HAVING been touched off by only three quarters of a length in the race last year, Joseph O’Brien has described tomorrow’s Group 1 Prix Ganay (3.25) at ParisLongchamp as the “obvious spot” for Al Riffa to bid for a third career success at the highest level.

An attempt to plunder last year’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe came unstuck when unable to land a blow from off the pace, though the Wootton Bassett five-year-old kicked off his 2025 campaign with a fine third in the valuable Neom Turf Cup at Riyadh behind top sort Shin Emperor in February.

Last season’s well-placed winner of the Group 1 Grosser Preis von Berlin, also second to City Of Troy in last year’s Eclipse, faces a field of five in the €300,000 contest, and his race sharpness edge over the likes of last year’s Grand Prix de Paris winner/Arc fourth Sosie is bound to be a boost.

O’Brien said: “He’s fit and well; he’s had a good prep since Saudi. We had planned to head to Meydan, but he had a little setback the week before and we didn’t go there. This was the next obvious spot for him, and he ran well in it last year.

“It’s going to be a small field, but it looks a really good race. He’s quite versatile in terms of ground and trip and hopefully he runs well.”

O’Brien also has runners in the three blacktype races at Navan today, including Deauville Group 3 winner Cowardofthecounty in the Listed Irish Stallion Farms EBF Committed Stakes (2.50).