Britannia won the Louis Vuitton Cup against Luna Rossa and will be New Zealand’s contenders for the America’s Cup.

The final regatta capped a week of intense competition between the British and Italian crews. Barcelona was shining with autumn sunshine and, despite meteorologists’ pessimistic forecasts for light winds, the south-west breeze “Gharbi” died down just half an hour before the scheduled departure time, at 14:10, at a speed of 12-15 knots and in calm water – maximum test conditions to speed for these stunning AC75 foil-mounted monohulls.

Fireworks were initially expected, but the classic advance of Britannia (which entered at the left end of the line) allowed the British to drift down the line and start with a clean slate to leeward. The timing was astounding: Britannia started just four meters from the line at 40 knots and quickly found a positional advantage that forced Luna Rossa to tack.

In a high-speed race from bow to bow to starboard, the Italians gained a ship’s length astern and with it snatched a tactical positional advantage to return to the right of way on starboard tack, sparking an aggressive duel between the two ships. after Britain wisely turned to the nose of the Italians, this was a real signal of intent.

It was the first of many turns into the wind and course of the British, who were never in the lead throughout the race but were also never more than a few seconds ahead of the Luna Rossa crew who were in hot pursuit. . Downwind, Luna Rossa somewhat negated INEOS Britannia’s inherent speed advantage (possibly due to her opting for a one code larger headsail) and overtook the British time and time again as they sought to capitalize on any small mistake . However, INEOS Britannia defended tirelessly against her Italian opponent, rounding to windward early for cover and then defending doggedly to windward, giving her rivals no chance of gaining an advantage or getting within striking distance.

As Garbi’s conditions had shown throughout the summer of racing, going to the right and defending was beneficial, but on the final windward leg Luna Rossa risked everything on the left flank and this maneuver proved decisive. INEOS Britannia built up pressure in the upper right quadrant, gained a length or more and sailed through the final windward gate with a nine-second lead, knowing they were just a few taunts away from winning the series.

However, the Italians continued to press, turning on the last stern and heading to starboard, while INEOS Britannia drifted to port. When the two came together again at mid-course, it was the last time the British allowed themselves to be separated as they struck the Italian line with a lead of just under 200 metres. It was enough to reach the left line and make the turn before steering the boat across the finish line for a historic victory.

With a final lead of 17 seconds, INEOS Britannia clinched the Louis Vuitton Cup, and in subsequent scenes of pure delight, the British sailors celebrated the victory they had long prepared for.