«The America’s Cup? Another and then that’s it. Here’s where we can improve »- time.news

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Is the America’s Cup for Max Sirena an obsession like Moby Dick for captain Ahab?
«No and it must not become: if I don’t win the next one either, it will be the last. This too would have been, if we had managed to bring it to Italy for the first time in 170 years of sailing history ».

So he remains skipper of Luna Rossa, defeated 7-3 by Team New Zealand: he will also lead the boarding at 37a America’s Cup.
“I am neither Francesco De Angelis nor Paul Cayard. I am not a sailor with the pedigree. It was not taken for granted that Patrizio Bertelli would put this wonderful adventure in my hand: he bet on me, I owe him a lot. We have reached a very high level, now we have to build an even stronger team. I can’t and I don’t want to give up right now. “


Did you sleep the night of 7-3 for the kiwis?
“No, but I had been awake for a few nights already. Tension, pressure, desire to get back into the water: we all wanted the night to pass in a flash to start racing again ».

In the end, she was honest: I don’t believe in bad luck, she said, the New Zealanders were simply better than us.
«If we could have done 13 races on the first day, the America’s Cup would have ended differently. Team New Zealand hadn’t raced since December, they arrived a bit rusty. But we knew they would grow up. In fact, the ancient rule has been confirmed: the fastest boat wins the America’s Cup. It has been like this since 1851 ».

Yet until 3-3 the boats looked similar.
«In a brand new class, with so few races behind us, the wait was great: we could have been slower than 5 knots … But we had worked hard to go fast in strong winds and instead we caught the only week of calm. of the whole summer! ».

The speed gap was there.
«Not huge, though: that’s why we win. We know where we can improve: let’s start over from there ».

Where from, that is?
“There was a big difference between our drifts and those of the kiwis. The initial conditions of strong wind screwed us. For the rest, men and boat, we had a truly complete package ».

The wind shifts proved decisive: do you regret not having had a pure tactician in the cockpit of the Moon?
“No. The kiwis made more mistakes on board, but they had a boat that forgave them everything. We got on the wrong side only once: with the tactic nothing would have changed. We bounced them at the start, we gained ground then, in such short races, you lost 100-200 meters in an instant. At 40 knots it is not easy to make decisions in a second: I don’t feel like criticizing my sailors ».

Haven’t you come out of the Prada Cup, the trophy you couldn’t help but win, too convinced you could win?
“No, zero, I swear by my children. The next day we were back to work, as if nothing had happened. To remove that euphoria of contentment from Luna Rossa’s mentality, I was a shark: Christmas, New Year, Sundays … I slaughtered them ».

Make a self-criticism.
“When you lose it is obvious that you are wrong. A year ago we could have made different choices on the dinghies but we also had to think about the Prada Cup, to beat the challengers. I make mistakes every day, but at the same time I’m sure we did a crazy job. The team was recreated from scratch, we went looking for young people: there are 21 year olds in all departments. Beyond the sailors, the great merit of the kiwis is the inspiration of their design team: there are people who have been there since ’92, they have created a winning mentality ».

Spithill remains?
«My goal is to confirm Jimmy and Checco Bruni, who did very well. 90% of the design team has already signed. The aim is to improve ».

America’s Cup, Luna Rossa-New Zealand. The Olympian, the economist, the mountaineer: who are the men who attempt the enterprise
We, those of Luna Rossa

Do you believe in the scenario of a kiwi-Ineos challenge in 2022?
“A duo event would be a disaster for the whole America’s Cup world, as well as a farce.”

The greatest sorrow?
«Failing to deliver the cup in the hands of Bertelli, who remained in Italy. For me, it’s a pain. “

March 18, 2021 (change March 18, 2021 | 23:36)

© Time.News

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