The new AC 75s could be up to 3% faster than the old generation

In a few weeks we will find out what the new Luna Rossa will look like, the third-generation AC 75 with which the Italian syndicate will chase the America’s Cup starting next August 22 in Barcelona. The curiosity in seeing the new boats on the water is enormous, which is why the Sailing Newspaper tried to imagine what the new boats will look like and what speed increases to expect.

As of today, the April issue of our magazine is available in digital version, and in a few days on newsstands the printed one, inside which you will find a long and detailed feature on the new AC 75 edited by Mauro Giuffrè and Federico Albano. We imagined the shapes of the new AC 75s and what solutions could be adopted for hull, deck, foil and sails, also trying to calculate what the performance increase might be in the preview below.

How much faster will the new AC 75s go?

It is hard to guess a priori how much of a real increase in performance the new generation boats might have. In the last America’s Cup Te Rehutai had a Average VMG upwind of 19.52 knots at 49.29 degrees angle to true wind and 24.58 knots downwind with 134.95 degrees angle to true wind. If we take Formula 1 as a comparison, the performance increase after each year is about 2 percent, a number that will probably be slightly higher for this Cup since it will be only the second with this generation of boats, so we can assume a 3 percent increase in performance.

As for upwind, the biggest challenge but also by the most margin would be to be able to decrease the angle. The problem remains that the speed of these boats is so high that the apparent upwind angles were just over 10 degrees, so sail plan work will have to try to reduce this by a few tenths. How? Working on sail shape and refining the rig.

It will be difficult to assess the profiles that sail designers will use for the new generation of AC 75s, but we are willing to bet that they may be a bit leaner than the previous edition with a tendency to use very small headsails as soon as the wind rises above 10 knots. An increase in speed however seems likely, with a VMG that if actually improved by 3 percent would exceed 20 knots (20.11).

In the stern, on the other hand, it is precisely the increase in angle that appears to be within the reach of designers: the continued evolution of foils and conduction will lead to a reduction in drag and increasing speed on the water. This means that the angles of apparent (about 13 degrees) will be able to remain constant but with a greater angle to the true wind. To simplify the concept: the AC 75, while maintaining an apparent angle similar to the last Cup, will be able to sail more leaning.

In the stern, a 3% increase in VMG would lead to the stratospheric average VMG of 25.32 knots, which would result in pure boat speed spikes over 50 knots.

So how will the boats at the 2024 edition in Barcelona, scheduled for August 22 to October 21, change? Performance, shapes, foils, deck and sails:you will find the full report in the April issue of the Journal of Sailing on newsstands very soon and available in digital version from March 25 and then in pills on our website as well.

Edited by Mauro Giuffrè and Federico Albano