WHILE the fight to become the challenger may prove to be a tough one in the best-of-nine Louis Vuitton final between Emirates Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa, the battle to win the America’s Cup itself looks set to be an even bigger task. Lifting the challenger’s trophy may be cause for celebration after two months of hard competition, but the biggest question in the cup will still remain unanswered. Will the challenger be strong enough to beat the defender Alinghi?

If the challenger role falls to the Kiwis, an unofficial “training match” that took place two days before the Louis Vuitton finals started suggests that winning the big one will be tougher than expected.

In the two matches that took place, Emirates Team New Zealand put on a good performance in the prestarts, and gained the favoured side of the start line to take the preferred side of the course up the first leg. But Alinghi forced the Kiwis out to the extreme right-hand side of the course and by the first mark they had taken the lead – and Team New Zealand did not come back.

In the second match, Kiwi skipper Dean Barker and his crew gained the upper hand in the prestart once again and rounded the next two marks in front, only for the Swiss to take the lead minutes later.

But Alinghi might not have it all their own way. Reliability could prove to be the biggest threat to them, as a few days before the unofficial matches took place, their SUI91 boat broke her rudder during in-house racing.

As both teams know from the last Cup, speed may be important, but finishing the race is crucial.

Matthew Sheahan is racing and technical editor of Yachting World