NYYC American Magic take the win in the first race of the Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta

NYYC American Magic’s first race of the Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta today saw the American team face off against the British 37th America’s Cup Challenger of Record INEOS Britannia in the third heat of the opening day of the four-day event. The race got underway on time at 1523 in a 12-knot south-westerly breeze, which had kicked up a steep chop of around half a meter. 

Paul Goodison in the port helming pod of the American AC75 ‘Patriot’ guided the boat into the start box at speed and was able to comfortably cross Ben Ainslie on the helm of the British boat ‘Britannia’. After some cautious circling in the start box as the two teams eyed each other up and tried to maneuver for control of the start, it was Tom Slingsby on the starboard helm of Patriot that led the British back to the start line as the clock counted down.

There was little to choose between the two boats at the gun as they powered off the line at speed, heading for the port boundary. The American Magic crew were able to put Patriot in ‘high mode’ – sailing closer to the wind than the British who soon felt the effect of the turbulent air from Patriots sails and were forced to concede control and tack away first.

Although the boats looked evenly matched on port tack as they sprinted towards the starboard boundary, it was the British who got there first and were able to tack and cross. But when the boats converged at the windward gate, American Magic on starboard could cross ahead cleanly to round the port marker in the lead—albeit by six seconds. 

The British made a fast rounding at the starboard marker and looked to make a slight gain, which saw an excitingly close cross by the Americans on port a few minutes later. After another successful close cross further down the downwind leg, Patriot led the British boat around the leeward gate with a roughly 150-metre advantage. 

From that point on, the US crew looked to be in full control of the race. They were able to use a combination of loose and heavy cover tacks to protect the favored right-hand side upwind and position themselves between the British and the leeward gate downwind. 

After rounding the final windward gate with a 500-meter lead, the American Magic crew – helms, Slingsby and Goodison with trimmers Michael Menninger and Andrew Campbell – were fully ‘in the zone’ on the final downwind leg, evidenced by the almost complete silence on the onboard comms channel. 

In the end, American Magic’s winning delta was 29 seconds, and the US team secured a point in the team’s first race of the regatta. 

Tom Slingsby, helmsman on NYYC American Magic, was happy with how the opening race against INEOS Britannia unfolded, saying:

“It was a tight race all the way. There didn’t seem to be much in it in terms of boat speed. Once we were ahead, we were able to protect the right and it felt like we were making little gains all the time." 

“We have won our first race, and although there is a long way to go, it's good to get off the mark as you don't want to wait a couple of days to get your first win. So, we're off and running and have some big matches coming in the next few days.”

The Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta picks back up tomorrow, featuring a double race day for American Magic. They will compete against Alinghi Red Bull Racing and then face Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli. The races begin at 08:00 Eastern (14:00 CET), and US audiences can watch live on ESPN+.