19 April 2022
2021 finish: scoopdyga.com
April, Longchamp
Prix de Fontainebleau
Group 3, 3-year-old colts & gedlings, 1,600m/1m, €80,000
Created in 1889
Last winner: Welwal (c3, GB by Shalaa ex Cheriearch, by Arch), owned by Al Shaqab Racing, bred by Oceanic Bloodstock, Ariane Gravereaux & OTI Management, trained by Jean-Claude Rouget, ridden by Cristian Demuro.
Record time: 1’ 35’’2, Brametot (2017 in Deauville) - 1’36’’4, Persian King (2019 in ParisLongchamp).
The race will be run in 2023 for the 72nd time
The 2022 edition
April 17, 2022, ParisLongchamp racecourse (Paris). - For his first test in a Group race, his 4th race so far just after a come back four weeks ago when second over the Chantilly all-weather, Welwal (Shalaa) dominated in the Prix de Fontainebleau (Gr3). The Al Shaqab Racing colt, trained by Jean-Claude Rouget, moved forward going out of the bend, and finally got the better of the leader Mathletic (Kingman), only beaten a neck, a length ahead of a fast-finishing Making Moovies (Dabirsim), who came from the rear to rip Texas (Wootton Bassett) off the 3rd-place.
Welwal had been beaten by Junko for his return, and his victor won again on the same card here, over the Prix Noailles (Gr3) extended 1m2f trip.
Bought for €80,000 at Deauville by Mandore International (Nicolas de Watrigant), Welwal was consigned there by Haras des Capucines for breeders Oceanic Bloodstock, Ariane Gravereaux and OTI Management. The same team sold his Roaring Lion brother (another Al Shaqab sire), for whom David Redvers went to €300,000. The colt is now in Britain.
The winning dam Cheriearch (Arch), a Us-bred, was unsold as a yearling at Keeneland, and at 4 at Tattersalls after a good racing career in France with trainer Luis Urbano-Grajales, who got her to win the Prix La Sorellina (L) at 3. She was finally sold for €260,000 to Haras des Capucines, in foal to Holy Roman Emperor, in December 2014, at 5. Her 5 first foals all won, the third one, Epistrophy (Charm Spirit), having finished third in… the Prix de la Grotte (Gr3)! It was, however, her last race before being exported to Japan.
After Welwal and the Roaring Lion colt, Cheriearch gave a Calyx colt.
History
The race was named in memory of the era (1862 to 1891) when the Société d’Encouragement used to organise a short meeting in the Solle Valley racecourse in Fontainebleau forest.
Created in 1889 at Longchamp for 3-year-olds not having run during the year, the Prix de Fontainebleau was then contested over 1 mile 3 furlongs. It was not until 1952 that its distance was fixed at one mile in order to serve as a trial for the Poole d’Essai des Poulains. However, the distance was shortened to 7 furlongs in 1965, to 6 ½ furlongs in 1966, to 7 ½ furlongs in 1967, before being restored to 1,600 metres, i.e. the mile, from 1968.
The race is opened to geldings since 2020. It was run at Chantilly in 2016 and 2017 during the Longchamp building. In 2020, as racing had been halted by a coronavirus pandemic, the race was held on May 11, 2020, on the day the lockdown was lifted for racing in France.
Doubles
Prix de Fontainebleau winners have regularly played a leading role in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains. Since 1952, they have featured in the first three places 35 times. Those who won it were Neptunus (1964), Blushing Groom (1977), Irish River (1979), Melyno (1982), No Pass No Sale (1985), Fast Topaze (1986), Soviet Star (1987), Blushing John (1988), Kendor (1989), Linamix (1990), Hector Protector (1991), Ashkalani (1996), Daylami (1997), Clodovil (2003), American Post (2004), Silver Frost (2009), Brametot (2017) & Persian King (2019).
