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American Magic make rough return to Prada Cup as poor start, near-capsize lead to big loss against Luna Rossa

January 29, 2021

Dean Barker and company were forced to use evasive manoeuvres to keep Patriot flat in their semi-final loss to Luna Rossa.

American Magic’s return to the water has gotten off to a shaky beginning with a poor start and a near-capsize mid-race leading to a significant defeat in the first Prada Cup semi-final race against Luna Rossa.

Dean Barker and the American crew were back in competitive sailing action for the first time since their dramatic capsize during the round robin of the Prada Cup but their nerves showed early on as Patriot touched down during the starting manoeuvres.

The touchdown allowed Jimmy Spithill and the Italians to jump out to an early lead and from there it was smooth sailing for them with the Americans forced to play catch-up the entire race.

Barker’s attempts to make back ground, including early tacks on the fourth leg to find clear air, did nothing for the Americans as the Italians consistently extended their lead throughout the race.

With plenty of wind on Course C today, both boats were constantly sitting at speeds around 45 knots but things got a bit dicey for the Americans as they entered the sixth leg.

Coming around the mark, Barker and company climbed to 53 knots as they picked up a big gust of wind, much like they did when they capsized.

But this time the team responded by dropping their windward foil and while it meant they avoided a similar fate to last time, it resulted in them touching down once more, exiting the course for a boundary penalty and all but assuring there’d be no comeback in the race.

Eventually, the Americans crossed the finish line two minutes and 43 seconds behind the Italians, which means the best-of-seven series now favours the Italians 1-0.

Barker said after the race they had mixed feelings about the result.

"Obviously not the result we're looking for but I think we're just getting confidence back with everything that happened and it's just fantastic to get back out here.

"It's one race, we'd like to do better but these conditions are pretty challenging."

The second race of the semi-finals is set to take place later this afternoon.

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