29 August 2020
Photo : scoopdyga.com
One year after his victory in the Lucien Barrière Grand Prix de Deauville (Gr2), the 5-year-old gelding Ziyad (Rock of Gibraltar) is trying this Sunday to win this 149th edition of this same historic race. This would allow him to enter the club of multiple winners of which there are seven members today, one of whom, also the first dual winner of the Grand Prix managed to line up three consecutive victories between 1882 and 1884, that is Tristan. The latest to do so is Irish Wells, victorious in 2006 and 2007, aged 3 and 4.
However, the task seems daunting for the representative of the Wertheimer brothers. Before his success in 2019, Ziyad had finished second in the Grand Prix de Chantilly (Gr2) and Saint-Cloud (Gr1). Since then, he took third place across the Atlantic in the Canadian International (Gr1), also won over Chantilly's all-weather in a preparatory race for the Dubai meeting, then was well beaten in the Grand Prix de Chantilly (Gr2 ) contested in Deauville in May, but ended with a bang in third place in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud.
This finish is perhaps a reflection of his season, which may have been affected by the upheavals of the program and the unusual results of the Carlos Laffon-Parias stable, who is catching up at the moment: seven of the Chantilly trainer's fourteen victories this year were won at the August meeting in Deauville and Clairefontaine!
However, there is real opposition among the six challengers of the defending champion, starting with Telecaster (New Approach), supreme in La Coupe (Gr3) in the spring, and fourth in the York Stakes (Gr3) during his last appearance, in July over the Knavesmire's 10-furlong trip. The trainer Hughie Morrison called up Christophe Soumillon to ride him again for this occasion.
The third-highest rating in the field is another horse from England, that is Red Verdon (Lemon Drop Kid), a non-runner last Sunday in the Darley Prix Kergorlay (Gr2) for being unruly in the starting stall. Without consequence, apparently ...
- 1. RED VERDON (g7, USA by Lemon Drop Kid and Porto Marmay, by Choisir) Rating: 109lbs
Trained in England by Ed Dunlop, bought £ 90,000 at the breeze-up sales of Newmarket, sixth in the 2016 Epsom Derby, second in the Juddmonte Grand Prix de Paris (Gr1), he gradually became a regular feature in the stamina division but was gelded at the end of the 2018 season. Winner of two races the following season, last year, including a Group 3 at York in the Summer, he finished fourth out of four for his comeback on the all-weather at Chelmsford but immediately won a Listed over 14.5f at Doncaster and he has just emphatically the Prix Maurice de Nieuil (Gr2), beating San Huberto.
- 2. SUBWAY DANCER (g8, IRE by Shamardal and Sub Rose, by Galileo) Rating: 103lbs
Trained in the Czech Republic, this veteran of the European middle distance championships has made the news over the course of his long international career. For example, he finished third in the Champion Stakes (Gr1) at Ascot in 2018 and his last outing last year in the Prix du Conseil de Paris (Gr2) showed that he was a force to reckon at the best level. However, he has not caused a sensation this season, even last time out in the Gontaut-Biron (Gr3) on this crouse, on a heavy ground that is supposed to favour him.
- 3. TELECASTER (c4, GB by New Approach and Shirocco Star, by Shirocco) Theoretical value: 112lbs
Entraîné en Angleterre par Hughie Morrison, racheté 180 000 £ aux ventes de Newmarket, il a gagné à 3 ans les Dante Stakes (Gr2), course préparatoire au Derby d’Epsom (Gr1) disputée sur les 2 100 mètres de York, en battant au passage le champion des 2 ans Too Darn Hot. Il a pourtant complètement échoué dans le classique puis face aux chevaux d’âge dans les Eclipse Stakes (Gr1). Absent depuis, il venait de terminer troisième à une bonne longueur pour sa rentrée du gagnant Lord North, depuis lauréat des Prince of Wales’s Stakes (GR1) au meeting royal d’Ascot, lorsqu’il a écrasé La Coupe (Gr3) à ParisLongchamp en juin, mais a échoué de nouveau ensuite dans les York Stakes (Gr3) à York…
- 4. SOFT LIGHT (c4, FRA by Authorized and Light Saber, by Kendor) Rating: 105lbs
Trained in Deauville by Jean-Claude Rouget, bought € 40,000 at the Deauville sales, he finished second in the Prix Hocquart Longines (Gr2) last year before failing in the Juddmonte Grand Prix de Paris (Gr1) over 1m4f. On the other hand, he took second place half a length behind Ziyad then in this same event in 2019. Sixth in the Arc then, he finished fourth and fifth this season in May at Vichy and then recently in the Prix de Reux (Gr3) after showing the way, which is perhaps not his best tactic - he had galloped for a long time at the rear when performing much better in this very race last year.
- 5. DEACON (g4, GB by Dansili and Latice, by Inchinor) Rating: 95lbs
Trained at Chantilly by Christopher Head, he first raced for his father Freddy when owned by his breeder George Strawbridge. Consistent but still maiden last season, he ended up winning over Lyon-La Soie's all-weather, and has just won two handicaps at Clairefontaine, which earned him an 18lbs hike in the weights scale.
- 6. STYLEDARGENT (g4, by Style Vendome and Feriadargent, by Kendargent) Rating: 104lbs
Trained in the Loire by Jean-Pierre Gauvin, bred by his owner, he won twice last year and took third place in the Grand Prix de Clairefontaine (L), 4 lengths behind the two first home. This season, on the other hand, he won his first two races, the second being the Grand Prix de Lyon (L), in which he beat Sublimis, who then beat him in the Prix de Reux (Gr3), where he was very brave in third place after an excessively long road trip to Deauville during the heatwave ...
7. ZIYAD (g5, GB by Rock of Gibraltar ex Arme Ancienne, by Sillery) Rating: 111lbs
Trained in Chantilly by Carlos Laffon-Parias, this Wertheimers homebred hails from the family of the French Oaks winner Aquarelliste and started his season in March over the all-weather at Chantilly, beating Soleil Marin and Villa Rosa there. If we except a radical failure in the Prix Lord Seymour (L), and his disappointing performance in the Grand Prix de Chantilly (Gr2) in May at Deauville, he has not missed a podium for a year and has instead reassured by finishing strong in third place in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud (Gr1). However, he has not been seen for two months.