Sunday November the 20th
ENERGY TEAM TAKE SECOND PLACE
AMERICA'S CUP WORLD SERIES
San Diego Match Racing Championship
Energy Team were defeated 2-0 yesterday in the final, which saw them up against the American defender Oracle led by James Spithill. The French team therefore ends up in second place in the San Diego Match Racing Championship. The crew united around Yann Guichard, who is replacing Loïck Peyron, has made steady progress throughout the week and obtained a good set of results proving that they are capable of competing alongside the top teams. On Sunday, the big fleet race will close this third America’s Cup World Series event. We look back at the two matches in the final raced between Oracle Spithill and Energy Team.
Match 1:
Energy Team and Oracle crossed the starting line side by side, but the French crew rounded the first mark in the lead thanks to a better angle. At the end of a well-sailed downwind leg, Energy Team rounded mark 2 with a lead of 14 seconds. Both boats went for the right hand side of the race course in the first upwind leg. Energy Team, favourably placed to ward off the attacks of their rival rounded the third mark with a lead of 20 seconds. During the second downwind leg, Yann Guichard and his men kept in control of the race and completed the first lap out in front. The turning point came when Yann Guichard opted for the right-hand side of the race course on the second upwind leg, leaving James Spithill make his getaway on the left. The gap between the boats across the race course widened reaching 700 metres. Energy Team could no longer keep their opponent in check and James Spithill took advantage of that to narrow the gap, before crossing in front of the French boat and grabbing
the lead. So a change of leader, but the French resisted and went ahead again when the boats next came together. They were just preparing to change tack to head for mark 5, when the experienced Americans blocked them stopping them from changing tack. Forced to come to a standstill, Energy Team found it hard to get going again. The result was they were 18 seconds behind as they set off on the final downwind leg. The French managed to narrow the gap, but it was too late: Oracle Racing Spithill won the race and led 1-0.
Match 2:
Oracle Racing Spithill got off to the best start and rounded the first mark in front. At the start of the first downwind leg, Yann Guichard was first to gybe, but James Spithill followed on closely and was certainly not going to be surprised. Energy Team rounded mark 2 some sixteen seconds behind their rival. In winds that were getting lighter and lighter, the AC45s found it difficult to fly a hull on the first upwind leg. Waiting to pounce, the French challenger tried to find an opening, but the Americans kept their opponent in check. The gap reindexed at around fifty metres and Oracle had a lead of 13 seconds at mark 3. James Spithill did not make any mistakes and managed to extend his lead to 20 seconds at the end of the first lap. Unless there was a major upset along the way, the American defender was well on its way to another win. The second upwind leg and the final downwind run would not change anything. It was not that there were any bad decisions taken aboard the French
boat, but the crew led by James Spithill had a perfect race keeping their rival in check. Energy Team, led by Yann Guichard, has therefore taken second place on the podium, a fine reward for the French, who shone throughout the week and have managed to compete with the best.
Yann Guichard (FRA), skipper of Energy Team (FRA):
"It was really difficult today, as the wind was extremely variable. We got off to a good start in the first race, but I made a mistake after that and they took advantage to overtake us. In the second duel, we didn’t have any possibility of getting back in the game. Jimmy was the best today, but I’m quite pleased. We worked well throughout the week and reindexed constant in our performance. I’m very happy to finish in second place in the Match Racing Championship. We surprised everyone and are making progress every day, which led us to being in the final today. The team has really done some excellent work."
Final rankings in the San Diego Match Racing Championship :
1. Oracle Racing Spithill
2. ENERGY TEAM
3. Emirates Team New Zealand
4. Artemis
5. Aleph
6. Oracle Racing Coutts
7. Team Korea
8. Green Comm Racing
9. China Team
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