America’s Cup teams have voted to reduce the size of boats to be sailed in the 2017 regatta in Bermuda, a cost-cutting move that could lead to the two strongest challengers dropping out.
In a statement on Tuesday night, organizers said a majority of teams favored the move from 62-foot (19m) catamarans to cats in the 45 to 50-foot range. They also said a majority of teams supported having all the racing take place in Bermuda rather than having a qualifying regatta in Auckland, New Zealand.
It is believed Italy’s Luna Rossa and Emirates Team New Zealand voted against the unprecedented proposal to change the size of the boats in mid-cycle.
Luna Rossa said last week they “will be obliged to withdraw” if the race boat was downsized. Team New Zealand supported the Italians.
Emirates Team New Zealand said on their Twitter account on Monday that they have filed for arbitration to reinstate the Auckland qualifier based on a signed and accepted bid. The New Zealanders maintain they need the qualifier at home to secure government funding.
A Luna Rossa spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
There is some question over how much the downsizing of the boats will save, considering some teams have already spent several months and tens of millions of dollars designing 62-foot catamarans. As it was, the larger cats were said to be a cost-saving measure over the 72-foot catamarans used in the 2013 America’s Cup.
The decision by two-time defending champions Oracle Team USA to contest the America’s Cup in Bermuda rather than in the US has also made it difficult for some teams and the event itself to raise sponsorship money.
While smaller boats would mean reduced costs and a smaller crew, they could also mean less excitement for spectators. A boat in the 45-to-50-foot class would also be the smallest in America’s Cup history.
If Italy and New Zealand drop out, Oracle Team USA would conceivably have an easier shot at retaining the Auld Mug trophy.
Oracle Team USA rebounded from a cheating scandal and an 8-1 deficit to defeat Emirates Team New Zealand in the 2013 America’s Cup, winning eight straight races in one of the biggest comebacks in the event’s history.
America’s Cup czar Russell Coutts, a New Zealander who heads both Oracle Team USA and the America’s Cup Event Authority, has verbally sparred with both the Kiwis and Italians in recent years.
In a landmark victory, Coutts led Team New Zealand to a five-race sweep of American skipper Dennis Conner off San Diego in 1995. He then guided the Kiwis to a sweep of Luna Rossa in the 2000 America’s Cup, before jumping ship for a bigger paycheck from Alinghi of Switzerland, leading them to a sweep of Team New Zealand.
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