Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series Fukuoka - Day 1
by 35th America's Cup 19 Nov 2016 09:03 GMT
18-20 November 2016
All on the line for final Super Sunday in Japan
Hakata Bay in Fukuoka was the scene for the historic first ever day of America's Cup racing in Japan and it was Land Rover BAR who finished day one of the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series Fukuoka racing on top, adding one more point to their overall Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series lead.
The Event Village was full of thousands of Japanese fans and the wind helped the six America's Cup teams put on a spectacular show of America's Cup racing for the first time ever in Japan, and with a win for SoftBank Team Japan among the day's highlights, it could not have been a better start to America's Cup action in Japan.
In race one the start was tightly contested but it was series leaders Land Rover BAR who were quickly into the lead. Groupama Team France crossed the line early, leaving them with a startline penalty and putting them back into sixth, but as the boats headed to gate two it was the British team who were stamping their authority on the pack with only Emirates Team New Zealand giving close chase.
The fight at the front grew closer as the boats headed to mark three, Emirates Team New Zealand closed the gap to Land Rover BAR and then edged ahead as they set off on leg four. That lead was short lived, however, as an unexplained and somewhat dramatic move by the Kiwis halfway down leg four gave the advantage to Land Rover BAR, leaving the New Zealanders in second, Artemis Racing in third, Groupama Team France fourth, having clawed their way back after their startline penalty, and ORACLE TEAM USA and home favourites SoftBank Team Japan in fifth and sixth respectively.
In the end, even a late penalty on leg six could not slow up the British team too much, and they duly won the first race of the day ahead of Emirates Team New Zealand, Artemis Racing, ORACLE TEAM USA, SoftBank Team Japan and Groupama Team France in that order.
Saturday's second race saw SoftBank Team Japan take the early advantage, streaking into a lead with the boat up on its foils as they headed ORACLE TEAM USA and the rest of the pack to gate two. This time, Land Rover BAR were at the back of the pack, perfectly demonstrating the sheer unpredictability of America's Cup racing in its modern guise.
Another penalty for Groupama Team France pushed them back behind the British team, but at the front of the pack ORACLE TEAM USA had a brief glimpse of the lead at gate 3 before SoftBank Team Japan regained their advantage as they foiled down leg four. From that point they never looked like losing and as the hometown favourites crossed the line in first place the cheers from the crowd could be heard in Tokyo!
ORACLE TEAM USA finished race two in second, Land Rover BAR, having staged a mighty comeback, were third, Artemis Racing were third and Emirates Team New Zealand and Groupama Team France again brought up the rear.
The final race of the day was race three and even though SoftBank Team Japan had a good start it was ORACLE TEAM USA who rounded the first mark in the lead. Behind them the Japanese and British teams were fighting for second and third and it was Ben Ainslie's team who took the advantage, moving ahead of Dean Barker's SoftBank Team Japan crew in third, but only for a short time as the Japanese team pushed themselves back into second on the fourth leg. Halfway towards mark four Land Rover BAR moved back ahead of SoftBank Team Japan who had a halyard failure slow them down and from that point the battle for second place was where the real action took place.
Emirates Team New Zealand had moved up and suddenly Groupama Team France were also in the mix with the Kiwis and the Brits, the race towards second place at the line seeing the advantage change constantly, but in the last race of Saturday it was ORACLE TEAM USA who were celebrating, Land Rover BAR in second, Emirates Team New Zealand in third, Groupama Team France in fourth and Artemis Racing just nudging ahead of SoftBank Team Japan in a photo finish at the finish line in a drag race on the foils for fifth.
The results mean Land Rover BAR heads ORACLE TEAM USA on both the Fukuoka and overall Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series leaderboards.
With bonus points for next year's Louis Vuitton America's Cup Qualifiers in play for the top two finishers in the overall series, it's still all to play for with four teams in with a shot at earning a head start in Bermuda.
