Skip to main content

Prix Marcel Boussac preview

It's a classy card packed full of Group 1 races at Chantilly today, and racing commences with a Group 1 for 2yo fillies over the mile, a distance most of them will have yet to experience. Can the British and Irish raiders start the ball rolling or will the mighty Frankel filly claim first blood for the hosts?

With the preview, it's welcome back to Australian racecalling prodigy Luke Humphreys, @worldracingluke.

------------------------

Prix Marcel Boussac
2YOF 1600m Turf
Group 1,€300,000
Chantilly, 1410 local, 1310 BST


1 Dabyah (7/2): Won with plenty in the tank on debut at Newmarket on July Cup day and in her only subsequent run she bolted in by nine lengths at Newbury very impressively. Hardest task to date but looks a genuine superstar in the making. By gun Australian sire Sepoy.

2 First Of Spring (10/1): Two starts for two wins, both over the 6f at Deauville. Has looked green in both of those but has done them well, place.

3 Normandel (14/1): Won on debut at Clairefontaine, despite being green, and finished second in the G3 trial race over this C&D behind Toulifaut last month. Will certainly be in the finish somewhere.

4 Elegante Bere (40/1): Outsider who was third in a LR at Deauville last time but more required.

5 Senga (25/1): Looks overs at 25/1. Was a good second on debut at Deauville, when run down by a smart one, and has since won comfortably at Saint-Cloud. Can certainly get into the money at decent odds.

6 Baileys Showgirl (25/1): Has finished third in her last two runs both at G3 level at Deauville and Saint-Cloud, prepared by Mark Johnston in the UK. Looks to be a bit below the favored runners here.

7 Wuheida (6/1): Good debut win at Newmarket at the start of August over 1400m on Good to Firm ground. Interesting contender.

8 Cavale Doree (8/1): Winner of two from three and in her two wins, both at Deauville, has gone from last to first easily with the most recent of those in a G3. Toughest task to date but has to be considered.

9 Promise To Be True (9/2): Smart filly from the Aidan O’Brien yard who won a G3 on Good to Firm ground at Leopardstown in July over 7f in good style however disappointed as favourite in the G1 Moyglare Stud Stakes at the Curragh last time, possibly because of the ground? Each-Way

10 Body Sculpt (40/1): Second in a LR at Vichy over 7f and fourth in a G3 at Saint-Cloud, one place behind Baileys Showgirl the last two times. Outclassed.

11 Toulifaut (3/1): Winner of all of her three runs so far. Filly by the legendary Frankel and prepared by Jean-Claude Rouget who hasn’t done a thing wrong this season. G3 trial victory over the C&D last time was very good. Will go very close.

Ratings: (1) DABYAH – (11) TOULIFAUT – (9) PROMISE TO BE TRUE – (7) WUNEIDA – (3) NORMANDEL – (8) CAVALE DOREE – (5) SENGA – (2) FIRST OF SPRING – (10) BODY SCULPT – (6) BAILEYS SHOWGIRL

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Spot-fixing - you will never, ever be able to stop it

According to this report , IPL tournaments so far have been rife with spot-fixing - that is fixing minor elements of the game - runs in a single over, number of wides bowled etc. The curious part of that article is that the Income Tax department are supposed to have found these crimes. What idiot would be stupid enough to put down 'big wad of cash handed to me by bookie' as a source of income? Backhanders for sportsmen, particularly in a celebrity- and cricket-obsessed culture like India are not rare. They could come from anything like turning up to open someone's new business (not a sponsor, but a 'friend of a friend' arrangement), to being a guest at some devoted fan's dinner party etc. The opportunities are always there, and there will always be people trying to become friends with players and their entourage - that is human nature. This form of match-fixing (and it's not really fixing a match, just a minor element of it) is very hard to prove, but also, ...

lay the field - my favourite racing strategy

Dabbling with laying the field in-running at various prices today, not just one price, but several in the same race. Got several matched in the previous race at Brighton, then this race came along at Nottingham. Such a long straight at Nottingham makes punters often over-react and think the finish line is closer than it actually is. As you can see by the number of bets matched, there was plenty of volatility in this in-play market. It's rare you'll get a complete wipe-out with one horse getting matched at all levels, but it can happen, so don't give yourself too much risk...

It's all gone Pete Tong at Betfair!

The Christmas Hurdle from Leopardstown, a good Grade 2 race during the holiday period. But now it will go into history as the race which brought Betfair down. Over £21m at odds of 29 available on Voler La Vedette in-running - that's a potential liability of over £500m. You might think that's a bit suspicious, something's fishy, especially with the horse starting at a Betfair SP of 2.96. Well, this wasn't a horse being stopped by a jockey either - the bloody horse won! Look at what was matched at 29. Split that in half and multiply by 28 for the actual liability for the layer(s). (Matched amounts always shown as double the backers' stake, never counts the layers' risk). There's no way a Betfair client would have £600m+ in their account. Maybe £20 or even £50m from the massive syndicates who regard(ed) Betfair as safer than any bank, but not £600m. So the error has to be something technical. However, rumour has it, a helpdesk reply (not gospel, natur...