Emirates Team New Zealand update - fifth win at Nice

Emirates Team New Zealand led from start to finish of its match with Swedish team Artemis to win its fifth race in succession in the Louis Vuitton Trophy regatta at Nice, France. The winning The margin was 23 seconds.

ETNZ controlled the pre-start, starting to leeward and forcing Artemis to tack away. With an advantage of between 25 to 40 metres, Dean Barker was able to control the beat., tacking on Artemis’ bow, forcing the Swedish team to the right-hand lay line.

ETNZ led round the first mark with a margin of 15sec, and extended on the first down-wind leg, rounding 27 sec ahead. ETNZ extended further on the second beat with Artemis rounding 43 sec adrift.

The race finished in a softening breeze and following matches were delayed until the sea breeze filled in. However the last two races of the day (ETNZ v BMWOracle and Team Origin v Artemis) were abandoned for the day when the race committee ran out of time.

Emirates Team New Zealand and Team Origin remain unbeaten.

Tactician Ray Davies: “A win over Artemis was a good way to start the day – they’re one of the tough teams at Nice.

“Dean did a good job in the pre-start and we got a small lead and we covered really hard on both beats and the runs.

“We gained 12 sec on the first run; the wind shifted for the second beat and the upwind mark was moved 10deg. We covered hard and towards the top we could see better pressure on the left and extended some more.

“It was close all the way. We expect to work hard for a win against an after guard as experienced as Artemis.
“If the breeze holds up, we’re up against BMWOracle Racing later today. That’s another potential tough one.”