Louis Vuitton Act 10 - Day 6 - Flight 11

Alinghi - Emirates Team New Zealand: 1 - 0

Both top teams raced seamlessly but one of them had to win. There was an even prestart and Alinghi went to the left with a small advantage. When the boats crossed, Emirates Team New Zealand went left and benefited from the wind, gaining the advantage. From there on, the Kiwis held on to it and after a very close race they finished 16 seconds ahead of the Swiss.

BMW Oracle - Luna Rossa: 1 - 0

Luna Rossa was in control of the prestart and first to cross the start line, heading left. When approaching the top mark, BMW Oracle was underneath Luna Rossa but in a great move by Chris dickson, they came inside, not only passing the Italians but also inflicting a penalty. From there on BMW Oracle was always ahead but James Spithill was very close behind them. Nevertheless, the Italians could not match the American's superiority and finished 1:38 minutes behind them, after offloading their penalty.

MBMW Oracle and Luna Rossa racing in the sixth day of Louis Vuitton Act 10. Valencia, 16 May 2006. Photo copyright: Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

MBMW Oracle and Luna Rossa racing in the sixth day of Louis Vuitton Act 10. Valencia, 16 May 2006. Photo copyright: Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

MBMW Oracle and Luna Rossa racing in the sixth day of Louis Vuitton Act 10. Valencia, 16 May 2006. Photo copyright: Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

Mascalzone Latino Capitalia Team - United Internet Team Germany: 1 - 0

Unfortunately, it was a disastrous race for the Germans that combined a prestart penalty for not keeping clear, inferior racing as well as a spinnaker getting caught by the keel after rounding the mark. All these factors added up to a lead for the Italians of 2:28 minutes at the finish line.

Mascalzone Latino - Capitalia Team and United Internet Team Germany racing in the sixth day of Louis Vuitton Act 10. Valencia, 16 May 2006. Photo copyright: Marco Trovati / Mascalzone Latino - Capitalia Team

Desafío Español 2007 - Victory Challenge: 1 - 0

It was the race that decided the fifth place overall. Victory Challenge came with one point more than the Spanish team and confident about their possibilities, but the outcome was completely different. During pre-start the Swedish received a penalty for not keeping clear as Karol Jablonski outsmarted Magnus Holmberg. On top of that, the Swedes started very late, giving Desafío the early advantage. From that point on, it was a one-way race as the Spanish were always leading and never threatened by Victory Challenge.

Team Shosholoza - China Team: 1 - 0

It was the last opportunity the Chinese team had to score a victory in these regattas, but Shosholoza proved impossible to beat. At no moment did the Chinese become a threat to the South Africans who won the by race 1:27 minutes.

Team Shosholoza and China Team racing in the sixth day of Louis Vuitton Act 10. Valencia, 16 May 2006. Photo copyright: Patrick Grippe / China Team

+39 Challenge - Areva Challenge: 1 - 0

It was the golden opportunity the French team had in order to win another point and stay clear of +39 in the tables. Nevertheless, Thierry Péponnet and his crew aboard FRA-60 really blew it when they committed an unforgivable timing error in pre-start and crossed the line before time. By the time they had restarted, the Italian team was ahead, never had to worry during the race and finished 31 seconds ahead.