An intense and exciting Final Match – in which the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli team, the winners of the PRADA Cup challenger selection races, took on the Defender Emirates Team New Zealand – brought the 36th America’s Cup presented by PRADA to a close. In the ten races, held on 10-17 March in Auckland (New Zealand) in the Hauraki Gulf, the Luna Rossa team proved itself a worthy match for its opponent with some excellent performances, getting off to the best start on almost all occasions and remaining highly competitive, keeping pace with the Kiwi boat despite its rival’s better acceleration. Although in the end the New Zealanders successfully defended their title 7-3, it was still Italy’s best ever result in the history of the America’s Cup. The Luna Rossa team will return to Cagliari in the coming months to resume training for the next challenge. Patrizio Bertelli, CEO of the Prada Group and president of the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli team, said: “This challenge has been overwhelmingly positive, and the final result, one of the best ever achieved by a defeated challenger in the history of the America’s Cup, highlights the strength of the team and its ability to stand up to an extremely strong Defender. Many people have commented that we had the best team at this America’s Cup”.
n° 64 - 29 April 2021