New Zealand is up against some quality competition in the first stage of the America’s Cup cycle.  

This weekend sees the Italian island of Sardina host the first preliminary regatta, with eight boats set to take to the water.  

Team NZ, Britian’s GB1, and Italian hosts Luna Rossa have sent both their main teams and a combined Women’s and Youth boat to compete, alongside crews from Switzerland’s Alinghi and French entry La Roche-Posay Racing.  

Team NZ CEO Grant Dalton told Mike Hosking that it’s difficult to tell at this stage, but Luna Rossa is likely to be a force to be reckoned with. 

He says the other teams are quite light, but the Italian team has the most milage in the water at the moment and plenty of talent. 

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