Enter Two Challengers; Cats OK by Alinghi

Two more Cup Challengers, having gathered wheelbarrows of money, have tipped their captain’s hats to the America’s Cup Management Committee and officially entered the next America’s Cup regatta - - whenever and whenever it may be held. This seems to take both faith and nerve, one might postulate. One Challenger's from Italy and one’s from Spain, homeport venue for the next event.

The new Challengers:

* Italy’s Mascalzone Latina, sponsored by the Reale Yacht Club Canottieri Savoia of Naples, Italy (http://www.mascalzonelatino.it/)

* Spain’s Ayre, sponsored by the Real club Nautico de Demia

As both Alinghi and BMW/Oracle sit on pins and needles awaiting Judge Herman Cahn’s New York Supreme Court ruling regarding the legitimacy of the new Challenger of Record, Hamish Ross, general counsel for Alinghi, has just been interviewed by Yachting as saying that if Alinghi loses the BMW/Oracle’s suit, they’ll be happy to race next year in 90-foot by 90-foot catamarans, as suggested by BMW/Oracle and as unlikely (but spectacular) as that sounds. These cats routinely travel at 40 knots plus.

“We’re both in a holding pattern right now,” Ross summarized. He said that Alinghi et al loses, they have no intention at this point of appealing the ruling.

They’d go ahead and race in the Mediterranean in mega-cats (Your Blogster: For the King Kong Cup, the KKC?), then go on to the America’s Cup event. If Alinghi wins the Court Challenge, they’d then expect a lengthy appeal by BMW/Oracle, prolonging the first races until that’s settled, probably not until 2010 or 2011 (he notes: the World Cup also competes in 2010 for both TV coverage and for advertisers, not a good situation.).

“It costs a lot of money to run these regattas,” he continued. “We want to attract advertisers and put on a good show. If BMW/Oracle wins, we may not be looking at an America’s Cup regatta until 2011.” (Your Blogster adds: If it’s held at all, after all this unpleasantness. Then who’s won?)