A great accomplishment for Luna Rossa.  The Italian boat has qualified for the finals of the Prada Cup - the tournament of challengers for the America's Cup -, underway in Auckland, New Zealand.

Luna Rossa only needs 4 races to reach the finals of the Prada Cup, and join the English boat, Ineos, that will be held from 13 February in a best-of-13 race series.

The second day of the semi- finals against American Magic was a photocopy of the first day, with the Italian boat dominating the starts and taking the part of the course it preferred and controlling the opponent leaving them no chance to get back into the race.

In the second race, the Americans also had problems with the electronics on board.

In just two days of racing, Luna Rossa eliminated the Americans and conquered the last of the challengers in the Prada Cup.

 Max Sirena, skipper and team director of Luna Rossa, had this to say on the victory in the semi-finals of the Prada Cup against American Magic: "It was a good day.  We reached the first step, which was to go to the Prada Cup final.  The guys have sailed the boat very well, to perfection, as we had planned in the practicing before the race.”

"In both starts they were very good at controlling the opponent. It was not an easy day, the wind was very gusty and it was difficult to keep control in the stern. The thing that gives us the most satisfaction, " he added,  "was the performance of the boat and the way we communicate on board. This is just the first step, as from tomorrow we'll be thinking about the final which will be very difficult, so we need to keep our head down and concentrate.”

Jimmy Spithill, helmsman of Luna Rossa, also commentedon the victory in the Prada Cup semi-finals against American Magic, saying "The guys sailed very well today and made very few mistakes.  In the second race we found ourselves a bit overmatched in our setup, but I think the guys adapted well and we were able to get two convincing wins in a really solid series." 

"I think for the whole team it was non- stop effort, they never really had a day-off, they were always working to try to come up with solutions that could get some advantage out of the boat. I think as a team we worked really well," he concluded.

“What gives us most satisfaction is the performance of the boat and the on-board communication; they are both improving a lot.” @MaxSirena
“La cosa che ci da più soddisfazione sono le performance della barca ed il modo di comunicare a bordo che stanno migliorando molto.” pic.twitter.com/sheuqbQQIS

— Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team (@lunarossa) January 30, 2021