Britain put pressure on Italy to challenge for the America's Cup by winning two close races in "knife-edge" sea conditions on Wednesday. The British team was just one point away from winning the Louis Vuitton Cup first-to-7 series.

Both AC75 "foiling" boats sped up to speeds over 50 knots in the Mediterranean breeze, despite huge Italian and British flags that were flying above their bases in Barcelona.

It's great. Good effort by the team. "It's bloody difficult to sail these boats with these waves," British co helm Ben Ainslie stated on the America's Cup broadcast live after the second victory, which gave Britain a 6-4 advantage.

The winner of this series will face New Zealand in a battle for the America's Cup at the end of this month.

The 47-year old Briton said with a smile, "Still have a long road to travel... I've still got to reach seven."

Ainslie’s crew had to overcome a scare after their boat landed in the water, before regaining its flight. This gave the Italians the chance to rejoin the race. However, they were able to maintain their lead by speeding downwind along the course.

Italy's defender vowed to "come out swinging the next day"

co-helm

Jimmy Spithill acknowledged the British's strong sailing, but added: "We couldn't get more to overtake".

After a "pre-start" scrap with Italy, which is crucial to a clean and potential advantage, Britain took an early lead and then capitalized on a bad tactic by the Italians.

The second race saw the teams neck and neck off the start. Britain gained an early lead and controlled the race through calm communication between Ainslie, Dylan Fletcher, and the co-helmsman as they kept an eye out for rogue wave. (Reporting and editing by Christian Radnedge; Alexander Smith is the reporter)

(source: Reuters)