KEY POINTS:
Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa both ventured out to the Mediterranean for one last sail 24 hours out from race one of the challenger series final tonight (NZT) in Valencia.
Luna Rossa headed out early in the morning and returned around lunch time. Emirates Team New Zealand
went out a bit later.
The day started off with the skippers' press conference and the coin toss to decide which team would have the starboard entry in race one.
Usually Team New Zealand tactician Terry Hutchinson is quite lucky in such situations. However it was his rival, Luna Rossa traveller Andy Horton, who called it right in this instance.
Team New Zealand strategist Ray Davies said over the last few days his team have worked a lot on boat crew work and making sure the whole team understood all the moves that could eventuate.
"We have focused more on the racing side of things rather than getting more speed out of the boat. We have just honed in on sailing the boat we have got really well.
"We are happy to be sailing Luna Rossa, we thought Oracle were going to be a bit stronger and a bit quicker. We are happy with the way everything has panned out so far, there is a good atmosphere in the team."
Like Team New Zealand, Horton said Luna Rossa were confident, happy and ready to go.
"The racing against the Kiwis will be tough and will probably go to the last race, exactly like the last time that Prada won [the Louis Vuitton final in 2000]. It is going to be an awesome final.
"We are expecting sea breezes between 9 and 13 knots. Both our boats are pretty good and quite similar."
Luna Rossa skipper Francesco de Angelis said there are similarities and differences to seven years ago when the team, then known as Prada, lined up against America One in the Louis Vuitton Cup final in Auckland.
"Today, like back then, we feel confident in the work we have done. It is also true that for me this experience is different," de Angelis said.
"Today I have another role and I understand how difficult it is to get here not only from a sailing point of view but also from an organisational one. It's a path we began a long time ago and that we have followed for the past three years staying on schedule with our programme and respecting the objectives we had identified."
Race one starts at 1am tomorrow morning (NZT). The forecast is for a 9-14 knots sea breeze. The final is a best of nine race series.