KEY POINTS:
Team New Zealand sounded out Russell Coutts about his America's Cup yachting future before he signed for American syndicate Oracle Racing.
However, the talks, which occurred after Team NZ's bid to lift the Cup ended in Valencia, Spain, three weeks ago, did not progress far.
"There were some
broadish discussions," managing director Grant Dalton said today.
"They never really got a wriggle on."
Dalton said the announcement this morning that Coutts would be Oracle's chief executive and skipper for the next cup regatta, replacing fellow New Zealander Chris Dickson, came as little surprise.
It was an open secret that Coutts' primary negotiations had been with Oracle, who are headed by software billionaire Larry Ellison.
Meanwhile, Dalton said Team NZ's own preparations for another campaign had not been affected by the uncertainty surrounding the next regatta.
The time and venue have still to be confirmed, although Swiss defenders Alinghi are expected to announce overnight that Valencia will be retained for a 2009 competition.
Alinghi are also likely to release more information about the new class of boat to be used for the cup match.
"We are regrouping, re-signing and aren't really stalled by anything yet," Dalton said.
"We haven't got far enough to have anything stall us, so at this point it's not affecting us."
Dalton said holding on to staff had not been a problem.
"To a man our guys want to come back," he said.
He was happy to return to Valencia, because the infrastructure was in place and it was a good venue to sail in.
He believed the shorter than usual preparation time, if 2009 were chosen, helped Team NZ.
"A short time frame is good for us because it makes it tougher for a startup team, or even team that are not organised yet," he said.
"Even Oracle, they have to get going. Russell's there. That's good for them, but they still have to get going. We are going."
Dalton had no comment about Oracle's court challenge to Alinghi over the protocol containing the conditions for the next America's Cup, apart from saying that Team NZ had a neutral stance at the moment.
Oracle's home club, the Golden Gate Yacht Club, last week launched a legal action against the club that Alinghi sail for, the Societe Nautique de Geneve (SNG).
The suit alleges that the protocol is unfairly biased towards the holders and that a newly-established Spanish yacht club that SNG agreed the document with did not have valid status to be "challenger of record', or representative of the challenging syndicates.
Coutts, 45, was unveiled as the man to head Oracle's next campaign at a news conference in Valencia.
He is the cup's most successful skipper with a 14-0 win-loss race record covering the 1995, 2000 and 2003 regattas.
The first two were with Team NZ, before he and five crewmates jumped ship and joined Alinghi, whom he skippered to victory over Team NZ in 2003.
He then had a falling out with Alinghi boss Ernesto Bertarelli, and the terms of his departure from the Swiss syndicate prevented him from sailing for another team this year.
His former tactician, Brad Butterworth, went on to skipper Alinghi to a 5-2 victory over Team NZ to retain the Cup.
Coutts said he would hire a tailormade on-shore structure to enable his primary focus to be with Oracle's crew.
"I really want to get out on the water again," he said.
"Alinghi won the last two cups by sailing better and designing better and that's what we'll be trying to do."
So far, Alinghi have received three challenges under the new protocol - from Spain's Desafio Espanol, South Africa's Shosholoza and Britain's new Team Origin.
NZPA