Mascalzone Latino XII
(ITA-72)
 
Mascalzone Base
in January

 

 Mascalzone Latino go out in style (11/03/02)
 (source : Le Défi)
Others would have chosen to scurry off to the airport, barely pausing to say farewell.

To mark the end of the Mascalzone Latino Campaign, the Italian will give a long night party in their Auckland Base.
 
 The end came for Mascalzone Latino (11/02/02)
 (source : Louis Vuitton)
Elimination from the Louis Vuitton Cup leaves an empty feeling because of the immense amount of lead-up time and preparation. Instead of worrying about the next race, there’s the wonderment of what to do next.

The first-time challenger from the Reale Yacht Club Canottieri Savoia has been in operation for nearly two years. But as the first team eliminated from the Louis Vuitton Cup, the end came after just 16 races over four weeks.

"We knew since the very beginning that we were here for experience for the next Cup," said syndicate head Vincenzo Onorato, from Naples, Italy. "This isn’t the end of this Cup; it’s the beginning of the next Cup for us."

Mascalzone Latino finished with a record of 1-15. The team’s solitary win came at the end of Round 1, a come-from-behind victory against France’s le Défi Areva.

That rematch today decided which team would advance to the quarterfinals as the No. 8 seed and which would go home. Le Défi won by 1:10. Game over for the Latin Rascals (translation of Mascalzone Latino).

" Today, the French did a very good job and deserved to win the race," said Onorato. "If we feel bad today, it’s because we found out in this series that we could do better. There were a series of unlucky incidents and mistakes that kept us from winning a couple of races."

The biggest mistake was a loss to Italian rival Prada Challenge earlier this week. Mascalzone Latino helmsman Paolo Cian got the better of Prada’s Rod Davis at the start, leading off the line by 1 second. He then became tactician and Flavio Favini took the helm.

Mascalzone Latino fended off the defending Louis Vuitton Cup champions for more than three-quarters of the race. But a poor jibe on the light-air run to the finish saw the asymmetric spinnaker twist like an hour glass. The sail had to be lowered to remove the wrap and Prada sailed by for the win.

"As I said to my crew, to be lucky or unlucky means no memory," Onorato said. "You can be lucky or unlucky several times in a series. But I think we have to remember the best part of this game ."
 
 Paolo Cian leaves Mascalzone Latino (10/30/02)
 (source : Louis Vuitton)
In a surprising development this morning Paolo Cian, the world’s No. 11-ranked match-race skipper, has apparently split ties with Italian challenger Mascalzone Latino. No reason had been given early on Thursday for Cian's departure.

An official announcement from the team is expected later this morning, but Cian is not included on today’s crew lists issued by the syndicate representing the Reale Yacht Club Canottieri Savoia.

Mascalzone, after leading for the entire race, blew a gybe on the final downwind run and allowed Prada to sail past them and on to victory. The race had seen Cian swap roles with tactician Flavio Favini, who will continue as helmsman.

Mascalzone have scored only one win in the regatta, and are locked in a battle with the winless Le Defi Areva to avoid elimination when the lowest ranked team is dropped at the end of this round.