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team had made ‘massive leaps’ forward. ‘I was surprised at how fast the boat was going.’ Across the board he sees a big improve- ment in the sailing team too. ‘The control, the way we are sailing the boat, the accuracy, but especially the efficiency with which we are operating now as a team. That is the big thing. That is not to say the other teams are not doing the same – I am sure they are.’ He cautioned that the performance of the new-generation yachts
would be closer than in Auckland: ‘It will definitely not be about us being 3kt faster, like we were last time… It is going to be about the one per cents,’ in reference to the small detail gains now being sought across all areas of the campaign. ‘The magic you can see is not necessarily the magic that will win it. There are so many little things inside that will make a big difference in the new boats.’ Dalton also finds himself embarked on a number of diplomatic
crusades, first doing a hard-sell on the pre-Christmas regatta in Jeddah, which had its detractors based on human rights issues and accu- sations of serious ‘sportwashing’. Although he grumbles about ‘hyp- ocritical rhetoric’ over Saudi Arabia, he acknowledges that the optics of taking a major regatta there have to be taken seriously, particularly while the region is embroiled in a fresh humanitarian crisis. As it happened, the Kiwis celebrated success at Jeddah with a
dominant performance, notching six wins out of nine races, including the match race final against a resurgent Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli team, with rookies Ruggero Tita and Marco Gradoni replacing the veteran helming pair of Jimmy Spithill and Francesco Bruni. Dalton described Jeddah as ‘hugely successful’ and was quoted
in The Daily Telegraph confirming that – as was widely anticipated – Saudi Arabia could indeed be in the running to host the Cup itself if ETNZ defends successfully in Barcelona. That may not sit well with some fans back home in New Zealand,
where there is already residual disquiet over Auckland missing out to Barcelona for the 2024 defence. But this was always first and foremost about giving the team the best chance of winning the Cup again. ‘The team has to win and ultimately that is the only thing that matters,’ said Dalton. With the New Zealand economy reeling from the Covid pandemic, destructive weather and rising inflation and interest rates, the argument was that the funding for a winning campaign was simply no longer available in New Zealand. Barcelona, meanwhile, has embraced the Cup. ‘The help we get
from the city and regional government is amazing,’ notes Dalton. He added that the Barcelona movers and shakers look back on the 1992 Olympic Games as the city’s finest hour… followed by steady decline. They view the America’s Cup as a huge opportunity for the city to get back onto the world stage and shine again. Certainly some well-known global brands – the likes of Louis Vuitton and Coca Cola – are investing seriously in the Barcelona regatta. ‘We would never have attracted that level of support for the event had it remained in Auckland,’ added the Team New Zealand CEO. Dalton says there are also competitive advantages for ETNZ to
go on the road. ‘Home advantage is a fallacy,’ he insists. ‘Too many distractions: granny’s got a cold, the dog has to go to the vet, the neighbour wants a hand with his fence… That doesn’t happen when you are on tour. You just sail and you work. ‘That is where we are most efficient. We raid. That is what we
did in Bermuda. We went there, we smacked them, we came home. That is the way we are operating in Barcelona.’ Meanwhile, Auckland, which dubs itself The City of Sails, is not
having much luck with major sailing events. Although it will get to see ETNZ out training on home waters and will be first to see the new AC75 come out of the shed and start trialling on local waters, the foiling F50 cats will not be coming to play here as was expected. The New Zealand SailGP round was slated to alternate between
Lyttelton near Christchurch in the South Island and Auckland. Lyttelton had its first experience of the series last year. Auckland was to host the event in March. However, the proposed siting of the onshore facilities was later ruled out for health and safety reasons; it was formerly a fuel and hazardous substance tank farm and a process of decontaminating the site has been delayed, making it unavailable. Efforts by the city to offer alternative solutions did
32 SEAHORSE
not meet SailGP requirements and it is now expected that the New Zealand regatta will return to Lyttelton. City funding that was earmarked for SailGP has been redirected
to a Coldplay concert – which may or may not appeal to a similar audience… Ivor Wilkins
USA SailGP and the sustainability dream ‘Sustainability’ is one of the great buzzwords of our age, mostly in the environmental field. Yet a more general definition is ‘the ability to be sustained, supported, upheld or confirmed’. Applied to grand prix sailing this has always been an issue for
pro sailors. The opportunities for employment come and go, depend- ing on many factors: the largess of wealthy owners who need talent to support their dreams, the successful pitch to a sponsor and plenty of other variations on these themes. In the America’s Cup it was only at Valencia 2007 when the possibility appeared for a commercially sustainable event that could evolve over repeat cycles. That dream died in the New York Supreme Court. Other high-level professional events – Audi MedCup, Volvo Ocean
Race, World Match Racing Tour etc – had legs as long as their spon- sors kept pouring in funding to keep them going. Most other series, including those of today, continue to rely upon private owners. It took a pro sailor at the top of his game – Russell Coutts backed
by Larry Ellison – to create the SailGP series based on a different model. The vision for a league of nation-branded teams blasting around in a variety of urban venues around the world – to ultimately be sold to teams in franchise form. A key difference in the Coutts model is that the sailors may also
participate in the investment to help build the value of a team, a prospect deemed to be more motivating and sustainable than simply harvesting a pay cheque. This is possible because the key features of SailGP – super-fast boats, teams branded as nations, iconic waterfront venues chosen to maximise on-site spectating, big prize- money payouts – have proved to be appealing to audiences where other events have fallen short. SailGP’s potential to build value has now caught the attention
of serious US-based professional investors who have trained eyes for opportunity. The Avenue Sports Fund – a diverse group of investors representing key personalities in the sport, technology, entertainment and media industries – announced its acquisition of SailGP’s US team with a new leadership and ownership structure. Owners include Uber co-founder and technology investor Ryan McKillen and 2020 World Match Racing champion Mike Buckley. McKillen is the new team chairman with Buckley serving as CEO. ‘I’ve been working to put something like this together for years
and this is exciting,’ said Buckley. ‘In my opinion athletes need to be more than athletes – they have to learn to be business people who really believe in the product, which for SailGP is delivering a premium event experience. Over the last 20 years professional sport has become one of the most profitable and sought-after asset classes. Hence why our investors – from many other sports and sectors affiliated with sports – have recognised the potential.’ ‘As sailors we love this sport and want to introduce it to millions
of others,’ said McKillen. ‘But as entrepreneurs we recognise the potential upwards trajectory of SailGP and how our new team can play a rewarding part in that.’ There’s certainly a lot of switcheroo at the top of SailGP. The US
team has swapped skippers from Jimmy Spithill to Taylor Canfield, skipper of that 2020 WMRT team. Meanwhile, at the next SailGP event in Dubai Spithill took temporary charge of Tom Slingsby’s dominant Australia Team while the world’s no1 sailor is busy on Cup duties. Spithill then steps away from the (F50) helm to take charge of a new Italian SailGP squad focused on bringing more young talent through to the top level. Something Italy already seems to be pretty good at, based on the performance of their two young stand-in superstar helms at the Jeddah AC Preliminary Regatta. Dobbs Davis
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