Orient Express Racing Team demonstrated how far they have progressed in their challenge for the 37th Louis Vuitton America's Cup with an extraordinary race today against INEOS Britannia.

With the lead changing hands half a dozen times in their final race in the first round of the Louis Vuitton Cup, the French challenger was in the mix throughout.

Despite the British team edging ahead on the final leg to narrowly claim the win at the finish, Quentin Delapierre and his crew could take positives ahead of the Louis Vuitton Cup's second and deciding round of races which start on Tuesday.

Skipper and pilot Quentin Delapierre said: "It was a great fight, and it is a real positive that the boat is going faster and faster and our manoeuvres are getting better. I was really proud of the team that we could take the start from INEOS.

"I think everything is getting better and better and we just need to do some things a bit faster or more accurately to win races, but we are not far from that."

Now at the halfway point of the Louis Vuitton Cup Round Robin races, Orient Express Racing Team remain on track to qualify for the Semi Final stage by virtue of being ahead of Alinghi Red Bull Racing in the overall standings.

With the second series of Round Robin races to come — with all the 5 challenger teams again racing each other — nothing is decided. For the moment, however, the French challenger's opening day race victory over Alinghi, who remain without a win, is making the difference and giving Orient Express Racing Team a route to the 4-team Louis Vuitton Cup Semi Final.

Delapierre, his fellow co-pilot Kevin Peponnet, and trimmers Jason Saunders and Matthieu Vandamme, and powerhouse cyclors Rémi and Thibaut Verhoeven, Timothé Lapauw, Antoine Nougarède, Germain Chardin, Maxime Guyon, Olivier Herlédant and François Pervis will face Alinghi again in the first race of the second Round Robin series.

Looking ahead to the potentially defining match race Delapierre said: "We will approach it with the same mind set, to keep on learning. Everything is way better than it was last week, and we just need to stay focused on that, stay patient and make it all happen."

In the overall Louis Vuitton Cup standings the Italian team's Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli are top of the challenger table and unbeaten with 4 race wins to their name. INEOS Britannia are second with a 3-1 scoreline, and NYYC American Magic third with 2 wins and 2 losses.