AC34: No Love in the Neighborhood

The America’s Cup is many things, but mostly technology, sailing skills, and self-interest. And as Dennis Conner is known to have said, “Bet on self-interest. It’s always running.”

Amid the reality now that challenger Artemis Racing will not be ready for when the challenger trials begin July 7, there was a proposal put forth by the Kiwi and Italian challengers to delay the regatta so that Artemis Racing would have the extra time needed to get on the water.

However, there was a caveat: it would be a three-team round robin, with the two top syndicates going through to the Louis Vuitton final. This plan would cut out the semifinal round, and effectively, cut out Artemis Racing from any chance of winning the challenger trials.

It would be easy to argue that the revised plan was better for the event, but it was definitely not to the benefit of Artemis Racing who vetoed the concept. In Scuttlebutt 3856, Kiwi boss Grant Dalton vented his frustration with the veto, stating that the “whole thing is now geared to the needs of the weakest common denominator.”

The Artemis Racing team offered this response: “Dalton’s proposals to change the race (start direct elimination on July 19, rather than August 6, and alter the format to eliminate the semi-finals) would certainly not help Artemis Racing, as suggested, but make it even harder for us to compete. To shorten an already tight timeline is clearly not acceptable to us, as to any team in the same position. Dalton’s proposals benefit no team but his own, and his public insults are out of line and unsportsmanlike.”

No love in the neighborhood.

* (June 10, 2013) – The America’s Cup announced today that it will refund ticket holders for races in the initial rounds of the Summer of Racing following Artemis’ decision to race once its satisfied its second boat is ready for racing. Read on