Luna Rossa has won the second Preliminary Regatta of the 38th America’s Cup cycle, raced on the Bay of Naples from 25 to 27 September 2026 in AC40s. Skipper Peter Burling, co-helm Marco Gradoni, and crew Maria Giubilei and Gianluigi Ugolini went unbeaten on the final day, winning both fleet races before defeating Emirates Team New Zealand, helmed by Nathan Outteridge, in the match-race final.
It is the team’s second consecutive Preliminary Regatta victory, having also beaten the Kiwis in the Sardinia final in May 2026. Luna Rossa topped the Naples fleet series by 15 points. The Women and Youth title went to Emirates Team New Zealand’s development crew of Jake Pye and Erica Dawson, who beat Luna Rossa 2 on a tiebreak. France’s La Roche-Posay Racing Team finished third overall in fleet racing, two capsizes across the first two days having cost the French a place in the finals.
With the 38th America’s Cup proper set for Naples in July 2027, the home team has now beaten the defender twice in four months, both times in the city that will host the Match. The Race Village drew tens of thousands across the weekend, giving Naples its first full taste of Cup racing. Form, home water, and momentum: Luna Rossa carries all three into the winter.
Photography: Geoff McKay, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons; representative photograph
