The draw's out and already the excitement is building as two of the hot shots, Prada and Oracle BMW Racing, prepare to go head-to-head tomorrow on the first day of the Louis Vuitton Challenger series.
The draw, which was announced this morning at a skipper's press conferencesees OneWorld (USA67) up against Mascalzone Latino (ITA72), Oracle (USA76) against Prada (ITA74), Stars and Stripes (USA66) against GBR Challenge (GBR70) and Le Defi Areva (FRA69) against Alinghi (SUI64). Victory Challenge have the bye.
The forecast for tomorrow is for southerlies of around 15 knots and seas of less than 1 metre.
Alinghi skipper Russell Coutts said the level of competition should be higher than it has ever been before.
"I think everyone here is very, very excited that the racing is about to begin in what should be the best Louis Vuitton Cup ever.
"All of these teams have come better prepared than perhaps some of the challengers before and I think it will result in some great racing and we are very excited about that."
For GBR Challenge the draw marks their return to the America's Cup after a 15 year absence.
"It is very exciting times especially for GBR Challenge is has been a long time since Britain has been in the America's Cup but we are back now and this is a fantastic opportunity for our team," said GBR skipper Ian Walker.
"We can't wait to get out there thankfully we didn't get a bye on the first day otherwise the guys might have killed me.
"It is entirely appropriate that we get to sail against Dennis Conner's Stars and Stripes on the first day. Britain hasn't been in the Cup for 15 years is up against a team that hasn't missed one. We can't wait."
