Porro, Luna Rossa: "The course in Naples is difficult, like in Formula 1."

Naples – The Gulf will not forgive. A few hours before the start of the Preliminary Regatta of the 38th America's Cup, Margherita Porro described the Naples course as an unpredictable theater, capable of turning a race around even when the fastest boat seems already in control.

"The race course is very difficult. In my opinion, even if you're the fastest boat, the game is on until the very end because there are so many wind changes," said the helmsman of Luna Rossa 2, the Italian team's Women & Youth crew, on the sidelines of the press conference. "It will be a race open to the very end, down to the last overtaking move, a bit like in Formula 1. This makes things a little spicier, but it's fun for us sailors too. We're ready for anything."

The official trials are scheduled from Friday to Sunday in the Gulf of Naples, on identical one-design AC40 boats for all teams. Luna Rossa will take to the water with two boats: the senior boat and the Youth & Women's boat, the latter with Porro and Massimiliano Antoniazzi at the helm, and Maria Vittoria Marchesini and Giovanni Santi on the trim.

No podium noise, at least in the sailor's words. "For me, winning means doing the best I can. Then the result comes naturally. We don't feel any pressure at all, as far as I'm concerned. Every day on the water is the same for me: both in training and racing, I try to give my best to improve." It's the tone of someone who already knows these AC40s and knows that, in the Gulf, speed alone isn't enough. You need instinct, reading the wind, and patience for the last lap. Precisely what, according to Porro, will make Naples a race open to the end.