FORTUNES can change very quickly. There must have been a lot of long faces at Jean-Claude Rouget’s yard on Monday night, Sottsass having been the most high profile of the trainer’s six unplaced runners on the day.
Fast forward three days and Rouget suddenly had not one, not two, but three leading classic prospects on his hands after a trio of eye-catching victories.
The winning spree began in a conditions race at Saint-Cloud on Tuesday as Port Guillaume, a Le Havre full-brother to his useful older stablemate, Aubevoye, took his career record to two-from-two to confirm himself as a genuine Prix du Jockey-Club candidate.
Chantilly
Then, at Chantilly on Wednesday, Simeen, a Lope De Vega filly from the family of Sarafina, enhanced her Prix de Diane credentials with a last-to-first victory while being ridden with kid gloves by Christophe Soumillon in the Prix de la Pistole.
And Thursday’s Longchamp card kicked off with another of Rouget’s Diane entries, the impeccably-bred Sea The Stars filly, Raabihah, brushing aside her four rivals in the Listed Prix de la Seine.
The other stars of a high quality Thursday morning of stakes racing in the Bois de Boulogne were Pao Alto’s win in the Group 3 Prix La Force and Magic Attitude making light work of some highly-touted rivals in the Group 3 Prix Vanteaux.
Trained near Bordeaux by Christophe Ferland, Pao Alto beat the tenderly-ridden Coolmore Stud-owned Ocean Atlantique by a length and a half and there may be little between the pair should they clash again in the Prix du Jockey-Club on July 5th.
Contender
Magic Attitude is an obvious Prix de Diane contender but, although she is by Galileo, she is out of the brilliant sprinter, Margot Did.
Aterwards her Deauville-based handler, Fabrice Chappet, did not rule out a crack at the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches, which would mean dropping back from this nine furlongs to a mile.
Finally, keep an eye out for Grand Glory, third in the 2019 running of the Diane.
She was having her first start in 11 months when pulverising her opposition in a strong-looking renewal of the Listed Prix Zarkava.
Despite being trained by the little-known Italian expatriate, Gianluca Bietolini, she must not be underestimated when she runs in better company as the season progresses.