Francis-Henri Graffard | Horse Racing Free Tips

Lope de Vega Filly On The Classic Trail At Saint-Cloud

Last year's G1 Prix Marcel Boussac heroine Tiger Tanaka (Ire) (Clodovil {Ire}) was back in action in Sunday's Listed Prix La Camargo at Saint-Cloud, but she had to play second fiddle to the emerging force Sweet Lady (Fr) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) as Gemini Stud's representative dealt her a resounding six-length beating in the mile contest. Last seen finishing a length behind Tiger Tanaka when they were fourth and sixth in the 10-furlong G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud in October, the daughter of the dual stakes winner and G2 May Hill S. runner-up High Heel Sneakers (GB) (Dansili {GB}) was in a league of her own on their second encounter to spark dreams of the upcoming Classics. Held up in a share of fourth early by Mickael Barzalona, the 38-10 shot moved smoothly to take command up the centre of the track passing the two-furlong pole as Jessica Marcialis made the best of her way home on the 7-5 favourite towards the far rail. Soon clear, the bay was stretching out with relish despite the testing ground for an impressive verdict as Tiger Tanaka had to fight to ward off Libertine (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) for the runner's-up spot by a head.

Winning trainer Francis-Henri Graffard unsurprisingly has his eye on the big prizes now. “It's always a worry when you bring a filly to the races first time out and you hope for the best, but she has shown some quality and I've always had a high opinion of her,” he said. “Even though she ran badly first time at Deauville, that was a very strong renewal of that particular race and she had won twice since. Maybe I made a mistake sending her to the Criterium de Saint-Cloud, but I thought she'd stay that 10-furlong trip. It was probably too early for her and she's done well and strengthened a lot over the winter, so I was keen to see how she would do here. I wasn't concerned about the ground, as I think she can quicken on any ground and I was more fearful of a tactical race with those who had had a run this season but she showed all her class. She's in all the major races for fillies and we'll keep her over a mile with the [G1 Poule d'Essai des] Pouliches as a target. We'll see how she comes out of this and if she runs in between in the [G3] Prix de la Grotte.”

Tiger Tanaka's trainer Charley Rossi is intending to head straight to the May 16 ParisLongchamp Classic with the runner-up. “It didn't go too well at the break and I feel that some of the jockeys were not too courteous with my jockey, but all went quite well afterwards,” he said. “I'd prefer to win, but maybe she needed the race and I'm happy with the way she fought for second. We'll stick to the initial plan and head straight to the Pouliches.”

Sweet Lady is the last known foal out of the talented Christopher Wright-bred High Heel Sneakers, whose stakes success came in the Hermosa Beach H. From the family of the US Fillies' Triple Crown heroine Chris Evert (Swoon's Son) which also features the GIII Yerba Buena Breeders' Cup H. winner and G1 Premio Oaks d'Italia runner-up Hallowed Dream (Ire) (Alhaarth {Ire}), her previous black-type performer was the Listed Lingfield Oaks Trial winner Toujours L'Amour (GB) (Authorized {Ire}).

PRIX LA CAMARGO-Listed, €55,000, Saint-Cloud, 3-21, 3yo, f, 8fT, 1:45.90, hy.
1–SWEET LADY (FR), 126, f, 3, by Lope de Vega (Ire)
1st Dam: High Heel Sneakers (GB) (SW & GSP-Eng, SW-US, GSP-Fr, SP-Ity, $212,137), by Dansili (GB)
2nd Dam: Sundae Girl, by Green Dancer
3rd Dam: Charmie Carmie, by Lyphard
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. (€100,000 Ylg '19 ARAUG). O-Gemini Stud; B-Stratford Place Stud (FR); T-Francis-Henri Graffard; J-Mickael Barzalona. €27,500. Lifetime Record: 5-3-0-0, €51,150.
2–Tiger Tanaka (Ire), 126, f, 3, Clodovil (Ire)–Miss Phillyjinks (Ire), by Zoffany (Ire). (€6,500 Ylg '19 TIRSEP). O-Miguel Castro Megias; B-Kellsgrange Stud (IRE); T-Charley Rossi. €11,000.
3–Libertine (Ire), 126, f, 3, Dark Angel (Ire)–Miss Mariduff, by Hussonet. (€35,000 Ylg '19 SGASEP; €400,000 RNA HRA '20 ARARC; €200,000 RNA HRA '20 ARDEC). O-Jan Romel & Fabrice Vermeulen; B-Azienda Agricola Gennaro Stimola (IRE); T-Fabrice Vermeulen. €8,250.
Margins: 6, HD, 2. Odds: 3.80, 1.40, 22.00.
Also Ran: Galiana (Fr), Standby For Chaos (Ire), Izlaz (Ire), Ansilia (Ire), Nohand (GB). Click for the Racing Post result. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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QEII Glory For Dubawi’s The Revenant

