Start, penalty and rules: an insight with Marco Mercuriali

Marco Mercuriali is one of the most experienced people in the team. Throughout his long career he has participated in seven America’s Cup challenges and witnessed, alongside the evolution of the boat, the evolution of the rules.
In the case of the AC75, the classic racing rules have been updated to meet these flying boats' requirements for speed and performance.
The start, compared to previous editions raced with catamarans, has returned to being on an upwind course. The boats, one from the left and the other from the right side, enter the pre-start area, crossing the starting line from the upwind side, on about two minutes. During these 120 seconds, before the 0 (the start), each team tries to gain the best position on the starting line and to make trouble with its opponent.
The umpires assign penalties. Two of them follow the race from the sea, and the other three are onshore, following it by the screens.
They control, by means of data and racecourse images overlapped to infographics, the conduct of the race. They are in radio link with the teams and are ready to call warnings for a penalty call.
Penalties, with exception for those delivered in the pre-start, are carried out instantly by slowing down the boat until they lose 50 meters.
Penalties may be inflicted for an early start, when right of way rules are broken and a boat crosses "the boundaries" – in other words the virtual lines that delimit the racecourse.

Watch the video to discover more: