top 3 reasons the America’s Cup World Series is important to Oracle Team USA

Oracle Team USA's team General Manager Grant Simmer shares what the Louis Vuitton World Series means to the America’s Cup Defenders.

Unlike the other teams challenging for the Cup, as the Cup Defenders the American team already has a spot in the America’s Cup Finals in 2017. They aren’t fighting for a place in the finals the way the other teams are, but that doesn’t mean that the World Series races leading up to big event in 2017 are any less important.

In the video below, Oracle Team USA General Manager Grant Simmer says the most important part of the World Series is that it gives them a chance to compete against every single team.

“We do score some points that will affect our score in the qualifiers, but the main thing is to compete against the other teams,” Grant Simmer says.

While Land Rover BAR and Team New Zealand have been doing well, Simmer says that Oracle isn't discounting any of their competitors at this point.

"Clearly BAR and team NZ have been going very well together with us, but frankly all the teams could get up and win a regatta, but we’re not discounting any of the teams, we’re considering them all to be competitors and think we’ll see a mix of results both in the Bermuda [World Series] regatta and next year."

Another benefit of the America's Cup World Series events is it gives the Defender Oracle Team USA a chance to see where they are strongest – and where they need to improve.

"What we’ve shown is we can compete strongly in all aspects – but we are particularly good in the first leg and have done particularly well there," said team General Manager Grant Simmer. "The Portsmouth course and Gothenburg were quite tricky, but generally we started well and did the first leg really well.

"The light air performance in Gothenburg, Jimmy and the boys were not happy with that result, but we’ve been studying the techniques of the other boats and we’ve been changing our techniques, and it’s been important learning for us and we’ll take that learning going forward."

The upcoming World Series event in Bermuda is a good trial for the America's Cup in 2017, but Oracle Team USA General Manager Grant Simmer says it's more for the logistics of running the event and seeing it all come together – and to feel the growing excitement felt in the island nation.

"There's a lot of excitement for the event," Simmer says. "We really see Bermuda getting behind the event and virtually for the whole island to get involved."

But as far as if the Bermuda World Series will show competitors what the Cup will be like, he says, "It will be a different boat, different course and a different style of racing."