Dennis Conner's Stars & Stripes continued winning, dealing Kevin Mahaney's Young America its first defeat in America's Cup Defender yacht racing.
In fading winds that almost calmed the sailing fleet, Stars & Stripes ended the first round-robin of Defender trials Sunday by finishing more than three minutes ahead of Young America."I think more than anything the change on Stars & Stripes has been getting everybody in the racing mode," said Stars & Stripes navigator Jim Brady.
"We've been on the steep vertical part of the learning curve with our boat and we'll continue that in the next round."
Four-time America's Cup champion Conner took turns at the helm with Paul Cayard during the victory. Young America had beaten Stars & Stripes in two races last week and leads the Defenders with five first-round victories.
Stars & Stripes has won three races, including its last two contests.
The first round of Defender racing has been worth one point per victory. When the second round-robin begins on Jan. 29, each victory will count for two points. There are three more Defender round-robins leading to the semifinals on March 18.
The winning Defender will represent the United States in the America's Cup that on May 6.
On the Challenger course Sunday, two New Zealand syndicates claimed the top two spots on the leader board with victories over Australian teams.
Undefeated Team New Zealand, skippered by Russell Coutts, was comfortably ahead of Sydney 95 when the Australian team withdrew from the race on the final leg because of steering problems.