Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli have swept aside NYYC American Magic in the Prada Cup semi-final and now turn their attention to exacting revenge against INEOS Team UK.
The British edged the Italians in a thrilling round-robin race to qualify for the Prada Cup final, and the brash, but fired up Luna Rossa helmsman Jimmy Spithill is ready for war, after some disappointing performances in the group stage.
"We were pretty disappointed, to be honest, with how racing was going against the British," Spithill says.
"The racing was fantastic, but we felt we left a lot on the table and we had to be very critical, so we can come out firing against INEOS."
No professional sportsman likes losing and that was evident in Spithill, who seems to have made it his sole mission to get revenge over Team UK.
Immediately after crossing the line to seal the 4-0 victory over the Americans, his first words were "now the British, boys" and that messaged was echoed in the post-race press conference.
"We'll be doing everything we can to come out and get some payback on the Poms," he says.
The final will be an intriguing contest between two sides who've made significant enhancements to their boats since arriving in New Zealand.
Spithill, who won the America’s Cup once and defended it once, feels the extra race time could be a critical factor in the final, as their attention now turns to making even more improvements to their yacht.
"Development is the name of the game in the America’s Cup, and it will be all about boat speed and getting as much of it as we can," Spithill says. "We've been fortunate enough to be racing and I believe we needed that series.
"We've had the best preparation leading into the Prada Cup final and the pressure we've had to face internally going into this sudden death against American Magic was as good a preparation as you can get."
The Prada Cup final is a best-of-13 series to decide who will take on Emirates Team New Zealand for the America's Cup in March.
Join us on Februrary 13 for live updates of the America's Cup challenger final between Team UK and Luna Rossa
