finished third overall. Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) placed fourth overall and ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS fifth.

J.P. Morgan BAR and Artemis Racing on Final Racing Day© ACEA/Photo: Gilles Martin-Raget

AC World Series San Francisco Fleet Racing Championship (After 7 of 7 races)
1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) 8-1-6-5-DNF-2-1 – 79
2. J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) 1-3-1-2-4-1-4 – 79 points
3. Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) 10-2-2-1-3-3-3 – 72
4. Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) 2-8-5-6-1-4-7 – 57
5. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts) 3-5-8-7-8-10-2 – 56
6. Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) 4-4-4-4-9-8-5 – 52
7. Energy Team (Loick Peyron) 6-7-7-3-6-7-6 – 47
8. Team Korea (Peter Burling) 5-9-10-8-2-5-10 – 40
9. Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper) 9-6-3-10-10-6-9 – 36
10. China Team (Phil Robertson) 7-10-11-9-5-11-8 – 28
11. Luna Rossa Swordfish (Iker Martinez) 11-11-9-11-7-9-11 – 20
(Scoring, Races 1-6: 1st = 12 points, 2nd = 10, 3rd = 9, 4th = 8, 5th = 7, 6th = 6, 7th = 5, 8th = 4, 9th = 3, 10th = 2, 11th = 1; Race 7: 1st = 40 points, 2nd = 25, 3rd = 20, 4th = 16, 5th = 13, 6th = 11, 7th = 10, 8th = 9, 9th = 8, 10th = 7, 11th = 6)

AC World Series San Francisco Match Racing Championship
1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL, 2. Emirates Team New Zealand, 3. Artemis Racing – White, 4. Artemis Racing – Red, 5. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS, 6. Energy Team, 7. J.P. Morgan BAR, 8. Team Korea, 9. China Team, 10. Luna Rossa Piranha, 11. Luna Rossa Swordfish

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL showed the flexibility on Racing Day 4 at America’s Cup World Series San Francisco, demonstrating that they are an exceptional team.

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL celebrating their victory© ACEA/Gilles Martin-Raget

The veteran crew, led by skipper Jimmy Spithill, overcame a spectacular capsize in Fleet Race 5 and later won the Match Racing Championship of the event sailed on San Francisco Bay. The U.S. Coast Guard estimated the spectator fleet at 1,000 vessels, while tens of thousands of people lined the shore.

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL beat Emirates Team New Zealand yacht (Dean Barker) by 18 seconds in a race that was decided on the start line. With less than 10 seconds to the start, Spithill dove to leeward of Barker and luffed his New Zealand opponent so hard that Barker wound up tacking to port to avoid a penalty. Spithill sped onto the racecourse as Barker was circling around to start and led by 31 seconds at the first reach mark.

“There was a lot of time to go to the start and he was way too early. It was a matter of biding our time,” said Spithill, who is the youngest skipper to ever have won the America’s Cup. “Our coach, Philippe Presti, has done a lot of work with Ben (Ainslie), Russ (Coutts) and I, and we’ve really been out-starting the other teams in the match racing. Full credit to Philippe, he’s the one who got us to this level.”

ORACLE TEAM USA on Racing Day 4© ACEA/Gilles Martin-Raget

“With about 10 seconds to go we didn’t do a good job protecting our position, and that was it,” said Barker. “There’s always an opportunity to get back into it in this style of racing and the guys ground away at it, but we ran out of runway to do anything.”

The result was impressive considering that one hour earlier ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL lay on its port side. During the first fleet race of the day, the fifth in the series, Spithill was in second at the first reach mark and turning downwind in a mighty puff of approximately 20 knots. Spithill’s bows dug in, the boat stood nearly vertical and then rolled onto its port side with the wingsail hitting the water.

None of the crew was injured in the incident, which forced them out of the race. They rebounded to place second in the day’s second fleet race.

“It was a bit of an eventful day for us, with the swim in the first race,” said Spithill. “I was really proud of the lads and our shore crew, our support team. They righted the boat and we got back into second race and got a second place. I’m very impressed with the team.”

Capsize in Fleet Race 5© ACEA/Gilles Martin-Raget

Sailing yacht Spithill advanced to the championship after beating Artemis Racing yacht – White (Terry Hutchinson) in the semifinals, while Emirates Team New Zealand beat Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge).

