Challenger BMW Oracle confirmed on Tuesday its intention to negotiate a conventional America's Cup series with current holder Alinghi and avoid a one-off series between the two yachts.
San Francisco's Golden Gate Yacht Club (GGYC) was declared the Challenger of Record by a New York court last week, a decision that gives the American syndicate the right to negotiate race terms with Societe Nautique de Geneve, the Swiss club that backs two-time defending champion Alinghi.
BMW Oracle said its CEO Larry Ellison is in talks with Alinghi counterpart Ernesto Bertarelli to reach "a successful conclusion as quickly as possible."
If an agreement cannot be reached, the two syndicates will meet in a rare one-on-one showdown in 90-foot (27-meter) multihull boats.
The 33rd America's Cup had originally been scheduled to be held at Valencia this summer but was delayed after BMW Oracle contested Club Nautico Espanol De Vela, a Spanish club backed by the Swiss champion, as a legitimate challenger through the courts. The 20-month case began in July 2007, just after Alinghi beat a New Zealand team to retain the trophy.
The court agreed with the GGYC that the Spanish club was ineligible because it never held annual regattas required of the challenger under the amended 1887 Deed of Gift that governs the America's Cup.
