Around Robin

Sunday's G2 Prix Greffulhe at Saint-Cloud is basically a re-run of the 2015 season-ending G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud, where Robin of Navan (Fr) (American Post {GB}) readily beat Cloth of Stars (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) by 2 1/2 lengths to cement his position as the leading staying juvenile. Trained with guile and skill by Harry Dunlop last term, the chestnut–who only raced once in his native country and spent the remainder of his campaign in France–also captured Deauville's Listed Criterium de FEE over a mile in August and the G3 Prix de Conde over an extra furlong at Chantilly in October prior to his success in the 10-furlong November feature. “He's done well over the winter–he's thickened up–so it's all good, but I'm well aware our task is going to be big,” Dunlop said.

Godolphin's Cloth of Stars was third in the Conde, giving Robin of Navan four pounds, and so was expected to reverse the form on level terms in the Criterium de Saint-Cloud, but was mastered again with no excuses. This time he has at least a fitness advantage, having won the G3 Prix la Force over this course and distance Apr. 3. Godolphin's representative Lisa-Jane Graffard said, “It will be difficult to turn the form around with Robin of Navan, but Cloth of Stars has a run under his belt already this year which should give him a little bit of an advantage. Whether it will be enough to reverse the form is another question.”

Cloth of Stars's trainer Andre Fabre, who is looking to extend his record of 11 wins in this race, also saddles Susan Magnier's colour-bearer Le Juge (Ire) (Dansili {GB}), but he needs to find marked improvement on his latest Chantilly 9 1/2-furlongs conditions win on the Polytrack Mar. 10. A bigger threat to the two main protagonists could be Gerard Augustin-Normand & Kevin Morize's Apilobar (Fr) (Slickly {Fr}), who was impressive when beating another Fabre representative in Talismanic (GB) (Medaglia d'Oro) in the Listed Prix Maurice Caillault over this track and trip Mar. 12.