Somebody at BHA Race Planning clearly needs to be getting their P45. Yesterday there were afternoon meetings in pretty close proximity at Newcastle, York and Chester with a lot of small fields at the latter two despite decent prize money. Today there is only one flat meeting, pretty lowly fare at Windsor. Why did they not move one of York or Chester to Sunday? Give it a week and trainers will be moaning about lack of opportunity and the tracks will be moaning about poor attendance figures.
Forget Ryan Moore, start looking for what Padraig Beggy is riding for Aidan O’Brien – his two wins in three years from hardly any rides must put punters well in front to a level stake while Moore is guaranteed to lose money on favourites.
Most of the field in the Grand Prix de Saint Cloud seem to be from these shores. Interesting that Frankie has chosen
Coronet over
Lah Ti Dar of the two Gosden runners, perhaps because the former has actual form at this level in the book (beaten a nostril by Waldgeist in this race last year weighed down with my money!) whilst the latter really only has a second in the St Leger.
Aspetar won a moderate Grand Prix de Chantilly last time (
Ziyad second) but chased home
Marmelo in the John Porter. Subsequent Coronation Cup winner Defoe was behind at Newbury but
Marmelo was well beaten by him at Epsom, as was
Lah Ti Dar, when neither handled the track.
Thundering Blue is surely out of his depth here although it is a Group 1 is name only. Andre Fabre’s filly
Morgan Le Faye comes here after three confidence boosting wins over shorter distances but was placed in the Prix Du Cadran and the Prix Royal Oak (French St Leger) last year over further. With the ground drying in the heat of Paris, this may be the best chance that
LAH TI DAR will have of collecting a Group 1; although it is difficult to tell how this race will be run as Frankie may have to set the fractions on
Coronet.
