Yesterday, Wednesday 16 May, was the day that the underdogs fought back in Valencia. During the 3rd set of races in the Challenger semi-finals, Luna Rossa beat BMW Oracle and Desafio Espanol earned an historic win over Emirates Team New Zealand, beating them for the first time in ten attempts at the 32nd America’s Cup.

The Spanish team desperately needed the victory – the result closes up their score in the Semi Final match to 2-1 with the Kiwis leading. The first to 5 wins will go on to the Challenger final. Desafio Espanol Helmsman Karol Jablonski promised there was more crowd-pleasing magic to come: ‘The fight goes on until the end. We know how difficult it is to beat the top teams and we are happy to be back in the game. 1-2 is better than 0-3! In those boats making action in the pre-start is difficult as you have to be very focussed on time on distance, but we promise some more action for sure.’

Meanwhile, Luna Rossa Challenge beat favourites BMW Oracle to take the lead 2-1.

Today, Thursday 17 May, is a layday and a chance for teams to rest and recharge before the battle begins again on Friday. The end results are far from clear; watch this space!