Auckland (AFP)

The Italian crew Luna Rossa, archi-domineering against very unlucky Americans, won the right on Saturday to face the Ineos Team UK final, after winning four rounds to zero in the Prada Cup semi-final in Bay of Auckland.

The final, which starts on February 13, will be played in the best of 13 sets and will nominate Team New Zealand's opponent in the America's Cup, in which the Kiwis hold the title, from March 6 to 21.

American Magic, the monohull of the prestigious New York Yacht Club (NYYC), completely missed its semi-final.

On January 17, the boat was overturned by a violent gust of wind in Auckland harbor, capsizing it, causing a gaping hole in the hull and throwing its crew into the water.

The Americans had since started a race against time in order to repair the structure of their boat as well as possible as quickly as possible, as well as all the electronic system on board, to be ready to face their Italian competitor.

After being easily defeated on Friday in the first two races against Luna Rossa, the American challenge was again dominated in the third round on Saturday.

In the fourth, when he absolutely had to win to stay in the race, since the semi-final was played to the best of seven, their faulty equipment caused serious management problems, precipitating their elimination.

"And now it's time for Ineos guys!" Exclaimed Luna Rossa's coxswain, Jimmy Spithill, after the final victory over American Magic with a 3-minute and 51-second lead.

The tactician of the Italian challenge, Francesco Bruni, has meanwhile confided that now "the smell of revenge" came to his nostrils, and that he was eager to face Ineos Team UK again, helmed by the legendary Ben Ainslie .

"I am very proud of the crew because they have made tremendous progress compared to last weekend," he said.

“If we continue to improve our performance with the boat, and especially our speed, the competition should go well against Ben” Ainslie, added Bruni.

American Magic captain Terry Hutchinson called their early exit from the Prada Cup "brutal", particularly given the efforts made to repair their boat in time after it capsized.

"It's very disappointing to end up like this, this way, because we know we can do better than that," he said.

This outing is all the more upsetting as for its 170 years of existence, the America's Cup saw this year the great return of the New York Yacht Club, at the origin of the legend of this event over which it reigned supreme. from 1851 to 1983.

Founded in 1844, NYYC had not participated in the Cup or its playoffs since 2003.

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