Up in front, if PRB is maintaining her lead and keeping Paprec-Virbac 2 38 miles in her wake, Hugo Boss has come yet closer to Veolia Environnement and seems to be in a position to threaten Jourdain and Nelias's third place.

31 miles behind the French crew, Thomson and Cape are making the most of their monohull's power, while enjoying every minute of their cavalcade at more than 20 knots. North east of her prey, Hugo Boss is apparently benefiting from stronger winds and has caught up on Veolia Environnement last night while moving away from Delta Dore's bow.

"That boat is clearly fast", said Jeremie Beyou, "and they got some good winds before us and now have a better angle. But now we're also happy with our speed which is a relief because the Atlantic hasn't been that fast for us until now. We're in the 40s, and I have a very happy Sidney at the helm right now - the guy needs speed, so the conditions suit him fine at the moment. Looking ahead, we're going to get into some ha! iry stuff soon, so we're preparing for that."

The first big depression is expected to hit the fleet in approximately 72 hours, yet lighter winds tomorrow might allow for a slight compression, the leaders slowing down while their pursuers may keep going a bit longer. But after that, the great "conveyor belt" of low pressure systems looks right in place and active, the race towards this fast train is on the menu more than ever...

Day 26 - December 6, 16:00 Gmt - Position Report With Distance To Leader

1. PRB- Vincent Riou / Sebastien Josse - 0.0
2. Paprec-Virbac 2 - Jean Pierre Dick / Damian Foxall - 38
3. Veolia Environnement - Roland Jourdain / Jean Luc Nelias - 170
4. Hugo Boss - Alex Thomson / Andrew Cape - 201
5. Delta Dore - Jeremie Beyou / Sidney Gavignet - 297
6. Temenos 2 - Dominique Wavre / Michele Paret- 488
7. Estrella Damm - Guillermo Altadill / Jonathan Mckee - 764
8. Mutua Madrilena - Javier Sanso / Pachi Rivero - 817
9. Educacion Sin Fronteras - Servane Escoffier / Albert Bargues - 1386

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