Tudor Team Alinghi bounces back to finish second in Race 2 on Day 1 in Naples

# What happened on Day 1 Tudor Team Alinghi faced a slow, stop-start opening day at the Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup Preliminary Regatta in Naples. A long wait for stable conditions, multiple aborted starts and a tricky first race left the team needing a clean result. When the breeze finally settled, they delivered a strong Race 2 performance and finished the day sixth overall on 11 points.

# Race 2 in detail Paul Goodison (skipper) led the quartet with Phil Robertson, Nicolas Rolaz and Pietro Sibello. The crew were immediately competitive at the front, leading during the opening upwind leg and engaging in a close duel with Luna Rossa through the six-leg course. The Italians moved ahead mid-race but Alinghi stayed within striking distance and closed to nine seconds at the final leeward gate before finishing second.

The slim time gap mirrored the performance data: Tudor Team Alinghi averaged 32.29 knots across the race, while Luna Rossa averaged 32.33 knots. That near-parity on outright speed suggests boat setup, maneuvers and tactical choices determined the final margin.

# How the team described it Paul Goodison: "It was a really good day for us to finish the way we did. We probably performed better than we ever have in that super-light stuff, and to bounce back in the last race when the breeze finally came up was really encouraging. It's a good step in the right direction and a testament to the work everybody has been doing on the shore and in the sailing team."

Phil Robertson, Port Helm: "We started with very little wind and had a lot of starts where we were towing up, foiling and then having the race abandoned. In Race 1, the breeze came in really quickly, and we got caught out over range with the J1 jib. For Race 2, we were on the J3 in around 15-18 knots and had a great race to finish second. It was nice to validate a lot of the work we've been putting in, and the boat was going fast in those conditions."

# Immediate implications The Race 2 result provides the team with a concrete reference point to build on across the remaining fleet races. With six fleet races still to run in the regatta, the performance against a leading contender like Luna Rossa shows Alinghi can match top-end speed and remain competitive as conditions change.

End-of-day position and points: sixth overall with 11 points.

# What to watch next The regatta schedule lists Race Day 2 for Saturday, September 26 (14:00–16:00 CEST) and Race Day 3 for Sunday, September 27 (14:00–16:00 CEST). Expect the team to review setup, sail choice and start procedures overnight, and to target more consistent starts and sharper sail selection in the variable Naples conditions.

If the team can reproduce the Race 2 pace and tighten starts, they have scope to move up the leaderboard in the remaining fleet races.