Results after Day 1:
Land Rover BAR -- 1, 3, 2 -- 27pts
ORACLE TEAM USA -- 4, 2, 1 -- 26pts
Emirates Team New Zealand -- 2, 5, 3 -- 23pts
Artemis Racing -- 3, 4, 5 -- 21pts
SoftBank Team Japan -- 5, 2, 6 -- 21pts
Groupama Team France -- 6, 6, 4 -- 17pts
Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series Leaderboard:
Land Rover BAR, 464 points
ORACLE TEAM USA, 449 points
Emirates Team New Zealand, 443 points
SoftBank Team Japan, 420 points
Artemis Racing, 412 points
Groupama Team France, 377 points
Selected team quotes:
Kazuhiro "Fuku" Sofuku, Bowman and General Manager, SoftBank Team Japan: ""It was amazing this morning to walk through the streets and see so many people coming down to watch the event. It was great! It's such a good opportunity for us to introduce the Japanese people to great sport and also to show people all around the world how beautiful our country is. We had mixed results today but we will work harder tomorrow and with the great support we have here I'm sure it will be a great day."
Giles Scott, Tactician, Land Rover BAR: "We're in a really great place. I think we've put one point on ORACLE TEAM USA today, we've held the lead we came into this regatta with, but it's double points tomorrow so I don't think we can rest on our laurels. The way I look at it, you ask any of these guys where they want to be coming into the final regatta, they'd be lying if they said they didn't want to be in the lead. We're certainly no different, we're happy with our lead and I think we'd take that pressure any day.
Jimmy Spithill, Skipper, ORACLE TEAM USA: "I thought we sailed pretty well today. We were on the back foot in the first race, but the boys rallied and you have to be able to come back from those tough situations and we did a good job of that today. I think we have to come out tomorrow and go as hard as we can. It's so difficult to push one boat back but if there are any opportunities we'll take them. We're fighting for the win. We're not shooting for second place. At the end of the day all we have to focus on tomorrow is winning races."
Franck Cammas, Skipper, Groupama Team France: "Throughout the day the wind was increasing and in the last race that meant we were able to foil and that was good for the show and for our team as the rest of the day was not really like that. In race three we had improved but we lost places at the last mark. We know the mistake we made but otherwise we were in the game in the middle of the fleet in the final race, the boat speed was good down wind, but there were too many mistakes and we have to avoid that tomorrow."
Peter Burling, Helmsman, Emirates Team New Zealand: "It was a really tough day. It's been a while since we sailed in those kind of conditions, I think the last time was Chicago, and to finally get the boats foiling, that's what they're designed for and it's good that the crowd got to see that sort of spectacle. For us, we had a fair bit of rust on, as I say, we hadn't sailed the boats in those sorts of conditions since Chicago, so there was a fair bit to chip away on and I think that's why we were sailing better in the last race."
Nathan Outteridge, Skipper, Artemis Racing: "It wasn't the greatest of days for us and it progressively got worse I guess, looking at the points, but today was probably about as hard as these boats are to sail. We were pretty happy with our first two races, it was a bit disappointing to lose Ben right at the final mark, and in that last one we probably just pushed a bit too hard at the start, a bit too aggressive trying to get round that first mark in the first two, and got a bunch of penalties because of that. However, we fought hard to get back into it and beat SoftBank Team Japan right there at the end, and got that final point and that point will probably mean a lot tomorrow.
Land Rover BAR take the day and increase overall lead (from Land Rover BAR)
Land Rover BAR sailed a brilliant opening day at the final round of the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series (ACWS) in Fukuoka, Japan. Ben Ainslie and his team opened with a wire-to-wire win to put down a marker for the rest of the fleet. A second row start in race two saw them dig deep to recover to a third place, repeating the move with a fine third race fight back to second place. The three podium places made them top scorer for the day.
The results mean that Land Rover BAR go into tomorrow – the final day of racing for the 2015-16 ACWS –with a fifteen point overall lead from the current holder of the America's Cup, Oracle Team USA. Super Sunday races count double though, so they will still need a solid final day to take the series win, and the two bonus points that carry forward into the America's Cup Qualifiers in Bermuda next May.
The conditions were demanding with some big gusts and shifts, but conditions saw the boats up on their foils downwind. It was great action for the big crowds gathered on the city waterfront and beaches – the first time America's Cup racing has been seen in Japan.
