Team New Zealand say they are well short of their peak performance despite coasting into the challenger series final of the America's Cup.
The Kiwi outfit crushed Italian syndicate Luna Rossa by more than seven minutes on San Francisco Bay on Tuesday to make it seven wins from seven races in the Louis Vuitton Cup series.
Four of the wins have been forfeits - over Luna Rossa in the first round and three times against Swedish entry Artemis Racing, who are yet to sail a race.
With just five scheduled races remaining in the series, Team NZ can't be headed and are guaranteed a berth in the best-of-13 final starting on August 17.
The winners of the final go on to challenge Oracle USA for the America's Cup in September.
Despite their dominance, Team NZ skipper Dan Barker says ample work lies ahead.
"We are always happy when we sail the boat well. In general today, we made no glaring errors," he said.
"However, the level of performance that we are trying to achieve is still well above where we are now.
"There's still much to be done in terms of boat systems and the way we manage it round the course. We know we can do better."
The third on-water race between Team NZ and Luna Rossa followed a familiar script, with Barker winning a tight pre-start and opening up a 21sec advantage by the first mark.
They pulled steadily clear, making the biggest gains on the upwind legs of the race in winds that hovered between 15 and 19 knots.
Barker says the importance of winning the pre-start manoeuvring is becoming increasingly obvious in the AC72 catamarans as passing on the course is difficult.
Luna Rossa's hopes weren't helped by an accident on the way to the start line. With a low tide, they dragged a rudder along the bed of the bay, forcing them to return to dock for quick repairs.
Team NZ's opponents in the Louis Vuitton Cup final will be Luna Rossa or Artemis Racing.
Despite launching their second boat on Wednesday, Artemis are still to confirm their readiness for the semi-final starting on August 7.
Their first boat was destroyed when it capsized during a testing session in May, resulting in the death of British sailor Andrew Simpson.
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