Form guide

Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team's Adrian Stead gives his personal views on the form of the challengers

Following our look at the different teams this morning, we thought it would be a good idea to get the views of someone else - so here former GBR Challenge afterguard, Farr 40 World Champion, Adrian Stead, now at the blunt end of Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team gives his thoughts about the opposition, working from team base to team base right to left around Port America's Cup:

But first here's a look at the change in form since the end of Act 12.

	After Act 12		Act 13 points		After Act 13
Emirates TNZ	125	Emirates TNZ	64	Emirates TNZ	158
BMW Oracle	123	Mascalzone Latino	63	BMW Oracle	147
Luna Rossa	118	Luna Rossa	60	Luna Rossa	145
Desafio Espagnol	85	BMW Oracle	57	Desafio Espagnol	106
Mascalzone Latino	73	Desafio Espagnol	55	Mascalzone Latino	103
Victory Challenge	68	Team Shosholoza	43	Victory Challenge	83
Areva Challenge	55	Victory Challenge	35	Areva Challenge	73
+39	60	Areva	31	+39	72
Shosholoza	60	United Internet TG	29	Shosholoza	66
United Internet TG	33	+39	17	United Internet TG	42
China Team	15	China Team	15	China Team	18

The points tally at the end of Act 12 was in fact pretty representative we felt of the form at this stage (ie middle of last year), showing the big three close together at the top of the leaderboard with Luna Rossa third and Desafio Espanol some way below in fourth. In the Act 13 fleet racing, where all of the teams were using their new Version 5 hardware, there was a big change around with Mascalzone posting a phenomenal second overall and BMW dropping down after she suffered gear failure in one race. In fact the points spread between the top five teams is close. In the third column at the tallies post Act 13 - if you're wondering about the points difference between the first and third column not corresponding with the middle column, the points carried through between the Louis Vuitton Acts are based on the position ie Emirates Team NZ top challenger in Act 13, first place equals 11 points with a 3x multiplier (last year it was 2x).

So after Act 13 the overall scorings we feel shows BMW Oracle too low, Luna Rossa too high and rightly shows Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team nipping at Desafio Espagnol's heels for the last semi-final spot with Victory Challenge falling away. It also shows rightly Team Shosholoza having risen by one place.

Anyway on to Ado...


+39

"Obviously +39 they have quite a lot on. Their performance with their mast before it broke was very encouraging and there were a lot of teams that looked at them and thought they looked very very good sailed by some pretty talented people. As we have seen they are very much the underdogs and until they repair their V5 mast they are really going to struggle."

What about their highly rakeable rig? "I think there is a lot of very ingenious things on their boat. It looks a bit different, it is one of the narrowest, it has a lot of rocker. Marstrom obviously made a good mast for them and that is encouraging being a new mast supplier coming into the game, but they have a lot to do and ultimately the lack of funds they have had over the last couple of years is showing. They are taking the game on knowing they only have 25 million Euros of funds, which is why they’re here without a back up mast and sails.

Shosholoza

"Still quite a dangerous boat. In some conditions they do seem pretty good, certainly with Paolo Cian there as a match racer. The boat does seem to have a sweet spot around 8-12 knots, as we saw in the Act where it made a good come back in the race where they were OCS. But then when the breeze got up they seemed to not do so well.

It's a light wind machine? "It seems like it might be. It seems they are a team that could get a lot more out of their boat yet and I think the fact for that a one boat team which hasn’t had two boats to race in house properly and control their own sailing, they have done pretty well.

They've come on as a sailing team? "I think they have made great strides and the changes they made to the boat over Christmas certainly seemed to have made a good improvement. They were pretty marked changes - the boat was in the shed for six or seven weeks. But good on them, they are doing a good job considering where they have come from."

They've been out sailing almost as much as you? "Yes. About half the teams chose to sail here over the winter. We had four weeks off over Xmas and early new year. There are a lot of people putting the hours in here. And we had better sailing then than we’ve had over the last week!"



BMW Oracle Racing

"Quite obviously one of the class acts here, primarily because of money - they are one of the biggest teams here in terms of finances. They have been able to put the resources into getting a very strong team of designers, sailors, sailmakers, etc. I think they would be very disappointed if they weren’t one of the top two teams at the end of the round robins. But we’ve seen them make mistakes. We have seen in the Act that they are human, they do have breakdowns, they do make mistakes. I think when we’ve sailed them we have been happy to be close to them and we are encouraged by that. For me they are definitely one of the top two semi-finallists. Whether they do it in straight races or not – I don’t know."