On a day when only the fittest survived, the suitably dramatically-titled The Revenant (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) as expected made light of Ascot’s very testing ground to take the G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. for France. Like the G1 QIPCO Champion S. hero Addeybb (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}) runner-up in his respective race 12 months ago, Al Asayl France’s chestnut had a proven love of these conditions in his armoury as well as freshness having only re-appeared this season a fortnight previously when winning the G2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein at ParisLongchamp. Sent off the 5-1 second favourite to go one better than in 2019, he was always in his comfort zone tracking the moderate early pace set by the 28-1 shot Roseman (Ire) (Kingman {GB}). Tackling that outsider inside the final two furlongs, he had edged ahead a furlong from home and answered Pierre-Charles Boudot’s every call to gain a head verdict, with 3 1/4 lengths back to the 8-11 favourite Palace Pier (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in third. “Today I was very confident and he did it well on the track,” commented France’s revelation ‘PCB’. “He was very relaxed and when I asked him he gave me a nice, long turn of foot and was courageous. He’s a super-tough horse.”

This was the one race on the card that played host to a potential superstar in the unbeaten Palace Pier and although he performed with credit on going that played against him, he was another in a line of John Gosden stars who failed to show their true colours in specialist ground. He made his move down the outer from rear under Dettori to threaten The Revenant, but was unable to keep tabs on the 5-year-old who had only the leader Roseman to worry about late on. Nothing got into contention from behind and it was ultimately left to The Revenant to make it a clean sweep for geldings in the day’s feature races open to them.

Trainer Francis Henri Graffard, whose 2020 has been highly profitable thanks to this stable stalwart, the filly Watch Me (Fr) (Olympic Glory {Ire}), sprinter Wooded (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and 3-year-old middle-distance performer In Swoop (Ire) (Adlerflug {Ger}), deserves all the credit available in nurturing the former Hugo Palmer trainee as Haggas has with Addeybb. Three-from-four as a 3-year-old, he was gelded and returned to reward that decision by annexing Saint-Cloud’s Listed Prix Altipan and G3 Prix Edmond Blanc last Spring. Brought here after subsequent wins in the G2 Badener Meile and last year’s renewal of the Daniel Wildenstein, he found only King of Change (GB) (Farhh {GB}) too strong here and his subsequent absence until Arc Saturday was due to COVID-19 wiping out the early part of the calendar.

“I had him ready to run in the Spring, but when lockdown came I decided to send him out to grass and he had a good spell,” Graffard explained. “I had to wait until the Daniel Wildenstein for his comeback and he was only 80 per-cent fit for that race. I was a little bit stressed that I had to work him quite hard in the run-up, but everything was building to today. It all worked out because he is a very good horse with a lot of heart. It went exactly as we had planned, with him settled close to the pace.”

Gosden said of Palace Pier, “He pulled off a shoe leaving the gate. He was trying to run the whole race with one shoe off and Frankie said he was not able to change leads and the horse wasn’t able to handle the ground.”

The Revenant is the second foal out of Hazel Lavery (Ire) (Excellent Art {GB}), whose career sign-off came with a defeat of the eventual G1 Champion S. hero Noble Mission (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) on heavy ground in the G3 St Simon S. A half-sister to the Listed Premio Terme di Merano winner and G3 St Leger Italiano and G3 Give Thanks S. runner-up Leo Gali (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), she is a granddaughter of Rapid Repeat (Ire) (Exactly Sharp) who is kin to the G3 Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial S.-winning sire Artema (Ire) (Common Grounds {GB}) and the stakes winner Hello Soso (Ire) (Alzao) who was also third in the GII Diana H. Hazel Lavery’s unraced 2-year-old filly by Oasis Dream (GB) is named La Viette (GB), while her 2020 foal is a daughter of Saxon Warrior (Jpn).

