Sept 25 (Reuters) - America's Cup teams get their first true taste of racing in the Bay of Naples on Friday as the Italian city hosts a three-day preliminary regatta ahead of the main event next year.
Although the outcome of the regatta does not affect the standings for the America's Cup itself next summer in Naples, it gives the nine crews lining up in 40-foot foiling monohulls a rare opportunity to test their speed and skills in competition, with the home team Luna Rossa setting the pace in practice on Thursday.
The two AC40 yachts with the highest points score at the end of up to eight scheduled fleet races will go through to a winner-takes-all match race final on Sunday.
While the competition to lift the America's Cup, which dates back to 1851 and is known as the "Auld Mug", will see the national teams compete in bigger AC75 yachts, the one-design AC40s will be used in both the women's and youth events next summer.
The preliminary regatta includes team members from all three events, with America's Cupholders New Zealand as well as Britain and Italy all fielding two crews alongside teams from Switzerland, France and the United States.
Australia, who made a late entry for the America's Cup in May, are not fielding a crew in Naples, where teams have already begun setting up their bases on the littoral in nearby Bagnoli, which local authorities are regenerating to host the event.
'PRESSURE TO PERFORM'
As they did at the first preliminary regatta in Sardinia in May, Italy's Luna Rossa, skippered by former New Zealand America's Cup winner Peter Burling, showed their intent during the official practice races on Thursday.
"There's always pressure to perform. We've got quite a changed lineup and for the team and there's been a lot of focus on both the AC75 in this last period as well but we feel like we're in really good shape to perform this weekend," Burling said in a pre-regatta press conference.
The regatta build-up has not been without incident as one of the foils on GB1 was damaged in a collision with a chase boat earlier in the week, with skipper Dylan Fletcher sustaining what he described in the briefing as "scratches" from the crash.
And Harry Melges, starboard helm for ARC Team USA, almost missed out on the team's debut in Naples after breaking his foot when stepping into an inflatable boat during training last week.
"It's not a super cool story, but I was just stepping on the RIB and a freak accident happened. But all you need is your head and your hands to sail this boat, so it should be all good," said Melges, whose family has a long tradition in the Cup.
(Reporting by Alexander Smith; Editing by Toby Davis)
