Luna Rossa dominants final day at America's Cup Preliminary Regatta in Naples

# What happened Luna Rossa finished Day 3 of the America's Cup Preliminary Regatta in Naples with a clean result: they won the last two fleet races of the preliminary series and then took the Final. The team appeared confident and in control throughout the day, and the outcome was described as unsurprising given their form.

# Conditions and schedule Racing on the Bay of Naples did not start on time because the breeze was initially light. The fleet waited about an hour before the wind settled into a reliable 10–14 kt range with a flat sea state, conditions that suited the one-design foiling boats and reduced the chance of large position swings.

# How the day unfolded Luna Rossa used consistent speed and clean race execution to remove doubt early. In the first race of the day they beat the New Zealand senior team, skippered by Nathan Outteridge, by 14 seconds. The French entry La Roche-Posay, which had capsized twice earlier in the regatta, put in competitive results on the final day and finished third in the event overall.

Race 8 was another comfortable win for Luna Rossa, a 20-minute contest they won by 29 seconds. The Final saw shifting control at the start between Luna Rossa and Emirates Team New Zealand. The Kiwis chose to sit to leeward and then tack to the right side of the course, likely aiming for a pressure advantage or a favourable shift, but their tack was slow and they lost several vital seconds getting back to full speed.

Peter Burling, helming the Italian entry, maintained speed and executed a cleaner tack and cover. That allowed Luna Rossa to slow-build cover and push Emirates Team New Zealand toward the boundary, forcing the Kiwis to follow. With consistent breeze and one-design boats, there was little chance for a comeback once Luna Rossa established control. The Final margin moved around 12 seconds and extended to 17 seconds at the finish.

# Standings and notable results

• Luna Rossa finished on top of the fleet after the Preliminary Regatta in Naples.
• La Roche-Posay finished third overall, eight points behind Emirates Team New Zealand.
• Four teams—ARC USA, ETNZ Women and Youth, Luna Rossa Women and Youth, and Tudor Alinghi—each ended on 44 points and were separated by tie-break rules.
• Women & Youth team, helmed by Jake Pye and Erica Dawson, finished fifth in the fleet and won the Women & Youth title.
• GB1, led by Dylan Fletcher, improved late in the series with several top-four finishes and closed the regatta in a stronger position than earlier results suggested.

# What this means going forward

# Images and atmosphere