America's Cup: Sir Michael Fay, club veterans quit over Barcelona move

Veteran America's Cup campaigner Sir Michael Fay has resigned from the Royal NZ Yacht Squadron, in protest at the Cup's defence going offshore. And he is not the only one.   

In March, Team New Zealand and the squadron, also known as the host club, announced its decision to head to Barcelona in 2024.

Team boss Grant Dalton said there was not enough money to mount a successful defence in New Zealand, and that the team came first.

That was despite the government offering a support package of $100 million if the challenge stayed here.  

At the time Sir Michael, who supported three bids for the America's Cup, criticised the move as a betrayal and a breach of ancient Cup rules.  

Now, in an open letter to Royal NZ Yacht Squadron (RNZYS) Commodore Aaron Young, Sir Michael has tendered his resignation.  

Leaving the club with him is Alan Sefton, who was part of Sir Peter Blake's successful Cup challenge and defence, and Andrew Johns, a legal adviser on multiple Cup challenges.  

In the letter, the three said: "For the best part of 40 years, New Zealand has enjoyed an emotional magic carpet ride with that event as its sailors, designers, boatbuilders and sailmakers, with the support of a highly innovative marine industry, rose to the challenge to completely dominate the oldest and one of the greatest events in world sport and take lead positions in the technologies and skills needed to make that possible.  

"Yet, when the country is in position to reap the considerable rewards for those endeavours and achievements, the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron sells off the rights to hosting the event.  

"That, to us, is a slap in the face for everyone and everything that have gone before."

Sir Michael told Checkpoint the club had done entirely the wrong thing.  

"There was no need to do it and we thought the only thing we could do, to express our dissatisfaction and the bad decisions that were taken, was to resign from the club.  

"We've been collectively in it for 150 years, so we did enjoy it. But … the club's obligations were very, very obvious.  

"When someone wins the cup, the cup belongs to the club, not the owner of the winning yacht. That goes back to as early as almost the Treaty of Waitangi - it's back into the 1860s.

"It's been consistent all the way along, talked about a lot in arbitration panels and it's always the same. It does not belong to the owner of the vessel that wins. It belongs to the club."

Sir Michael said he, Johns and Sefton had been ruminating and found that if they strongly disagreed with the decision, their only option was to vote with their feet.  

"Reluctantly, but resigning," he said.  

"I think we're sending the club a clear message from people who understand how complicated it is, how difficult it is, that the Cup should have stayed here. It had to stay here, they had no right to go anywhere else.  

"I'm sure there was pressure from Team New Zealand, and I've heard all sorts of stories. I don't know if it's true or not. I heard that Don at one stage said that if he couldn't go offshore to raise more money than he would liquidate Team New Zealand.  

"I don't know if that's true or not, but I've been told it by a number of people.

"If he said that to the club, the club had a simple response: liquidate Team New Zealand, you go offshore, you come back as a challenger and meanwhile we'll set up another defence organisation.

"It's not complicated and not hard to know what the right thing to do was."

Grant Dalton has been adamant there was insufficient money in New Zealand to mount a successful America's Cup defence in 2024.  

Sir Michael told Checkpoint Dalton was simply wrong.  

"There was money offered to him. There was money offered to the club. It was a Dalton-driven decision.  

"I don't know deep down what his reason was. He probably wanted more control, maybe more money, I don't know.

"But for all of that, the club did not have the power to take this offshore for a defence by New Zealand."

He said he had not spoken directly with RNZYS Commodore Aaron Young, and he had not heard from Young since the letter was sent.  

But Sir Michael said their letter to him was factual about the history of the club and the question of defence.  

"And even quotes a Commodore back in 2000, when Peter Blake was getting set up to defend, that the defence has to be in the waters of the defending yacht club."

He said the decision to resign was not one taken lightly.  

"But the principle is that the club have done a poor job. They've had no right to do what they did, and let it go overseas, so all we can really do is show our strong disagreement and resign."

Sir Michael said they had not spoken to Dalton directly either.  

"I don't think Dalton is going to listen to anybody.  

"I think he set his mind before the regatta, before the win.

"But the bottom line here is he sailed for New Zealand. Team New Zealand was what it was called."

Sir Michael said he saw a quote from Dalton before the Barcelona announcement was made, where he said Team New Zealand did not owe anybody anything.  

"That's not correct," Sir Michael told Checkpoint.  

"The traditions of Team New Zealand and the 40 years to get to where we have been means that lots of people in New Zealand, lots of sponsors, lots of supporters - the obligations were there."

"And it was all sort of ignored, ripped up, and 'we're going'."

Sir Michael said if he had the power he would ask Young to resign "for a job poorly done", but that was something for club members to vote on.  

He said it was unlikely we would not see the America's Cup in New Zealand again for some time.  

Sir Michael said he does like Dalton, and they had a good history working together.  

"I cannot agree with this action that he has taken. I disagree strongly."

In a statement, Young said they were disappointed with the resignations, and they would like to acknowledge and thank Sir Michael and his associates for their previous support of past America's Cup campaigns.