Thoughts on the day
Ben Ainslie, Skipper and Team Principal: "It's been an amazing day, we had a great first race, from the start we were in the lead and the guys did a fantastic job sailing the boat around a very tight course.
"After that, things got a little more tricky. We didn't have a very good start in race two, we were at the back of the fleet but we really fought hard and dug ourselves out at the last minute towards the finish line. In the final race of the day we had a better start but it was a close race. Again, we had to fight really hard, but we came through and got a second place which puts us in the lead for this event and extends our lead in the overall America's Cup World Series – that's ultimately our goal for the weekend.
"I think it is inevitable that Oracle Team USA and Emirates Team New Zealand will take any chances to herd us and slow us down. We left the door open for them to do that in race two. I guess we did the same thing to them in Portsmouth, so it was a bit of a pay back. It's tough racing, everyone is fighting – you've got to expect those manoeuvres.
"Tomorrow the forecast is potentially for slightly less wind, but if it is anything like today, we had good racing and a good course and I think that our team are able to deal with any conditions. We have just got to keep focused, keep being consistent which I think we are good at. The objective is to win the World Series. We'd love to win this Fukuoka event but for us it is really about the final overall result for the series."
Giles Scott, tactician: "It was good to get three podium finishes today. We had a really good start in the first one, managed to get into the lead and hold onto it. For the last two races, it felt like a real dog fight. Lots of sails up and down, a really, really hard day on all of the crew. I think we managed to pull through the fleet really well, and I think a lot of that is just being able to execute the tough manoeuvres pretty consistently. I think the boys sailed really well today.
"We are in a great place, we put one point on Oracle Team USA today so we've held the lead that we came into this regatta with – but it's double points tomorrow and I don't think we can rest on our laurels.
"If you ask all the other guys where they want to be going into the final regatta, they'd be lying if they said they didn't want to be in the lead. We are certainly no different and happy to be in the place that we are in, and I think you take that pressure."
All on the line for final Super Sunday in Japan (from ORACLE TEAM USA)
With just one more day of racing left in the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series, the overall series lead remains up for grabs.
On Saturday, ORACLE TEAM USA posted improving results over the course of the afternoon, with a 4, 2, 1 scoreline, leaving the defending America's Cup champion just one point off the lead.
"We sailed pretty well today," said skipper Jimmy Spithill. "We were on the back foot in the first race, but the boys rallied and you have to be able to come back from those tough situations and we did a good job of that today."
Conditions were challenging, on the verge of foiling at the top end of about 12 knots of wind, but sailing with the big Code 0 headsails when the wind dropped to the lighter 6-8 knot range.
"These boats are pretty physical in these conditions, so it wasn't easy out there," Spithill said.
Sunday racing is scored with double points, meaning sixty points are available to the winner of the three scheduled races. Currently, ORACLE TEAM USA is in second place on the series leaderboard, 15 points behind former teammate Ben Ainslie's British challenge.
Spithill says the goal remains the same - a win in Fukuoka as well as the overall series title. But he admits it won't be easy.
"I think we have to come out tomorrow and go as hard as we can. It's so difficult to push one boat back but if there are any opportunites we'll take them.
"We're not shooting for second place. At the end of the day all we have to focus on tomorrow is winning races."
(An overall series win would be rewarded with two bonus points for next year's Louis Vuitton America's Cup Qualfiers. Second place in the series means a one point bonus.)
ORACLE TEAM USA was joined during race one by Hidetoshi Nakata, the famous Japanese footballer.
"Every time I had a look at him he was smiling and seemed a little blown away at how fast the boats go on the foils," Spithill said. "He also looked very natural and well balanced. A lot of guests can have a hard time with that, but he looked very comfortable. I think he enjoyed himself."
The forecast is for slightly lighter winds on Sunday.
All to play for in thrilling finale as overall leaderboard remains almost unchanged (from Emirates Team New Zealand)
The battle to take two points forward to the America's Cup Qualifiers in May began today in Fukuoka (Japan) with the first official racing day of the ultimate event of the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series.
Despite the winds barely getting over 10 knots, the AC45s were at times flying up on their foils, conditions which the fleet have not raced in since Chicago in June. The action came in thick and fast, with wind very shifty across the course and on-water umpires dishing out multiple penalties across the fleet, with Emirates Team New Zealand not escaping a few calls.
