AC Action in October?

With the recent court ruling establishing BMW Oracle as the Challenger of Record for the next America’s Cup, Oracle sent off 2007 with a promise of a Deed of Gift challenge for October, 2008. Now it’s up to an anticipated court order to compel Alinghi — who are appealing the New York court’s November decision — to meet Oracle within the ten month time frame provided for in the Deed.

“We had hoped to negotiate a conventional regatta under the Deed’s mutual consent provisions," said BMW Oracle CEO Russell Coutts. "But the Defender has made it clear to us and the America’s Cup community that they will not negotiate. We are now fully committed to a multihull event in 2008."

The challenge will mean that, like 1988’s "coma off Point Loma," AC 33 will be settled between the two in a best of three series. Only this time, instead of a yawner between two grossly mismatched boats, we expect to see a full-tilt, edge-of-your-seat, yelling-at-the-sports-bar television event — which we’re hoping will catalyze ISAF to keep multihulls in the Olympics past 2008. But that’s another story.