GB’s America’s Cup rivals damage boat in dramatic nosedive but fight back to level challenger

Ben Ainslie ‘ready for a fight’ after Luna Rossa fix vessel with gaffer tape then capitalise on Ineos Britannia error to win second race

It was not quite “they’ve made me angry”, the famous words he uttered in 2012 before surging to a fourth-successive Olympic gold, but a grim-faced Ben Ainslie snarled that he “loved a good fight” after the most dramatic day yet of this America’s Cup challenger final ended with Ineos Britannia and Luna Rossa once again locked on points, this time at 4-4 in their first-to-seven series.
An extraordinary day, in which momentum see-sawed this way and that, looked initially to be going the way of the British challenger when their Italian rivals nosedived spectacularly in Race 7, suffering “significant” damage to their boat as they ploughed into the water at close to 50 knots. 
Jib fairings were ripped out, bits of which even washed out the sea. Italy’s subsequent retirement from that race handed Ineos a precious 4-3 lead and at that point it seemed Luna Rossa’s entire challenge, let alone their day, was in grave peril.
Heartbreak for @LunaRossa. 💔”We’ve broken everything!”#LVCFinal #Day5 pic.twitter.com/emcev1ZVcJ
However, after a frantic hour or so spent carrying out repairs, with gaffer tape of all things used to stick down the fairings – so much for the America’s Cup being ‘F1 on water’ – the Italian challenger not only made it back in time for Race 8, they won it convincingly, profiting from a glaring error by Ineos in the pre-start.
It left Luna Rossa skipper and co-helm Jimmy Spithill crowing that his team now definitely had the momentum. “I honestly believe today after that second race, the momentum is coming our way, I really do,” the Australian said. “I mean, the response after what happened [with the nosedive]… that was our best response yet. That was a real statement on the water.
“We’re going to carry that momentum into tomorrow and we’ll be ready for the fight.”
Ainslie will be waiting. The 47-year-old earned a reputation in his dinghy career for his temper and ferocious will to win. And there were signs on Tuesday night that Spithill was just beginning to wind him up sufficiently to get under his skin. “Of course he is going to say that,” Ainslie responded dismissively when told Spithill would claim momentum was on the Italians’ side. 
“He’s a pro. But I think the balance [of momentum] is right on a knife-edge. Of course, the more races we go through, the more critical it is to win. Tomorrow is a big day.”
Ainslie added: “I love a good fight. If you’re into sport, and you want to compete at the highest level, you have to be ready for a fight. And this is it. I can’t remember a Louis Vuitton final as close as this.”
It is all set up brilliantly. Four wins apiece, two evenly matched teams, increasing needle in the air, and a whole lot of history at stake. Neither Italy nor Britain has ever won the America’s Cup. Britain’s attempts to do so go back 173 years. Never has there been a better opportunity. The winner of this series will face New Zealand in the 37th Cup match feeling as if they have already got through the toughest test they could have.
The enormity of the stakes made what happened in Race 8 all the more frustrating, as Britain handed the initiative right back to Italy after their incident in Race 7.
Luna Rossa were on the ropes. For a third time in this challenger series, their boat had developed a technical issue, after their broken traveller in their semi-final against American Magic, and then the broken battens on their jib earlier in this Louis Vuitton Cup final against Ineos.
It was unclear what exactly caused the nosedive but the team appeared to be having problems lowering their port foil arm towards the top of the first leg, with Italian co-helm Francesco Bruni suggesting the splashdown was perhaps caused by a “lack of balance between sails and foils”.
Whatever it was, it felt serious, with co-helm Francesco Bruni shouting: “We’ve broken everything” as they smashed into the sea.
But after a slightly delayed start due to the 21-plus knot breezes, which bought them an extra 10-15 minutes to test their boat, they displayed no ill-effects from their crash.
Indeed it was Ineos who made a crucial error, straying outside the boundary after Luna Rossa appeared to slow in front of them near the edge of the box, prompting them to tack away when they might have gybed. 
“We got massively out of position,” Ainslie admitted. “From thereon in, there was really no good outcome for us.” 
Ineos tried their best to catch back up, closing to within a few seconds at one point and even setting a new America’s Cup speed record of 55.6 knots with their last bearaway. 
But they were having to split the course, sailing extra distance to try to find a passing lane. Ineos sailed a whole kilometre more in the final reckoning.
Spithill could not resist lobbing a few hand grenades. He claimed Luna Rossa had all the momentum and that they would take confidence from the fact that they had won four of the six races they had finished. He even claimed they had the better fans. 
“I mean, it’s not even close,” he said, smiling. “I don’t think I’ve even seen a British flag since I’ve been here.” 
Time will tell whether he comes to regret poking the bear.