Sailing's Americas Cup is said to be one of sport's oldest trophies but it's also often been one the most bitterly contested off the water and this year's contest has been wracked with bitter arguments and a succession of court cases.
However the 33rd competition is finally set to start off Valencia in Spain after two years of battling between the Swiss holders Alinghi and the American challengers BMW Oracle over the design of the big catamarans.
But now the teams' New Zealand skippers have their minds on the conditions for the race and Alinghi's Brad Butterworth says crews will be on the edge constantly.
He says the boats are powered up around seven or eight knots and their maximum stability is when they lift their hull with their top speed up to three times the wind speed.
An Butterworth's old team-mate Russell Coutts, who's now with Oracle, says there'll be none of the usual jockeying for position at the start of a conventional match race.
The best of three series starts on Monday night.
