PRADA CUP RR2 LUNA ROSSA PRADA PIRELLI VS INEOS TEAM UK
INEOS TEAM UK win race 2 of Round Robin 2
RR2 – Race 2 – RE-START – INEOS TEAM UK beat Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli
Start: 1635
Port: ITA
Stbd: GBR
Course: A
Axis: 318
Length: 1.96nm
Current: 0.6 knots @ 020
Wind: 14-16 knots / 320 degrees
Winner: INEOS TEAM UK 0:18
The first race of the day was abandoned following a big wind shift, the result of a large rain squall sweeping across the course just as the two boats were completing the second lap.
The re-set course was orientated more towards the west. The shift in the breeze was as just as the forecast had suggested but it meant that the course would be more affected by the land with more potential for shifty conditions.
In the match pre-start, with around a minute to go, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli took an opportunity to force INEOS TEAM UK to avoid them in the hope that they could make the British team late for the start. And while the manoeuvre might not have delivered exactly that, it did allow them to take the upper hand at the start and squeeze INEOS TEAM UK to the point that they were forced to tack off onto port.
From that point both boats headed for opposite extremes of the race course, tacking at the boundaries. When they came back together the Italians were clearly ahead having benefitted from a good shift on the right hand side of the course.
At gate 1 Sir Ben Ainslie approached on starboard, but Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli were ahead by 10 seconds. The downwind leg played out much the first leg with each team taking the game out to opposite boundaries. By gate 2 the margin had closed to just 7secs.
Another closely fought windward leg followed. This time at the top of the course both boats went through gate 3 at exactly the same time.
Then came the lead change on leg 4. On the downwind leg INEOS TEAM UK had taken the right hand side of the course, the Italians the left. The right hand side had paid and the British were now in the lead.
By the bottom, gate 4, INEOS TEAM UK’ lead was 26sec.
But Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli were not giving up. At the top they had closed the gap down to just 12sec, but despite working every shift hard they could not find the shift or the extra pace required to take their lead back.
INEOS TEAM UK crossed the finish 18 sec ahead to take their fourth win from four starts.