After a very tricky and close day racing three races Emirates Team New Zealand is in third position, behind Land Rover BAR and Oracle Team USA, in first and second place respectively.
After a first race neck to neck with BAR in which the Kiwis finished second place, Emirates Team New Zealand had a bad start and penalty in the second race which affected the result but managed to fight back hard in the last race recovering to cross the finish line in third place.
The Kiwis fought hard all day on the water, despite some ups and downs and demonstrated they are still in the game with today's results (2nd, 5th, 3rd) enough to secure the third place on the provisional overall rankings where Land Rover BAR retains the lead.
Pete Burling said: "It's all to play for tomorrow Super Sunday. We feel like we sailed alright, but we know we can sail better and being in 3rd place ahead of the double points racing we've given ourselves a shot. It's a close leader board, the big things are to keep it relatively simple and try to do everything right."
"We have very good team spirit and this is going to be important in the coming races." Said Emirates team new Zealand skipper Glenn Ashby "We have made a few mistakes today, but what we do is learn from our mistakes and we come back stronger. We are focusing on that now and we have three more races tomorrow to give ourselves the best shot of winning the overall Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series."
90 points were on offer over the six races of the weekend, 30 were assigned today, 60 are still up for the grabs going into tomorrow's Super Sunday, were each race counts double.
Glimmers of glory in Fukuoka (from SoftBank Team Japan)
SoftBank Team Japan had a taste of victory in front of their hometown crowd today during the first day of racing at Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series Fukuoka.
Despite disappointing results in races one and three that have the team seated low in the current event standings, a commanding win during race one delivered to the expectations of thousands of fans lining the beach.
Bowman Kazuhiko Sofuku, an America's Cup hero in Japan, said he smiled as he heard the roar of the crowds from onboard the boat.
"It's a really great feeling racing in front of all the people here", said Sofuku. "After our win in race two I could hear all the Japanese fans cheering for us on the beach and it was really special for me. I was a bit emotional."
Along with fans ashore, there was a very special celebrity in attendance cheering on SoftBank Team Japan.
Masayoshi Son, CEO and founder of SoftBank, appeared on stage with the team prior to racing to lend his support to the first Japanese America's Cup team in 15 years.
"Mr. Son was on the water and very happy", said Sofuku. "It was fantastic having him here."
"We've been asking him every World Series to come watch the race so we're so happy he's here. It was a great opportunity to show him what the team is about."
The racing on Hakata Bay was close-fought and intense all day as wind speeds between 6 to 12 knots filled in on the course.
Starting the day, race one saw the team in third place at the first mark in a strong position for the downwind run.
However, light conditions on the left side of the course saw the team slip to 5th on the first run and despite a nail biting final mark rounding with Oracle Team USA, the team was not able to climb any higher.
However, race two saw the Japanese team shine.
A beautifully timed start after dipping behind a battle between Oracle Team USA and Land Rover BAR saw the team in first place at mark one. From there they never looked back.
Leading the fleet as it collapsed together at the bottom mark – only separated by 23 seconds from first to last – SoftBank Team Japan climbed out and extended their lead leg by leg. At the final mark rounding they were 23 seconds ahead second place Oracle Team USA going on to cross the finish line and claim the win.
The crowd roared to life seeing the hometown favourites notch their first victory.
All was going well then in the final race of the day as the team was in a strong position in second place through the first three legs. However, a jammer failure in the code zero halyard slowed their speed dramatically as they limped to a 6th place finish.
"We'll focus on our performance one race at a time", said Sofuku. "Today was really positive even though the results didn't show it. We felt like we sailed well and are looking forward to tomorrow."
It's still all to play for in Fukuoka. With "Super Sunday" looming less than 24 hours away, the team has every chance to climb the standings tomorrow capitalizing on the support of the crowd and their upward momentum in the past three event standings.
Racing begins at 1300 hrs JST on Hakata Bay in Fukuoka tomorrow with the live stream broadcast on SportsNavi Live followed by a delayed broadcast at 1715 hrs on TV Tokyo.