News

ONE MORE TO GO
6 June 2007

Emirates Team New Zealand needs to win one more race to claim the Louis Vuitton Cup and advance to the America’s Cup Match against Alinghi. That’s been the goal of skipper Dean Barker since the day the Swiss team snatched the Cup from his grasp in Auckland in 2003.

But it won’t be easy. The Kiwis are facing a strong Italian team that has its back against the wall. One more loss will see Luna Rossa Challenge eliminated from the Louis Vuitton Cup, so the team will be coming out fighting.

“Everyone is motivated to go out and try to win the race,” says mainsail trimmer Jonathan McKee. “We hope we can sail better and win the race. Those guys have sailed very well and we haven’t sailed as well as we could have.”

Mckee says he doesn’t anticipate any radical changes on board ITA 94 today. This is a team that believes in itself despite the 4-0 scoreline.

“We’re not going to destroy the psyche of the team just to do something differently for the sake of doing something different. We’re putting our best foot forward already,” McKee says. “I’d be surprised if you see crew changes (today) because we’re putting our best team on the water and they’re doing the best they can.”