AUCKLAND, New Zealand -- Series-leading Alinghi of Switzerland chose defending Louis Vuitton Cup champion Prada as its quarterfinal rival in the challenger series Monday.

U.S. rivals Oracle and OneWorld will meet in the other quarterfinal.

Alinghi won the right to select which of the top four teams it would race in best-of-seven seeded quarterfinals starting Nov. 12 by placing first after 16 races.

Prada, which lost 5-0 to Team New Zealand in the 2000 America's Cup off Auckland, placed fourth at the end of round-robin racing. Oracle and OneWorld finished equal with 12 points, although Oracle placed second on a countback due to its second-round victory in the head-to-head matchup.

In the bottom half of the quarterfinal series, fifth-place Victory of Sweden opted to race eighth-place Le Defi of France, meaning Britain's GBR Challenge will face Dennis Conner's Stars & Stripes.

The top four teams each have two chances of reaching December's challenger semifinals. Winners in the top half of the quarterfinal draw will advance directly to the semis, while losers race in repechages against the winners of quarterfinals among the bottom four teams.

Repechage winners then move to the semifinals.

One challenger will eventually remain to race New Zealand for the America's Cup starting February next year.

''It was a difficult decision to make as the three teams (OneWorld, Oracle and Prada) all have two strong boats to race,'' Alinghi said in a statement Monday. ''Team Alinghi decided to face Prada Challenge. They are a prestigious team, notably winner of the Louis Vuitton Cup in 2000.''