And their weakness? Dickson as skipper and CEO? "You could say that Chris Dickson running the show and skippering - maybe that is too much, but last time he did a pretty good job and they are where they’ve got to because of how that syndicate has been run. I don’t think you can criticise them for that. In the semi-finals and finals we’ll see whether the pressure starts to tell within the team. We haven’t seen them under pressure for a while, but otherwise I think they are a very very strong team.

Their boats are quick? "They have probably the most all-round boats. They have a very high mode if they want in the boats we have seen - a combination of design, the hull and the way they sail the boat. They are also able to go pretty well when they want to in bow-down mode. I think they are the most complete package out here, which they should be given their resources and that they have been around for four, five, six years and we shouldn’t forget they were one of the only teams that didn’t stop sailing [after 2003]."



Luna Rossa

"Our Italian compatriots. [Apart from Emirates Team NZ] they are the longest standing team dating back to 1997. You could argue that because of this sometimes they stagnate and then they come back, but I think they are always in a difficult position because of that, because they are seen to be one of the big three. We have had some great races with them and we think we’re reasonably well matched with them. They had some good races in the Act, but you can’t read too much into that. You only need to be tacked on twice more than someone else and your whole race has gone. They have obviously got a very good team there and once again they have got a lot of resource and have spent a lot of money and the sailing team has an incredible amount of depth and talent."

So big on talent short on boat speed? "Don’t know. We have seen them in a range of conditions and they seem pretty good, but I would certainly rank them below BMW Oracle in terms of overall boat speed package.

Their boats have a sweet spot? "I think it depends on what boat they bring out and what mode they put it in. I think they have to mess up not to make the last four, but overall the whole level of a lot of the teams here is very good. The Acts and the training and having the bases in Valencia have brought teams closer than [they ever have been] in the history of the Cup and I think that is really encouraging. It is encouraging to see how close the game has got, so I don’t see it as being as clear cut as it was last time."

Emirates Team New Zealand

Again one of the quality teams. Obviously they haven’t had as much money as say BMW Oracle or Luna Rossa, but in terms of their existing knowledge and the level of their sailors and their boats they kick off in a pretty good position. [Grant] Dalton there managing it has obviously made a huge difference and Ben [Ainslie] being there and pushing very very hard to be the helmsman has helped a lot. It has been very well structured in terms of who they have got in there. And it isn’t just New Zealanders. They have an American tactician and navigator, Ben there as well, Andy Hemmings, Adam Beashel, so it has complimented where the Kiwi sailing community has been diluted because people have gone to Alinghi or BMW Oracle. So I think they are pretty strong and they and BMW Oracle Racing are definites to be in the semis. But equally we are reasonably confident we can have a race with them."

Their boats? "They are all-round boats they can get the best out of. I don’t think they are anything over special in one condition. They are not a radical boat, like for example the Spanish boats, but I think they have got an all-round package and I’m sure we haven’t seen the best of them yet."

They seemed average in the fleet racing? "There were a couple of occasions where they didn’t get good starts and if you get nailed twice suddenly you aren’t in it. It is amazing when you look back at all the Virtual Eye stuff - Alinghi did very well because of their boat placement, despite only getting two good starts out of seven. What they were able to do was that by the time they were half way up the beat they were on the right shift in clear air taking advantage of that shift - that was the difference being in seventh and eighth and converting that into a third or fourth at the top mark. That is what other people didn’t do as well and Alinghi did consistently well, which is why they were runaway winners."

Areva Challenge

"A difficult one. We have to remember that they are a very low budget team. They were sailing NZL 60 right up until the beginning of this year and they have very few assets. They have got a mix of a young sailing team and a collection of GBR and antepodean people. Obviously they have a few issues. Thierry Peponnet withdrew from being tactician on Friday, whether that was just because they needed a change I’m not sure. I thought they looked the least inspiring team in the fleet race but I also know Sebastien Col is a good match racer and I think they are quite a dangerous team."

Sebastien Col is the world no.1 match racer at the moment? "I see them as a team that you can’t give an inch to. They have got a good enough sailing team and their boat handling is good enough. They are limited in terms of sails and finances, so you might find if they have any breakages - who knows whether they have good enough back up."

Were there conditions when their boat looked fast? "We sailed against them downwind in some light stuff and they looked quite good in that, but it is difficult because we have only seen them with good sails when they needed to because ethey can’t afford to sail with good gear all the time."