In the fleet racing championship, J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) continued its strong showing with a 4-1. Ainslie has the high score of 63 points followed by Artemis Racing – White with 52 points, sailing yacht Emirates Team New Zealand with 47 points and ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL with 39 points, in a tie with Artemis Racing – Red.

The Super Sunday fleet race finale is scheduled tomorrow and will be broadcast nationally in the U.S. by NBC beginning at 1:30 pm PDT. The broadcast will include a replay of the match racing championship followed by the seventh and final fleet race, scheduled for 1:55 pm PDT.

Tens of thousands of people lining the shore© ACEA/Gilles Martin-Raget

AC World Series San Francisco Fleet Racing Championship (After 6 of 7 races)
1. J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) 1-3-1-2-4-1 – 63 points
2. Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) 10-2-2-1-3-3 – 52
3. Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) 2-8-5-6-1-4 – 47
4. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) 8-1-6-5-DNF-2 – 39
5. Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) 4-4-4-4-9-8 – 39
6. Energy Team (Loick Peyron) 6-7-7-3-6-7 – 36
7. Team Korea (Peter Burling) 5-9-10-8-2-5 – 33
8. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts) 3-5-8-7-8-10 – 31
9. Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper) 9-6-3-10-10-6 – 28
10. China Team (Phil Robertson) 7-10-11-9-5-11 – 19
11. Luna Rossa Swordfish (Iker Martinez) 11-11-9-11-7-9 – 14

AC World Series San Francisco Match Racing Championship
1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL, 2. Emirates Team New Zealand, 3. Artemis Racing – White, 4. Artemis Racing – Red, 5. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS, 6. Energy Team, 7. J.P. Morgan BAR, 8. Team Korea, 9. China Team, 10. Luna Rossa Piranha, 11. Luna Rossa Swordfish

Benefitting from a month of practice, Ben Ainslie’s J.P. Morgan BAR as well as the two Artemis Racing crews have secured their top positions after Racing Day 3 at America’s Cup World Series San Francisco.

ACWS San Francisco Day 3© ACEA/Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

Ainslie, the five-time Olympic medalist, extended the lead he opened yesterday with a first and second in the two races. With finishes of 1-3-1-2, Ainslie has the high score of 43 points, good for a 9-point lead on Terry Hutchinson’s Artemis Racing – White and 11 points on Nathan Outteridge’s Artemis Racing – Red.

Outteridge is the new helmsman in Artemis Racing. The 26-year-old joined the team last month after winning a gold medal at the London-Weymouth Olympic Regatta and six months of racing with Team Korea. He joined the team as a second helmsman to skipper Hutchinson, the veteran who won the inaugural America’s Cup World Series match racing championship last season.

“Nathan’s joined the Artemis team and we’ve had a great two-week session leading into this and made a lot progress sailing the boats together and learning from each other,” said Hutchinson, who posted finishes of 2-1 in the two fleet races. “It’s really good having someone with Nathan’s skill to bounce ideas off and for debriefs.”

For his part Outteridge posted a pair of fourths today, identical finishes to yesterday. But he said the feeling on board was much better than yesterday.

“We’re happy because we sailed a lot better today than yesterday,” said Outteridge. “Yesterday we were leading and dropped back to fourth. Today we fought up the fleet to place fourth. It’s amazing the different feeling on the boat.”

Artemis Racing© ACEA/Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

While Hutchinson and Outteridge are enjoying the exchange of ideas, the irony of a 26-year-old teaching the older generation isn’t lost on the team CEO Paul Cayard.

“When I was a kid and did my first America’s Cup, all the old experienced guys were in the back of the boat,” said Cayard, who’s calling tactics for Outteridge and riding in the front of the crew. “Now, the kids waltz in with their gold medals and get right on the wood (tiller) and the 53-year-olds are on the bow. It’s upside down.”

The two Artemis crews are also excelling in the match racing championship, with both advancing to tomorrow’s semifinal round. Hutchinson will take on ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) in one semifinal match while Outteridge will square off against Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) in the other match.

Outteridge made the semis after beating ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts). Coutts had gotten a pre-start penalty on the young skipper and led the entire match, but rounded the wrong mark before heading to the finish line and was scored did not finish, handing the win to Outteridge.

“There’s not much sense to explain that,” said Coutts. “It is what it is. We went around the wrong mark, it’s that simple.”

