AMERICA’S CUP DAILY REPORT : It’s Underdog Day Afternoon as Conner, French, Italians Win

The underdogs had their day in the America’s Cup Tuesday off San Diego. Dennis Conner sailed Stars & Stripes to its fourth consecutive victory against the America 3tandem, and on the challengers’ course a resilient Ville de Paris crew stunned New Zealand by 1 minute 46 seconds and Paul Cayard’s Il Moro di Venezia sailed out of lethargy and beat Nippon by 2:04.

If this keeps up, Conner may suggest that Bill Koch quit trying to steer his boats himself, as he did on the first leg Tuesday when Conner came from behind to stay.

Brunco Trouble, longtime Cup observer and a former Cup campaigner for France, said: “Koch’s steering is a joke. He’s a businessman, not a sailor. He reminds me of Baron Bich in the old days.”

Baron Marcel Bich, the French founder of the Bic pen, was another wealthy syndicate boss who in the ‘70s once insisted on steering his own boat--in white gloves, and disastrously.

Whatever the factors, the situation is reversed from the second round when Koch gave Conner the opportunity to discard his “goal post” keel because his crews were getting complacent beating up on Stars & Stripes. A month ago Conner seemed almost buried at sea.

Now he needs only to win two of his next six races to clinch a spot in the defender finals starting April 18. Koch’s dream of having two of his boats sailing in the defender finals is fading.

Tuesday’s victory over America 3, the boat, was Conner’s third of the fourth round, including the bonus victory he was credited for after finishing second in the three earlier rounds. Kanza, Koch’s newest boat, has credit for two victories, but both are bonuses from earlier rounds, not earned in head-to-head competition during the fourth round. America 3 is winless.

In light winds of five to seven knots steadily swinging from south to southwest, Stars & Stripes won by 45 seconds.

Conner was quick to say afterward, “(America 3) is a very, very, very good boat. Don’t be deceived by what happened today.

“They still have an edge downwind, but we hung in there. We didn’t panic.”

With the breeze constantly shifting right, that side of the course was favored--and that’s how America 3blew it.

In one critical moment near the end of the first leg, Koch forced Conner to duck behind him, but then let him continue to the right, unmolested. Conner was then in control, and all Koch could do was follow in Stars & Stripes’ disturbed air.

Stars & Stripes stretched its lead to 1:28 at the second windward mark, saw it shrink to 0:21 at the last mark, but fought off America 3on the downwind finish.

Koch said: “Dennis has humbled us a bit. (He) sails very scientifically and intuitively. He’s a marvelous sailor. I wish I had some of his skill.

“(Upwind) I made three lousy tacks . . . did a fairly good job on straight-line speed. But the law of averages will work out over the long run. The fastest boat will win, whether that’s Dennis’ boat or ours.”

Ville de Paris needed a victory even more than Conner. Two days earlier the French lost grinder Thierry Chappet to three broken ribs during a loss to Il Moro.

New Zealand also was trying to start to the right, but Ville de Paris starting helmsman Marc Bouet stole the spot with a maneuver 45 seconds before the gun.

“They caught us by surprise, no question,” Kiwi tactician David Barnes said.

From there, the French sailed into an insurmountable lead.

Watching that, Cayard, preparing to meet Nippon in the following match, decided, “I wanted to get to the right at any cost.”

He did so, with a similar final outcome. The Italians, disappointing during the third round, lead the semifinals at 2-0, with today’s opponent, New Zealand, and Ville de Paris at 1-1 and Nippon at 0-2.