Franc Luron (1957), Manderley (1963), Grey Dawn (1965), Barbare (1966), Farabi (1967), Le Mas Marvent (1969), Breton (1970), Rainbow Corner (1992), Atticus (1995), Berine’s Son (2000) and The Summit (2020) were second in the mile classic while Tenarèze (1956), Cresta Rider (1981), Mendez (1984), Denon (2001), Bowman (2002), Stormy River (2006) and Dicton (2016) finished 3rd.
One Prix de Fontainebleau winner, Thunderhead in 1952, went on to win the Two Thousand Guineas at Newmarket.
Owners
- Mohammed Al Maktoum & Godolphin (6 wins): Soviet Star (1987), Zieten (1993) & Bowman (2002) as Sheikh Mohammed, Territories (2015), Wootton (2018) & Persian King (2019) as Godolphin.
- Mme P.A.B. Widener (4 wins): Aerodynamic (1961), Prudent (1962), Grey Dawn (1965), Timmy My Boy (1968)
- Aga Khan (4 wins): Blushing Groom (1977), Ashkalani (1996), Daylami (1997), Rajsaman (2010)
- Famille Niarchos (5 wins): Cresta Rider (1981), Melyno (1982), Mendez (1984), Hector Protector (1991) for Stavros, and Denon (2001) for the Niarchos family.
- Daniel Wildenstein (3 wins): African Sky (1973), Mount Hagen (1974), Monsanto (1975).
- Khalid Abdullah (3 wins): Rainbow Corner (1992), American Post (2004), Glaswegian (2011).
Trainers
- André Fabre (10 wins) : Soviet Star (1987), Rainbow Corner (1992), Zieten (1993), Fadeyev (1994), Indian Danehill (1999), Berine’s Son (2000), Bowman (2002), Clodovil (2003), Territories (2015) & Persian King (2019).
- Etienne Pollet (9 wins): Thunderhead (1952), Tosco (1953), Tenarèze (1956), Pantouflard (1958), Aerodynamic (1961), Prudent (1962), Neptunus (1964), Grey Dawn (1965) & Timmy My Boy (1968).
- François Boutin (6 wins): Nice Havrais (1980), Cresta Rider (1981), Mendez (1984), Blushing John (1988), Linamix (1990) & Hector Protector (1991).
- William Head (3 wins): Manderley (1963), Barbare (1966) & Le Mas Marvent (1969).
- John Cunnington Jr (3 wins): Farabi (1967), Blinis (1971) & Irish River (1979).
- François Mathet (3 wins): Blushing Groom (1977), Kenmare (1978) & Melyno (1982).
- Christiane Head (3 wins): Atticus (1995), With the Flow (1998) & American Post ( 2004).
- Alain de Royer-Dupré (3 wins): Ashkalani (1996), Daylami (1997) & Rajsaman (2010).
Riders
- Maurice Philipperon (6 wins): Farabi (1967), Blinis (1971), Arctic Tern (1976), Irish River (1979), Castle Guard (1983) & Kendor (1989).
- Freddy Head (5 wins): Barbare (1966), Le Mas Marvent (1969), Nice Havrais (1980), Blushing John (1988) & Hector Protector (1991).
- Yves Saint-Martin (4 wins): African Sky (1973), Mount Hagen (1974), Monsanto (1975) & Melyno (1982).
- Olivier Peslier (4 wins): Indian Danehill (1999), Bowman (2002), Silver Frost (2009) & Dicton (2013).
- Thierry Jarnet (4 wins): Zieten (1993), Fadeyev (1994), Denon (2001) & Rajsaman (2010).
- Roger Poincelet (3 wins): Thunderhead (1952), Pantouflard (1958) & Prudent (1962).
- Léon Flavien (3 wins): Tenarèze (1956), Franc Luron (1957) & Bondolfi (1960).
- Gérald Mossé (3 wins): Linamix (1990), Ashkalani (1996) & Daylami (1997).