Seemingly of no interest to Betfair or RUK, but just about the best chaser and the best 4-y-old hurdler in France are both making their 2015 debut this afternoon at Auteuil.
At 2:40 our time, Milord Thomas, winner of the 3m3f Grade 1 Prix Le Haye Jousselin last November starts his spring campaign in the Grade 3 Prix Troytown. The trip today is short of his best and he has to give weight all round to his eight rivals, but he'd be worse off in a handicap as he's rated 790, equivalent to about 172 in the UK.
Then 35 minutes later, the winner of the top French 3-y-old hurdle race in November, Bonito Du Berlais, turns out in the Grade 3 Prix D'Indy over 2m 2f. He's won his last five hurdle races in France and there was a chance he'd have raced yesterday at Cheltenham, as his owner is British and has had horses in training here for the last 20 years. But why do that when you can race for almost as much money even in this lower grade in France, with 60,000 euros to the winner this afternoon. Bonito Du Berlais has already won 344,750 euros in France - Peace and Co has picked up £114k for his three Graded wins in the UK.
If RUK aren't covering these races, then this link will provide live pictures with the added bonus of no pundits or presenters, just the races:
It was, thanks mainly to the French horse in the Coral Cup. Really enjoyed yesterday as well, great to see a small yard proving that you don't have to go to France and pay up to half a million to have a chance at the big races.
Zilzal,It was, thanks mainly to the French horse in the Coral Cup. Really enjoyed yesterday as well, great to see a small yard proving that you don't have to go to France and pay up to half a million to have a chance at the big races.
(2.40 race named after Troytown who was an Irish-bred horse, and the last horse to win both the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris and the Grand National. He was killed trying to win the former race for a 2nd time. He's buried in an animal cemetery in Paris - same place as Rin Tin Tin!).
(2.40 race named after Troytown who was an Irish-bred horse, and the last horse to win both the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris and the Grand National. He was killed trying to win the former race for a 2nd time. He's buried in an animal cemetery in Pari
couple of options against the fav (although fav really should win)
argentique & valban - taking fitness on trust for argentique but gets a 4 kilo pull after a 3rd behind the fav lto btn
couple of options against the fav (although fav really should win)argentique & valban - taking fitness on trust for argentique but gets a 4 kilo pull after a 3rd behind the fav lto btn
would you have a opinion on the warren greatrex horse ALOOMOMO running in the 4.05 at carlisle tomorrow theanorak.
must be just guess work giving a mark of 109.
would you have a opinion on the warren greatrex horse ALOOMOMO running in the 4.05 at carlisle tomorrow theanorak.must be just guess work giving a mark of 109.
A mark of 109 is a bit lower than a straight translation of his Frenc mark would suggest, but his form is so moderate that I doubt it will make any difference. There's a glimmer of hope from his last run as the horses that finished 4th and 5th have run OK since, but that was over a much shorter trip than today. The only time he tried more than 2m 2f, he was beaten by even further than usual.
Sending a moderate French bred 5-y-old from Lambourn to Carlisle to contest a 3m 2f chase on soft ground and a stiff track looks to me like a recipe only Heston Blumenthal would appreciate. But the new owners do seem to be prepared for the need to drown their disappointment!
A mark of 109 is a bit lower than a straight translation of his Frenc mark would suggest, but his form is so moderate that I doubt it will make any difference. There's a glimmer of hope from his last run as the horses that finished 4th and 5th have r
Yes, the AQPS races are still a regular feature of the French program. Although they are usually described as 'French bumpers' over here, that's really just a con forced through by the trainers and bloodstock agents to allow the AQPS horses to run NH novice hurdles.
Unlike our bumper races, qualified horses in France can revert to an AQPS flat race after running in hurdles and/or chases and there are no limits as to how many of these races a horse can run in. Some make an entire career of them - when reseaching a horse a few weeks back, I found he'd run against a rival that had run in 26 AQPS flat races over a period of four years.
Mange,Yes, the AQPS races are still a regular feature of the French program. Although they are usually described as 'French bumpers' over here, that's really just a con forced through by the trainers and bloodstock agents to allow the AQPS horses to