Saturday, Ascot, Britain
QUEEN ELIZABETH II S.-G1, £650,000, Ascot, 10-17, 3yo/up, 8fT, 1:45.13, sf.
1–THE REVENANT (GB), 130, g, 5, by Dubawi (Ire)
1st Dam: Hazel Lavery (Ire) (GSW-Eng, $246,630), by Excellent Art (GB)
2nd Dam: Reprise (GB), by Darshaan (GB)
3rd Dam: Rapid Repeat (Ire), by Exactly Sharp
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. O-Al Asayl France; B-Al Asayl Bloodstock Ltd (GB); T-Francis-Henri Graffard; J-Pierre-Charles Boudot. £368,615. Lifetime Record: Hwt. Older Horse-Ger at 7-9 1/2f, MGSW-Fr & GSW-Ger, 13-10-2-1, $1,172,931. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Roseman (Ire), 130, c, 4, Kingman (GB)–Go Lovely Rose (Ire), by Pivotal (GB). (180,000gns Wlg ’16 TATFOA; €650,000 Ylg ’17 GOFOR). O-Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum; B-Knocktoran Stud (IRE); T-Roger Varian. £139,750.
3–Palace Pier (GB), 127, c, 3, Kingman (GB)–Beach Frolic (GB), by Nayef. (600,000gns Ylg ’18 TATOCT). O-Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum; B-Highclere Stud and Floors Farming (GB); T-John Gosden. £69,940.
Margins: HD, 3 1/4, HF. Odds: 5.00, 28.00, 0.73.
Also Ran: Sir Busker (Ire), Veracious (GB), Lord Glitters (Fr), Dark Vision (Ire), Nazeef (GB), Century Dream (Ire), Circus Maximus (Ire), Royal Dornoch (Ire), Molatham (GB), Escobar (Ire), Lancaster House (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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Wootton Bassett’s Wooded Wins the Abbaye

There as a slow-motion finish to the G1 Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp Longines on Sunday, where Al Shaqab Racing’s 3-year-old Wooded (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) gave his all to prevail in a drawn-out finale. Missing the kick a touch but able to grab the rail under Pierre-Charles Boudot, the 13-2 shot who had captured the six-furlong G3 Prix Texanita at Chantilly May 13 was marginally ahead passing the two-furlong marker. After seeing off his close companion Liberty Beach (GB) (Cable Bay {Ire}), the lightly-raced bay hit the line a neck in front of last year’s winner Glass Slippers (GB) (Dream Ahead) as Liberty Beach stayed in the mix to be a short neck away in third. “I have always held him in high esteem and since he won the group 3 nothing has gone right,” winning trainer Francis-Henri Graffard said. “Because of the pandemic, he had to miss Royal Ascot and then I had to run him over the wrong trip and I was running him today for education, as I thought next year would be his year.”

Campaigned solely over seven furlongs as a juvenile, Wooded opened his account at Deauville in August before finishing a short-head runner-up to Kenway (Fr) (Galiway {GB}) in the G3 Prix la Rochette here in September and third behind the Charlie Appleby-trained duo King’s Command (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Royal Crusade (GB) (Shamardal) in the G3 Prix Thomas Bryon at Saint-Cloud the following month. After springing back to the fore in the Texanita, he was next seen finishing fourth in the G1 Prix Jean Prat back over seven at Deauville July 12 before running sixth in the 6 1/2-furlong G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest also there Aug. 9. Shortened up for the course-and-distance G3 Prix du Petit Couvert, he was runner-up to Air de Valse (Fr) (Mesnil des Aigles {Fr}) Sept. 13 and made the requisite improvement in the interim to turn that form around.

Graffard added, “I was upset, because I knew he was going to run very well in the Commonwealth Cup and there were no races for him over six furlongs over the summer. We have a nice sprinter on our hands and the only question was the ground. He is much better on fast ground and Pierre-Charles said he wasn’t the same horse on soft, but I wanted to toughen him up for next year. He went on it today because he’s a very good horse.”

Wooded is the second foal out of Frida La Blonde (Fr) (Elusive City), whose first was the talented G3 Sovereign S. runner-up Beat le Bon (Fr) also by Wootton Bassett. The second dam is the Listed Criterium d’Evry winner and G2 Premio Regina Elena (Italian 1000 Guineas) runner-up Firm Friend (Ire) (Affirmed) who also produced the Listed Prix Servanne and Listed Prix Cor de Chasse scorer and G3 Prix de Ris-Orangis runner-up Fred Lalloupet (GB) (Elusive City) and another Prix Servanne winner Mon Pote le Gitan (Thunder Gulch) who was also placed in the G3 Prix de Cabourg. The third dam Cherie Amie (Fr) (Gay Mecene) is connected to the G3 Cornwallis S. and G3 Norfolk S.-winning sire Magic Ring (Ire) who was third in this race. The dam’s 2-year-old filly is by Ajaya (GB), while she also has a filly by Intello (Ger) due to sell at the upcoming Arqana Deauville October Yearling Sale.

