AIDAN O’Brien’s sole Guineas-winning colt this season was a battle-hardened three-year-old by Wootton Bassett, taking on the best of France after an international campaign at two. Might the same recipe work just the trick again when it comes to Ballydoyle’s bid for more classic glory in tomorrow’s Qatar Prix du Jockey Club (3.05)?

Camille Pissarro heads up the O’Brien challenge for the 2025 French Derby at Chantilly, and he has been priced up as ante-post favourite this week after a promising third in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains,

That placed effort in the French 2000 Guineas came behind stablemate Henri Matisse on a tremendous weekend for connections, one that included 10 Ballydoyle winners across all countries. France has already been a happy hunting ground for Camille Pissarro too, having captured the only Group 1 of his career here last autumn in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere on Arc weekend at ParisLongchamp.

Nobody has won the Epsom Derby or Irish Derby more than O’Brien (10 times at Epsom and 16 times at the Curragh) but only once has he successfully taken the French Derby back to Co Tipperary. Having rattled the crossbar with Highland Reel (second to New Bay in 2015), he ticked the Prix du Jockey Club off his list with St Mark’s Basilica under Ioritz Mendizabal in 2021.

Smooth build-up

“Christophe [Soumillon] rode Camille Pissarro last time and the minute he came in he said that this should be his next race,” O’Brien said of the French Guineas run from a challenging draw in stall 15 of 16 runners (winner drawn in six).

“His work has been great, and everything has been perfect since the French Guineas. We were very happy with that run. Christophe could be right and he could be very exciting because he is a big horse and he has the scope and everything else to get better.”

Camille Pissarro, who won a six-furlong maiden and finished second in a major sales race over six and a half furlongs last season, is an unknown in terms of trying this extended 10-furlong trip for the first time in his career. In fact, he was only stepping beyond seven furlongs for the first time when third to his stable companion three weeks ago.

“As a two-year-old, we weren’t sure that he would even get seven furlongs,” O’Brien noted.

“But he obviously won on Arc day with Christophe and he felt the French Derby was made for him.”

Progressive colt

The Ballydoyle challenge at Chantilly is completed by the more guaranteed stayer Trinity College, runner-up in the Listed Blue Riband Trial at Epsom last month, while local hopes may well rest primarily with the Andre Fabre-trained Cualificar.

Godolphin’s homebred by Lope De Vega (a French Derby winner himself and the sire of last year’s winner, Look De Vega) has won each of his three starts this season, including a likeable display in the Group 3 Prix de Guiche earlier this month. That same race has been won by the likes of Almanzor, Vadeni and Big Rock in the last decade.

Louise Benard of Godolphin said: “Cualificar worked well earlier in the week and we are happy with him. Andre gave him plenty of time to develop last year and he has improved with every run so far. He comes into what looks an open race on good terms with himself.”

There is actually a Ballydoyle link to the Godolphin runner, as he is a son of the stable’s shock 50/1 Epsom Oaks winner of 2015, Qualify.

A bold showing could also be on the cards from the Aga Khan Studs’ French Guineas fifth Ridari, a colt by Churchill. Vadeni, the most recent French Derby winner for those famous green and red colours in 2022, is by the same Coolmore stallion as Ridari.