3 minute read

News In Brief of French Racing and Trotting - 14th April 2022.

Flat and trotting racing dominate the latest news including G1 Prix Marcel Boussac (1600m) winner, Zellie, G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf winner, Modern Games alongside trotting developments including Delia du Pommereux and Davidson du Pont.

Flat

André Fabre has indicated plans for Zellie, who won the G1 Prix Marcel Boussac (1600m) and was a recent second in the G3 Prix Imprudence. She may head to Newmarket (UK) for the G1 1000 Guineas (1600m) in two weeks. Zellie also holds an entry in the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (1600m) at Longchamp in four weeks.  

Prepared by British trainer Charlie Appleby, Modern Games will be targeted for the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulaines (1600m). Winner of the G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf he will make his seasonal reappearance in the Classic at Longchamp.  

Not seen since competing in the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (2400m) in October, Baby Rider will make his seasonal reappearance in the Listed Prix Lord Seymour (2400m) at Longchamp on Sunday. Trained by Pascal Bary, Baby Rider finished second, beaten a nose, behind Bubble Gift in the G2 Prix Niel (2400m).  

Road to Arc finished sixth in the G3 Prix Exbury (2000m). Preferring a wet track and with little rain forecast in France his next run will be in Germany at Cologne. 

Trainer Jérôme Reynier has announced six-year-old Sea The Moon mare Noble Music has been retired to stud. Winner of three races from nineteen starts including the Listed Prix Gold River (2800m), she will return to Ireland where she was bred and did her initial racing.  

There was a French connection with the recent running of the Japanese G1 1000 Guineas (1600m). Starting from the outside gate, Stars on Earth put up a strong performance to win. She is a daughter of Southern Stars who was by Smart Strike, and this makes her the first foal from the great performing French filly Stacelita who was by Monsun.  

Stallion Genghis landed his first winner as a stallion in France last Saturday when Slice and Dice won at her fourth race start in a hurdle at Nantes. Genghis stands at Haras du Camp Bernard. Slice and Dice is trained by William Minuet who also owns the filly. She was purchased for €4,000 following a breeze-up. Emilien Manceau was the winning jockey.  

More international success for French bred horses, this time at Aintree (UK). During the three-day Grand National meeting, of the 255 runners in Group races, Irish-bred accounted for 45% of the starters winning seven (38%). The "FR" won four Group events from only 32% of starters. British bred horses won four representing 22% of the victories.  

At Chantilly on 14 March, Westminster Night finished second to Al Hakeem but left an impression to the point where his next start will be in Sunday's G3 Prix de Fontainebleau (1600m) ahead of a campaign to potentially take in the French, German and Czech Republic Guineas.  

Winning the Prize Malidor (2000m) at Saint Cloud last week, Goldoni gave Ivanhowe his first winner as a stallion. His destiny is as a jumping stallion and his oldest progeny are three-year-olds. Ivanhowe is a quadruple G1 winner in Germany and Australia.  
  
Trotting

After returning to the racetrack at Caen (finishing eighth) in early March, Earl Simon won at Mons. His next race is also planned at the Belgian track next week where he will face a 25m handicap.  

Sébastien Hardy won his 1000th race as a driver last Sunday at Le Mont-Saint-Michel with six-year-old mare Gamine des Landes, a horse he also trains and bred.  

Delia du Pommereux worked in front of the crowd at Vincennes last Saturday. Second in the G1 Prix de France Speed Race (2100m) and then fifth in the G1 Grand Criterium de Vitesse de la Côte d'Azur (1609m) at Cagnes-sur-Mer last month, she has the upcoming G1 Prix de l'Atlantique (2150m) on Saturday week as her immediate target. Following this race, the Paralympiatravet will be the next objective at Äby (Sweden) on 7 May. As defending champion, she is already invited to the race. Following this race, the G1 Prix René Ballière (2100m) will be on the agenda at the feature meeting at Vincennes in June.  

Davidson du Pont will be away from the track until the second half of the season. Suffering a slight injury to a hoof posterior will mean this years' G1 Prix d'Amérique Legend Race (2700m) winner will be restricted to stallion duties this spring.