American Magic is the first team eliminated from the Prada Cup. Photo / Dean Purcell
American Magic is the first team eliminated from the Prada Cup. Photo / Dean Purcell
OPINION:
America is out of the America's Cup and the sad fact is, America doesn't care.
With American Magic eliminated yesterday following a resounding Prada Cup semifinal defeat to Luna Rossa it means for the first time since 2007, and the fourth time in the event's 170-year history,an American entry won't be in the America's Cup.
How did the USA react? With as much noise as Donald Trump's inactive Twitter account.
The New York Times didn't have an update on the New York Yacht Club's exit.
The newspaper has run one piece on the regatta and that was a feature titled 'The Resurrection of American Magic'. Unfortunately, the article was published the same day the team was eliminated from the Prada Cup. A short resurrection indeed.
The Maryland-based Capital Gazette covered yesterday's race, because 'Anne Arundel County native Terry Hutchinson' is the American Magic skipper.
In America, the America's Cup is just a small fish in a big sporting ocean. Auckland, Portsmouth or Sardinia would be much better hosts for the next event than anywhere in the country that the event is named after.
In 2013, when Jimmy Spithill was leading Oracle Team USA to the greatest comeback in sporting history, the coverage in the US was drawing a 0.9 rating for NBC. The US Open women's final between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka was on at the same time and attracted a 4.9 rating on CBS, according to a Stuff report.
Friends, family and team members of American Magic watch as Patriot loses to Luna Rossa 4-0. Photo / Brett Phibbs
For the 2013 and 2017 events, the America's Cup Event Authority ended up effectively paying NBC to broadcast the races. It meant there were occasions in San Francisco where racing was called off because of lack of wind during the allotted made-for-TV time slot, only for it to pick up later in the day when boats were heading back to shore. There were reports of people in San Francisco not even aware of what was going on in the water outside their windows.
The truth is it's never going to capture the imagination of the American audience when it's up against the likes of the NBA, NFL, MLB and college sports. And even the 'smaller' sporting competitions – UFC, PGA Tour, NASCAR, NHL, MLS, WNBA and Indycar which take up any spare spots on the ESPN and SI.com homepages. By my count, it's playing 12th fiddle.
If victorious, we weren't going to see Terry Hutchinson or Dean Barker do the late-night shows with the Auld Mug or grace the cover of Sports Illustrated with President Joe Biden, like the good old days.
In New Zealand though, it's the biggest story in town. Football-mad Britain and Italy would also likely embrace the event if they hosted it.
The unfortunate thing is that American Magic were a well-run team with two talented leaders in Hutchinson and Barker fronting a hard-working unit who would have been deserved winners.
American Magic is the first team eliminated from the Prada Cup. Photo / Dean Purcell
The capsize two weeks ago meant they were making major changes to their boat in a short space of time. Almost starting from scratch instead of focusing on the modifications that would have given them the edge. We'd seen from Ineos UK how much you can change the boat over a short time.
They also had little time out on the water once it was seaworthy again and that showed on Friday and Saturday where the crease-heavy kinks were on display.
Look back at December 17, a month before the capsize. The opening day of the America's Cup World Series and the first time we got to see these boats up close. American Magic thrashed Ineos Team UK by five minutes in their first race before beating Team New Zealand by 12 seconds. At that point no one would have thought they would be the first to be eliminated.
Things can change quickly, which sure is a warning for confident TNZ fans.
Heading into the Cup racing?
• Give yourself plenty of time and think about catching a ferry, train or bus to watch the Cup.
• Make sure your AT HOP card is in your pocket. It's the best way to ride.
• Don't forget to scan QR codes with the NZ COVID Tracer app when on public transport and entering the America's Cup Village.
