Luna Rossa carried out another two full day of testing on the Bay of Angels in the newly reconfigured AC75 (B3) targeting their first proper sailing sessions.
Marco Gradoni, the Youth America’s Cup champion got his first real test-out in the new configuration, joining skipper Peter Burling, and steering from the port side. Ruggero Tita replaced Gradoni later in the session.
Umberto Molineris and Vittorio Bissaro, the two ace trimmers and flight controllers sat forward of the helms, were buried in the data whilst Maria Giubilei was again in the port 5th person seat, different to Kiwi set-up where we’ve seen Jo Aleh seated in the aft starboard pod of the New Zealand boat.
Cameras and LiDar devices were everywhere. Foil cameras were still in place, while white strips had been added to both flap elements. Another camera was noted on the hull just before the transom section pointing downwards on the rudder and elevator.
At 12:20 the sea breeze had started to fill in, reaching 9–10 knots from 195°. The MN1-8 mainsail was paired with the J2-9 jib. After swinging the boat onto starboard tack, self-take-off was achieved at approximately 16–17 knots boat speed. All five take-offs of the day were executed autonomously on starboard tack.
A recurring observation throughout the day was the occasional and excessive immersion of the rudder during both downwind and upwind sailing, as well as during manoeuvres such as bear-aways and round-ups.
The first session focused on straight-line sailing and a limited number of manoeuvres. In terms of bulb-to-bulb transitions, approximately 9 seconds were recorded for gybes and 7 seconds for tacks.
During gybes, Luna Rossa occasionally appeared to struggle with the catch on board up command exiting the manoeuvre. Windward cant was used to balance the boat on certain modes in a straight line.
The second session appeared to focus on manoeuvre execution, with tacks generally cleaner than gybes. During the third and fourth sessions, LR seemed to perform more aggressive bear-aways and round-ups, once again immersing the rudder excessively.
Once locked in, the usual windward heel was noted while sailing upwind, with leeward heel induced when entering tacks.
The fourth session appeared to focus on pre-start routines, with sharper manoeuvres within a virtual starting box. At 15:32 during a gybe, the stbd board did not drop, boat recovered quickly.
Marco Gradoni and Ruggero Tita were swapped on port helm during the sessions.
Via RECON REPORT – 12/13 JUNE 2026
