America’s Cup: Weather forces postponement of Louis Vuitton Cup day six

Day six of the Louis Vuitton Cup has been postponed, with the race committee deeming the weather in Barcelona unsuitable for sailing tonight.

The call comes after a lightning strike during Team New Zealand’s race against Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli brought an early end to proceedings on day five last night, with the Kiwis taking their first loss of the round-robins.

The threat of further thunderstorms and heavy rain squalls not only saw tonight’s racing postponed, but the closure of the race village and all fan zones today.

“The beginning of September is very much a transition period in the weather, so Mediterranean storms are commonplace, and with winds reportedly gusting up to 50 knots offshore on the Balearic Islands and a front moving towards Barcelona, the race committee made the call to abandon all racing in the Louis Vuitton Cup for today,” an America’s Cup statement said.

The current plan is to race tomorrow night. However, that will be confirmed closer to the time with a schedule to follow.

Racing was called off immediately on day five when a bolt of lightning struck the race course, in line with the direction Luna Rossa were sailing but slightly further up the track.

Team NZ were disqualified for going more than 100m outside of the boundary during the final leg, making the quick decision to exit the race after the lightning bolt struck.

The lightning strike drew some colourful language from the Kiwis – with their onboard comms coming over the broadcast loud and clear at the moment it struck – and the win was awarded to the Italians once Team NZ had gone beyond allowed boundary limits. Racing was stopped for the day immediately.

Luna Rossa had the race in the bag barring a disaster at that point, getting the better of the Kiwis at the start and capitalising on a mistake that left Team NZ parked up off their foils after their first manoeuvre off the starting line.

While there were no points on offer in terms of the challenger series for the race, it will be a confidence booster for the Italians moving forward.

Louis Vuitton Cup standings

Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli 4-0

Ineos Britannia 3-1

American Magic 2-2

Orient Express Racing Team 1-4

Alinghi Red Bull Racing 1-4

Races featuring Team NZ (4-2) do not count towards the Louis Vuitton Cup standings and have not been factored in above.

Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.