Sunday, ParisLongchamp, France
PRIX DE L’ABBAYE DE LONGCHAMP LONGINES-G1, €210,000, ParisLongchamp, 10-4, 2yo/up, 5fT, :58.52, hy.
1–WOODED (IRE), 136, c, 3, by Wootton Bassett (GB)
1st Dam: Frida La Blonde (Fr), by Elusive City
2nd Dam: Firm Friend (Ire), by Affirmed
3rd Dam: Chere Amie (Fr), by Gay Mecene
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. (€90,000 Ylg ’18 AROCT). O-Al Shaqab Racing; B-Gestut Zur Kuste AG (IRE); T-Francis-Henri Graffard; J-Pierre-Charles Boudot. €119,994. Lifetime Record: 9-3-3-1, €218,398. *Full to Beat Le Bon (Fr), GSP-Eng, $362,908. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Glass Slippers (GB), 133, f, 4, Dream Ahead–Night Gypsy (GB), by Mind Games (GB). O/B-Bearstone Stud Ltd (GB); T-Kevin Ryan. €48,006.
3–Liberty Beach (GB), 133, f, 3, Cable Bay (Ire)–Flirtinaskirt (GB), by Avonbridge (GB). (£16,000 RNA Ylg ’18 TASAYG). O/B-Phillip Wilkins (GB); T-John Quinn. €24,003.
Margins: NK, SNK, 1. Odds: 6.50, 1.70, 10.00.
Also Ran: Lady In France (GB), Keep Busy (Ire), Air de Valse (Fr), Batwan (Fr), Make A Challenge (Ire), Sestilio Jet (Fr), Archer’s Dream (Ire), Livachope (Fr). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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Enable Leads 22 in Latest Arc Forfeit Stage

Dual G1 Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe heroine Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) will attempt to win her third Arc in the last four years, as she is one of 22 in the French showpiece after the latest forfeit stage announced on Monday. The Juddmonte mare is one of three in the race at this stage for John Gosden, with Bjorn Nielsen’s star stayer Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) and fellow Juddmonte runner and undefeated 2019 G1 St Leger hero Logician (GB) (Frankel {GB}) is also entered.

Irish maestro Aidan O’Brien has four entered so far for the Coolmore partners in outstanding dual Classic heroin Love (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), 2020 G1 Grand Prix de Paris hero Mogul (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), MG1SW Japan (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), and 2019 G1 Irish Derby winner Sovereign (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). This term’s G1 Derby victor Serpentine (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) is under consideration, but has yet to be supplemented.

Aidan’s son Joseph fields a quintet, among them MGSW Buckhurst (Ire) (Australia {GB}) and GSW Degraves (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) for Lloyd Williams, this season’s G3 Gallinule S. hero Crossfirehurricane (Kitten’s Joy) for Scott Heider and Healthy Wood Ltd.’s Group 3 winner New York Girl (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}).

Andre Fabre relegated Enable back into second in last year’s edition with Waldgeist (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), and he will send MG1SW Persian King (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) this season, although it is the first time the Godolphin representative will be trying 2400 metres. Jean-Claude Rouget will saddle MG1SW Sottsass (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) for Peter Brant’s White Birch Farm and the progressive Shadwell filly Raabihah (Sea The Stars {Ire}), who won the G3 Prix de Psyche in August and was second in the G1 Prix Vermeille on Sept. 13.

G1 German Derby hero and Grand Prix de Paris third In Swoop (Ire) (Adlerflug {Ger}) represents Francis-Henri Graffard and Gestut Schlenderhan, while the third-place finisher that day, Gold Trip (Fr) (Outstrip {GB}), returns for Fabrice Chappet.

Japan is represented by G1 Nassau S. heroine Deirdre (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}) and G1SW Way to Paris (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}) steps forward for Andrew Marcialis and Paolo Ferrario. Two last out group winners, Telecaster (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) for Hughie Morrison and Chachnak (Fr) (Kingman {GB}) are also entered.

For the full list of Arc declarations, please go to www.france-galop.com.

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