GB1 has reached a major milestone in its 38th America’s Cup campaign, with the team’s AC75 arriving at its new base in Naples following an extensive redesign and reconfiguration programme in northern Italy.
Over the past 12 months, the team’s existing AC75 hull from the 2024 campaign has been undergoing work at Persico Marine in preparation for the next Louis Vuitton America’s Cup. Now, with that phase complete, the boat has made the 460-mile journey south to Naples, where racing will take place in 2027.
Transporting a 75-foot America’s Cup yacht is no ordinary delivery. Weighing up to 5,875kg, the AC75 required a carefully coordinated operation to move it from Persico to the team’s base.
Boat Operations Manager Chris Schirmer oversaw the process from start to finish, beginning with preparing and wrapping the boat before it was lifted onto a specialist truck.
“We’ve got the boat on the skates, so it’s ready to roll out of the shed,” Schirmer explained ahead of the move. “We’ve finished wrapping and strapping the boat down and the crane has just arrived, so we’re ready to pick it up and place it down on the truck.”
A 48-hour journey to Naples
With the AC75 secured, the convoy began its journey south, travelling predominantly at night to minimise disruption caused by the sheer size of the load.
The journey took more than 48 hours and became increasingly challenging as the convoy approached Naples. Tight bends, narrow roads and bridges required careful manoeuvring, with escort vehicles managing traffic and some street signs temporarily moved to provide enough clearance for the truck.
Eventually, in the early hours of the morning, the AC75 arrived at the GB1 base.
Several members of the team were called in at around 2:30am to help receive the boat, position the truck and carefully lift the yacht into its cradle inside the shed.
“It feels like a big step in the programme.”, said Will Heritage, Head Rigger. “Thankfully, you only have to do this part once each cycle,”, he added.
With the operation continuing well into the early hours, the team worked together to unwrap the boat, remove it from the truck and secure it safely in its new home.
A major milestone for GB1
While the arrival marked the end of one significant journey, it also signalled the beginning of an even more important phase of the campaign.
Much of the work on the AC75 has taken place behind the scenes, while the wider sailing and shore teams have continued developing together through the AC40 programme. With the AC75 now in Naples, those different strands of the campaign are beginning to come together.
“It’s a really great feeling to have the boat here and finally get stuck into the AC75,” said Schirmer. “It’s a huge milestone for the team.
“The journey of this boat specifically has been very much behind the scenes with a smaller group than what we’ve been working with on the AC40. But now the boat is here in the shed, the whole team is together.”
Attention now turns to completing the AC75’s fit-out and preparing the boat to sail.
Over the coming weeks, the team will begin the next phase of installing systems, hardware and supporting components. At the same time, work will continue on completing the Naples base to ensure the team can operate efficiently once sailing begins.
Once fit-out is complete, the AC75 will move into commissioning, followed by stepping the rig and ultimately launching the boat for the first time.
“There’s a lot of work between now and then,” Schirmer said.
But with the AC75 finally in Naples, GB1 has taken another significant step towards its ultimate goal.
The boat is here. Now the focus turns to getting it on the water.
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