New Zealand opens up a 3-0 lead over Britain in America’s Cup final after almost crashing

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Emirates Team New Zealand avoided a crash and nailed INEOS Britannia with a penalty as it opened up a 3-0 lead in the first-to-seven wins finals of the America’s Cup on Sunday.

Britain was hit with a 75-meter penalty for not keeping clear when the two boats came feet from colliding in the pre-start jockeying for position in Race 3. The Kiwis’ Taihoro foiling yacht cruised through the six laps and won by 52 seconds.

Now the challenger that is backed by billionaire Jim Ratcliffe and the design expertise of the Mercedes Formula 1 team must rebound big if it wants to win Britain’s first ever America’s Cup in its 173-year history.

For the Kiwis, they are four wins away.

“We’re only three races into it but we are obviously happy to be on this side of the scorecard. I think tomorrow (Race 4) will be a pretty important day,” New Zealand helmsman Nathan Outteridge said. “Once you nudge that one forward and get over the halfway stage to seven, maybe the momentum goes a bit that way.”

New Zealand skipper Peter Burling said that they had planned to steer aggressively in the pre-start, and it paid off. They had the right of way as the starboard boat when they bore down on the Brits before turning late, and the Britannia was a tad slow to react as their foils almost touched.

“We tried it yesterday but they just got past us. It was a little bit uncomfortable to be honest with how close the boats got,” Burling said about the maneuver. "But the umpire obviously thought we were pretty clear there, so it was great to get the penalty and control the race from there.”

Britannia was more than 600 meters behind when the lead boat crossed the finish line off the Barcelona beachfront.

“It was about as close as you ever want to get. I think our foils overlapped and thankfully they didn’t collide,” Britannia skipper Ben Ainslie said about the near collision and penalty. “It was a tough call for us and obviously the umpires decided we were at fault and it put us on the back foot off the line. It is what it is, no point in moaning about it.”

“For us it is time to regroup and take on the second half of the competition,” the record Olympic medalist said.

Britannia largely avoided any costly mistakes and technical mishaps, until now.

On Saturday, Britannia was hampered by a battery meltdown just minutes before Race 1. New Zealand dominated both the opening regattas to make a perfect 2-0 start.

New Zealand is trying to win the Auld Mug, the oldest trophy in international sport, for a third straight time and fifth overall.

As defender, New Zealand was guaranteed a spot in the final. Britain had to fend off four other challengers to make its first final in six decades.

Despite not having raced competitively for a month, the Kiwis have shown they are still very much in championship form.

Race 4 had been scheduled for later Sunday, but it was pushed back to Monday after winds died down below the 6.5-knot minimum. Other than early in Race 2 when there were several lead changes, the Brits have been in the wake of the Kiwis — or even further behind.

Spain's King Felipe VI watched the racing from aboard a Spanish navy vessel.

A couple thousand local residents held a protest against the hosting of the America’s Cup near the old port where the team bases and fan zones are located on Sunday.

Some locals link the hosting of international events like the regatta with the already huge presence of tourists in the Mediterranean city. They argue that tourists fuel skyrocketing rents via short-term rentals of apartments and that many areas of the city now cater far too much to tourist appetites and interests.

Barcelona calculates the two-month event will attract some 2.5 million tourists and contribute more than a billion euros ($1.09 billion) to the city. Local authorities say that this type of event is exactly the kind of so-called “quality tourism” that the city needs.

Several thousand people turned out to celebrate the opening ceremony of the America's Cup finals last week.

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Ineos Britannia skipper Ben Ainslie, center, talks to the crew during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Emirates Team New Zealand crew prepares for the race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Emirates Team New Zealand crew prepares for the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia skipper Ben Ainslie, center santds before the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Peter Burling stands before the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, on Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue

Demonstrators march shouting slogans against the holding of the America's Cup sailing competition, during a protest demanding the right to housing, in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Supporters of America's Cup wave from a restaurant as demonstrators march shouting slogans against the holding of the America's Cup sailing competition, during a protest demanding the right to housing, in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Ineos Britannia races during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 2 race in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)