ORACLE TEAM USA© ACEA/Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

One who enjoyed all the commotion from the guest racer seat was swimmer Natalie Coughlin, the 12-time Olympic medalist who won a bronze medal at the London Olympics. Coughlin, who is new to sailing, rode aboard Emirates Team New Zealand in the second fleet race.

“It was an awesome experience. I learned what amazing athletes these guys are,” said Coughlin, who has won three gold medals in her career. “But even though we were going so fast, I was amazed at how peaceful it was. I was just taking a ride. It was really cool.”

The two semifinal matches are scheduled tomorrow at 4:05 and 4:22 pm PDT. Two more fleet races will follow afterwards, at 4:50 and 5:30 pm PDT. And then the match racing championship will be held at 6:10 pm PDT.

AC World Series San Francisco Fleet Racing Championship (After 4 of 7 races)
1. J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) 1-3-1-2 – 43 points
2. Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) 10-2-2-1 – 34
3. Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) 4-4-4-4 – 32
4. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) 8-1-6-5 – 29
5. Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) 2-8-5-6 – 27
6. Energy Team (Loick Peyron) 6-7-7-3 – 25
7. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts) 3-5-8-7 – 25
8. Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper) 9-6-3-10 – 20
9. Team Korea (Peter Burling) 5-9-10-8 – 16
10. China Team (Phil Robertson) 7-10-11-9 – 11
11. Luna Rossa Swordfish (Iker Martinez) 11-11-9-11 – 6
(Scoring: 1st = 12 points, 2nd = 10, 3rd = 9, 4th = 8, 5th = 7, 6th = 6, 7th = 5, 8th = 4, 9th = 3, 10th = 2, 11th = 1)

Match Racing Standings (5th – 11th)
5. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS, 6. Energy Team, 7. J.P. Morgan BAR, 8. Team Korea, 9. China Team, 10. Luna Rossa Piranha, 11. Luna Rossa Swordfish

The third day of competing in America’s Cup World Series San Francisco was marked by the completion of the quarterfinal round of the match racing championship as well as races three and four of the fleet racing championship. In the match racing, ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) defeated J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) as well as Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) win over ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts).

Ben Ainslie's J.P.Morgan team competing on Day 3© ACEA 2012/Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

Both matches featured penalties in the pre-start that favored the ORACLE TEAM USA crews. But while Spithill was able to convert the win, Coutts lost his match when he rounded the wrong mark before heading to the finish line.

In tomorrow’s semifinal round, Spithill will race Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) and Outteridge will take on Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker).

After the two match races all 11 yachts sailed the two fleet races and Ainslie put a stranglehold on that championship. The five-time Olympic medalist posted a 1-2 to his scoreline and leads with 43 points. Second is held by Hutchinson, who scored a 2-1 and has 34 points, and third by Outteridge, who scored a pair of fourths and has 32 points.

AC World Series San Francisco Fleet Racing Championship (After 4 of 7 races)
1. J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) 1-3-1-2 – 43 points
2. Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) 10-2-2-1 – 34
3. Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) 4-4-4-4 – 32
4. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) 8-1-6-5 – 29
5. Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) 2-8-5-6 – 27
6. Energy Team (Loick Peyron) 6-7-7-3 – 25
7. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts) 3-5-8-7 – 25
8. Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper) 9-6-3-10 – 20
9. Team Korea (Peter Burling) 5-9-10-8 – 16
10. China Team (Phil Robertson) 7-10-11-9 – 11
11. Luna Rossa Swordfish (Iker Martinez) 11-11-9-11 – 6

Match Racing Standings (5th – 11th)
5. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS, 6. Energy Team, 7. J.P. Morgan BAR, 8. Team Korea, 9. China Team, 10. Luna Rossa Piranha, 11. Luna Rossa Swordfish

Following his amazing fifth victory in the Olympics, England’s Ben Ainslie arrived at the first America’s Cup World Series San Francisco in August in a very good physical shape. With limited time to get ready for some of the most competitive racing in the world, he struggled to learn a new yacht as well as new fleet.

Ben Ainslie's J.P. Morgan BAR and Artemis Racing© ACEA/ Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

Now, with a month of preparation under his belt, Ainslie has streaked to the early lead in the fleet racing championship of the second AC World Series San Francisco.

Sailing in 15-knot winds late this afternoon, Ainslie’s J.P. Morgan BAR crew won the first race by 17 seconds and followed it up with a third in the second race to lead the series with the high score of 21 points.

