America's Cup: Quentin Delapierre looks forward to third Preliminary Regatta

by Magnus Wheatley, America's Cup Media 18 Jul 11:22 NZST

One of many pieces of great news of the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup was the announcement that France would once again be challenging for the most famous trophy in international sports.

Their history stretches back to the late 1960’s with some of the most mercurial French sailors competing backed by the most colourful and enigmatic owners.

The Orient Express Racing Team pays tribute to the past with the visionary backing of Stephan Kandler and Bruno Dubois who have created something so much more than just a singular challenge for the America’s Cup. This is a challenge with deep roots to encourage the next generations of French sailing superstars onto the world stage and their campaign has been full of elan and Gallic flair and sees them very much as the team that everyone wants to see do well.

To cut down the design time and ensure entry, Orient Express Racing Team bought an incredible design package off the board of the Emirates Team New Zealand Design Office and to the naked eye, their new AC75 looks a carbon copy of the Defenders’ yacht ‘Taihoro.’ Early commissioning has been very interesting with the French getting to grips with the AC75 and embarking on the most vertical of learning curves.

That they train hard is a given. The French are regularly out until dusk, eking the gains and pushing hard plus they have been very active in their AC40 which has been invaluable to their preparations. Talk to anyone in the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup and they will all say that “time is the enemy” and for the French, the clock is ticking but the starting line is in sight, and Quentin Delapierre, the figurehead and darling of French yachting is excited: “There is an unbelievable excitement in the team, you can feel every day on the water – every technician and designer wants to see if we are in a good shape compared to the others. They are all fully focussed on our performance - there is a good energy. It will be awesome to compete in the Preliminary Regatta and see where we are to improve before the Louis Vuitton Cup.”

Quentin, alongside his great friend and co-pilot Kevin Peponnet will be eyeing the Preliminary Regatta for very specific check-ins: “We will use the practice racing to just test our boat handling and straight line speed. Also, it will be super important for us to come into the starting box with all our processes and just being very confident on how we want to approach the entry start and the final sequence before the game. We worked a lot on this approach with just looking back on the previous Cup in Auckland and we have come out with a good strategy. It will be nice to test it during the Preliminary Regatta.”

Quentin has a keen eye on the opposition and his observations are astute. Who does he fear and who does he want to check in with most: “The team we will be looking at will be, for sure, the Emirates Team New Zealand because we have nearly the same design package. I believe that if we close the gap between boat handling and straight line speed, it will be really nice for our performance so we will inspire the team and improve our technique and our boat handling. I am keen to see our performance compared to Alinghi Red Bull Racing and NYYC American Magic. As I look in Barcelona, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli is probably the toughest challenger at the moment, and they look pretty steady and fast on the water. We will wait and see.”

With weather conditions expected, perhaps, to be in transition at the time of the Preliminary Regatta at the end of August ahead of the Louis Vuitton Cup in September, Quentin who has made a name for himself winning in varied conditions, sees this as significant, saying: “Yes, conditions are a big factor. I am convinced that the different designs will have strengths in different wind conditions. I think our design is pretty good overall and can get through every type of wind condition. But I am keen to see how INEOS Britannia and NYYC American Magic are doing in the light wind. For Alinghi Red Bull Racing, it is probably the opposite – I am keen to see them in heavy winds and if the boat is going fast in these conditions.”

Aside from speed, Quentin believes in reliability and it’s something the team are working hard on: “We still have a lot of work on the AC75 and a lot of development coming in. We are working on it every day in Barcelona – trying to put the yachts on the water every day and trying to fine tune every development project to see which one must be our priority because I am pretty sure we won’t have the opportunity to do everything. It is also part of high-level sport – just making decisions and making the right choice for what really matters for the performance. We still have plenty of things to do. My focus is to have a reliable AC75, which is already a lot of work with a team who has very little experience in these AC75 Cup boats.”

The dark horses of the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup for sure, but they are a team that no-one is taking lightly and with a combination of brilliant sailors and a world-class design, Orient Express Racing Team could well be the surprise package. Time will tell but never bet against the French.