'The comeback is on.' Britannia scores first points of America's Cup final, trails New Zealand 4-2

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — INEOS Britannia got back into the America's Cup final after scoring its first two wins over Emirates Team New Zealand, cutting the deficit in the first-to-seven wins to 4-2 on Wednesday.

The British capitalized on uncharacteristic mistakes by the Kiwis, who gifted their rivals a huge lead before Race 5 even started and then suffered another slip that hurt their chances of catching Britannia on a close Race 6.

“There is still a long way to go, but the comeback is on,” Britannia skipper Ben Ainslie said from his cockpit.

Later, he added on shore: “It’s a massive day for our team to really believe we can get back in this, and now the trick is to ride that momentum all the way.”

The British have never won the America’s Cup in its 173-year history and are in their first final in six decades. New Zealand is trying to win the Auld Mug, the oldest trophy in international sport, for a third straight time and fifth overall.

New Zealand had sailed flawlessly to sweep the first four races held in view of the Barcelona beachfront. But the defenders couldn't handle the low winds and high waves and made their first error of the series when their yacht fell off its foils during a turn in the pre-start buildup.

The Taihoro was left flailing while Britannia buzzed it twice before taking off to build a huge advantage. When Britannia crossed the line New Zealand was almost 1,200 meters behind.

“It was a dream scenario for a start to have one boat off the foils and be able to get away with a clean start,” said Britannia trimmer Bleddyn Mon.

The British followed that up with a second victory that will surely be a bigger boost to their confidence. The Kiwis were closing when a dip of the hull into the water cost them valuable time in a contest that was decided by just seven seconds.

“You make a few little mistakes and you lose races," New Zealand skipper Peter Burling said. "That’s what we love about sport, and we also have a battle on our hands.”

Ainslie said that practicing on Tuesday in similarly choppy waves, while New Zealand stayed at base, helped prepare his team for similar waters once the racing resumed. That and a Britannia hull design suited for wavier water, compared to the New Zealand boat which he said appeared to perform better in flat seas.

As reigning champion, New Zealand had a guaranteed spot in America’s Cup finals, in addition to picking the venue and the rules. The Taihoro hadn’t raced for a month until the finals started on Saturday as it sat out the playoff rounds.

Britannia came in with more real racing practice and counts on the backing of the engineering expertise of the Mercedes Formula 1 team. New Zealand, for its part, relies on an in-house design team that produced the revolutionary design for the 75-foot AC75s.

Races 7 and 8 are scheduled for Friday, giving New Zealand one day to figure out what went wrong.

“We didn’t really executed our best today, so we let ourselves down," ETNZ helmsman Nathan Outteridge said. “We will go and review that tonight and come back in better shape.”

AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports

Emirates Team New Zealand crew prepares for the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Emirates Team New Zealand, right, and Ineos Britannia race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 6 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia, left, and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Ineos Britannia, right, and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Ineos Britannia races against Emirates Team New Zealand during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 6 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Catalan police, Mossos d'Esquadra overfly the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Emirates Team New Zealand races during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia skipper Ben Ainslie reacts after winning the race 5 of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4, in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia races during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Ineos Britannia skipper Ben Ainslie reacts after winning the race 5 of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4, in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia crosses the finish line as they win the race 5 of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4, in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia, right, and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia, left, and Emirates Team New Zealand race during the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia crosses the finish line as they win the race 5 of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4, in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia sails before the start of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia sails before the start of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Ineos Britannia sails before the start of the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Day 4 race 5 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 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)