Five points behind in a three-way tie for second is ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill), winner of the second race, Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge), which scored a pair of fourths, and ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts), which scored a 3-5.

“We had a nice start and a good first race with Nathan and Team New Zealand. We hung on and are delighted to get our first win in this series,” said Ainslie, who won his fourth Gold medal at the Olympics. “It comes down to practice and time in the boat, just like anything else. If you don’t train and put the effort in you’re not going to get the results.”

J.P. Morgan BAR and Luna Rossa Piranha© ACEA/ Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

Spithill, who won the August AC World Series San Francisco, was disappointed with the first race, an eighth place. He noted a bad start and a few mistakes around the racecourse, but rebounded in the second race to win going away by 37 seconds.

“It was good to get that one under our belt. The boys were fired up after the first race and they ground us up into a sizable lead,” said Spithill. “Any team here can win. The boats are the same and it comes down to the team that sails well. Ben did a fantastic job and deserves to be leading. He sailed very well.”

Outteridge, sailing his first fleet races with Artemis Racing, showed the steady hand he’s shown in the past by scoring a pair of fourths.

“We had two really good starts,” said Outteridge. “We focused hard on getting the good starts and it worked well for us. We need to work on the other little pieces of the race to stay ahead, but if we can sail every day like today, we’ll be alright.”

The fleet races were held later in the afternoon after the first two quarterfinal races in the match racing championship. Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) defeated young upstart Team Korea (Peter Burling) while Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) beat Energy Team (Loïck Peyron).

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL© ACEA/ Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

The two remaining quarterfinal matches are scheduled for tomorrow afternoon, with Artemis Racing – Red taking on ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS at 4:05 pm PDT and J. P. Morgan BAR meeting ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL at 4:22 pm PDT.

After that, fleet races three and four are scheduled, beginning at 4:50 pm PDT.

AC World Series San Francisco Fleet Racing Championship (After 2 of 7 races)
1. J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) 1-3 – 21 points
2. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) 8-1 – 16
2. Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) 4-4 – 16
2. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts) 3-5 – 16
5. Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) 2-8 – 14
6. Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) 10-2 – 12
7. Energy Team (Loick Peyron) 6-7 – 11
8. Team Korea (Peter Burling) 5-9 – 10
9. Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper) 9-6 – 9
10. China Team (Phil Robertson) 7-10 – 7
11. Luna Rossa Swordfish (Iker Martinez) 11-11 – 2

The quarterfinal round of the match racing championship at the America’s Cup World Series San Francisco saw Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) as well as Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) score convincing victories.

Energy Team and Emirates Team New Zealand© ACEA/ Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

Racing on a relatively calm San Francisco Bay – with the wind blowing 9 to 13 knots and a flat sea – Artemis Racing – White defeated young upstart Team Korea (Peter Burling) while Emirates Team New Zealand beat Energy Team (Loïck Peyron).

The day’s racing program was interrupted after the two matches to allow the Blue Angles an opportunity to practice over the Bay for Fleet Week this weekend.

Racing is scheduled to resume later today with the first two of seven scheduled races in the fleet racing championship. The first race is scheduled to begin at 5:10 pm PDT.

The Blue Angles practicing over the San Francisco Bay for Fleet Week© ACEA/ Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

Both matches were won by the more experienced crews, who opened big leads on the upwind legs after holding slim advantages through the leeward gate. In the case of the New Zealanders, they regained the lead after losing it on the downwind leg.

“We had a nice start and were going well, but we jibed in a light spot and they had a good jibe and came out quick,” said Barker. “We had a piece of them at the first cross upwind and got back in front, and from there sailed a solid leg to the windward mark. It’s never a straightforward racecourse; there are always opportunities out there.”

Hutchinson and the Artemis Racing – White crew welcomed back tactician Iain Percy in a wire-to-wire win.

Artemis Racing© ACEA/ Photo Gilles Martin-Raget

“Iain brings a sound platform to throw ideas off of, particularly in pre-start. He’s one of the best sailors in the world,” said Hutchinson. “These races are good opportunities for us to develop our relationship for future.”

The two remaining quarterfinal matches are scheduled for tomorrow afternoon, with Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) racing ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts) at 4:05 pm PDT and J. P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) meeting ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) at 4:22 pm PDT.