Race win for Alinghi Red Bull Racing
by Alinghi Red Bull Racing 17 Sep 02:05 HKT
16 September 2024
Nico Stahlberg and Nicolas Rolaz celebrate beating INEOS Britannia in a super light wind race. Louis Vuitton Cup Semi Finals day 3 in Barcelona, Spain © Alinghi Red Bull Racing / Samo Vidic
Alinghi Red Bull Racing were under pressure to deliver, and in tricky light winds, read the course well and stayed on their foils to beat Ineos Britannia. Now with a point on the board, the Swiss team has the needed boost to keep fighting in the Semi-Finals.
Much was at stake for Alinghi Red Bull Racing on Day 3 of the Semi-Finals, and they dug deep to take a clear win over Ineos Britannia. In light conditions that left the British struggling to foil, the Swiss team made their move, sailing on a knife edge to gain a significant lead. For the final stretch of the race, the Swiss boat also went into displacement mode, no longer racing against the British but against the clock as the 45-minute race limit counted down. In a tense crawl to the finish line, the Swiss boat crossed to take their first point of the Semi-Finals. For the next match, the wind limit wasn't reached and was called off. The next races are scheduled for Wednesday 18th September.
Arnaud Psarofaghis, Skipper: "Of course, we want to cross the finish line at 45 knots. But 8 knots is fine as well if it's a win, so we'll take this one."
Nico Stahlberg, Cyclor: "In that race, we were sailing against the clock. We knew there was a time limit. By the end, we weren't trying to get on the foils anymore. The only focus was getting to the finish line as fast as possible, and there was somehow this feeling of pushing but also waiting because there was not much we could do. It was so hot in the cockpit, like a sauna. I was sweating a lot, but in the end, it paid off, and we were so happy. Crossing the finish line, whether flying or not, a point is a point, and it was really important for us."
Pietro Sibello, Head Coach: "When preparing the guys, we said to just keep it simple and do what you know. It's important to keep pushing to the end, because if you put too much pressure on yourself, then you'll make mistakes. We saw the British had some weak points around the course in this light air today. We knew it was an opportunity for us, and it worked."