Victory Challenge

"I think it comes back to the start of the campaign - you need to know what money you are going to have early on so you can plan the team well. They have gone through some pretty extreme money situations and now they are here with a boat that they haven’t sailed enough. It has taken an awful long time to build, but I think their biggest failing was not getting their new boat was to Dubai. I think that they went to Dubai was good and logistically, considering the influx of shore and sailing team, it wasn’t a problem for them to go but we have hardly see them sail their new boat against the old one and in terms of days sailing their race boat between its launch and RR1 they have sailed it the least and we know these boats take time to work up. I’m sure the boat has potential - we have seen it a couple of times - but whether they are sailing it or have got the best out of it, I don’t know. Some of their boat handling at the beginning of Act was pretty average, yet they have got a very strong sailing team with some smart guys

Perhaps some of the smartest guys are not sailing? "That is their own thing. You do look at the team and say, Magnus [Holmberg] trying to do everything - I question that. Looking at what we saw last time that is pretty tough task. The Swedes have proved themselves in match races and if they get on a roll they’ll be fine. We’ll seen. They are our last match in every round."

The boat is quick? "I can believe the boat is quick. We have seen it go quick at times and if they’d sailed their boat a lot more they’d get even more from it."


Desafio Espanol 2007

"I think the Spanish still have the ability to make the semi-finals. Last week they were unfortunate when they broke one of their masts, but we saw on the last day of Act 13 that they have got a potent boat and if you give them a sniff of the front they are off. They won race six and they should have had a top two in race seven and they didn't which was a bit about fleet management at the top. I think they are quite dangerous. You have got the likes of [ex Oracle BMW man, John] Cutler there, Cayard has been in there making sure they are going in the right direction and I think they are a pretty dangerous team, I would say they are the highest favourite of the teams most likely to get into the semi-finals, with us pretty close behind."

And their boats? "I think one of them seems to be better in a breeze but we have raced them in some very light stuff and been pretty encouraged and lining up against them in the Act we have been reasonably confident as well.

They sail well? "I think it was interesting seeing the last race of the Act where their boat handling showed signs of weakness. They put themselves under pressure while in the lead and at the leeward mark and obviously had a communication issue at the top mark [where they tacked too close and were penalised]. But once again it is about match racing [not fleet racing]. Act 13 only gave little indicators and highlights the obvious things. Act 13 put some teams under pressure and seemed to bring out the best and worst in some teams."

United Internet Team Germany

"They are struggling. Jesper [Bank] said the other day it is two years since their team started. They have a boat that seems okay at times. They are a young team, there is a bit of Cup experience there, but not as much as some other teams. And they have budget restrictions.

We'd heard they weren't that strapped...? "I don’t think they have the funds we have or the Swedes have and I think that will just come to work against them at the end. They have obviously damaged their good mast against +39 and to be fair the whole of Act 13 they did look a little off the pace. But again there are some pretty good match racers on there. I’m sure they are another dangerous team that will take races off you if you aren't looking.



China Team

It's great that they’re here. It is hard to say too much about them. They are trying hard to get on the water with the resources that they have got. In the Act on some races it was very credible what they did. They sailed past a couple of boats in one race, but I can see the only way they will take races off of people is if people don’t finish.

And your team, Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team?

"We had a plan for the last six months and we stuck to that and we have achieved pretty much all of that, which in this game is sometimes pretty difficult to do given the variables: the weather, stuff turning up late, damaging stuff, etc. So we are really pleased with where we are. We have learned a lot from our two boat racing program which we started February-March. We have had some great racing against other teams, we’ve been very encouraged by that as well and I think we have a really strong team. While the team has a lot of talented people, we had to make sure that with the lack of AC experience we had to quick start that and marry that with the talent that is here and I think we are getting here.

The boats seem quick? "The boats seem good. We are really pleased with how we’ve brought 90 and 99 alone."

Only going to race 99? "For now. Both boats are measured and if need be we’ll race 90. We’ve just modified it again since the unveiling but right now 99 is ready to go. We are happy with it. It seems a good all round boat."

Not the prettiest, but maybe ugly is quick? "The sails are going well, the mast program is going well. We did break a few booms in Feburary and March but we have managed to get back on top of that again and we are really pleased with how the team works. So we need to keep at it and if we can get on a roll we’ll be on god shape. We are confident enough to know we have the ability to beat Team New Zealand and a lot of these guys."

Tomorrow Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team have a bye in the morning and have their big match against Desafio Espanol 2007 in the afternoon, probably the match of the day