Europe

Not seen since finishing fourth on her seasonal bow in the G3 Prix de la Grotte over a mile at Chantilly Apr. 20, last year's G3 Prix des Reservoirs winner Trixia made up for lost time with a late show under a typically cool Olivier Peslier to land this competitive renewal. Unbeaten at two via the tests of the Listed Criterium de Lyon at Lyon-Parilly in September and Deauville's Prix des Reservoirs in October both over a mile, she had the likes of the subsequent G1 Prix Saint-Alary winner Jemayel...

Sheikh Hamdan's Massaat (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), an eased-down last as the favourite in the Aug. 11 G3 Sovereign S., will undergo a thorough physical exam in an attempt to determine the cause of his 40-length defeat, according to trainer Owen Burrows. Massaat led through the early stages of the mile affair but tailed off abruptly once put under pressure. "Nothing mechanical has come to light," Burrow said. "He was not lame or anything like that. We are just going to do some internal tests on him now over the next...

By Emma Berry and Chris McGrath Unmistakably, the F-word is on everyone's lips as the yearling sales season swings into gear. Frankel (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), a phenomenon on the racetrack, has made a phenomenal start to his new career and duly topped the opening session of the August Yearling Sale at Arqana when Angus Gold signed a €850,000 docket for a colt consigned from Ecurie des Monceaux. Lot 92, of 94 catalogued for the evening, was a lissom chestnut son of Pertinence (Ire) (Fasliyev), dam of listed winner La Peinture...

The third-to-last horse through the ring during the opening session of Arqana's August yearling sale Saturday evening proved the most expensive offering of the session when Shadwell France went to €850,000 for lot 92, a Frankel (GB) colt from the Ecurie des Monceaux consignment. The colt is a half-brother to French stakes winner La Peinture (Fr) (Muhtathir {GB}).

On a day of comebacks, one of the biggest comes in the form of last year's G1 Prix du Jockey Club hero New Bay (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) in the G3 Prix Gontaut-Biron Hong Kong Jockey Club at Deauville. Khalid Abdullah's Classic hero was also successful in the G2 Prix Guillaume d'Ornano at this meeting and G2 Prix Niel at Longchamp in September, as well as runner-up in the latter track's G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains in May and third in the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in October. Only...

An hour after its would-be sale-topping Dubawi filly had RNA'd for €1-million, Ecurie des Monceaux bounced back to post the highest price of the opening session of the Arqana August yearling sale thus far with lot 44, a son of Invincible Spirit (Ire) picked up by Tweenhills Farm & Stud for €650,000. The April-foaled bay is a full-brother to triple Group 1 winner and young sire Charm Spirit (Ire).

Loose talk costs nominations and American breeders must range from exasperation to downright outrage in hearing some of the wilder European extrapolations from the sad unravelling of Air Force Blue (War Front). Last year's champion juvenile clearly has problems of his own, but that has not prevented some sweeping judgements on this side of the water about the competitive longevity of American blood, in general, or the sire of those outstanding 4-year-olds Declaration Of War (War Front) and The Factor (War Front), in particular. This is doubtless too fragile a...

One of the major disappointments of last year's 'TDN Rising Stars', Khalid Abullah's Antonoe (First Defence) returns from a freshener with a reputation to restore in Monday's G3 Prix de Lieurey at Deauville. Having looked out of the very top drawer when handing out a 6 1/2-length beating to no less than Qemah (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) on debut at this meeting 12 months ago, the homebred followed up in Chantilly's G3 Prix d'Aumale over a mile in September before her momentum was checked. Only seventh in the G1 Prix...

Monday's holiday crowd at Deauville are in for a real treat with a quality day's racing featuring a deep renewal of the Prix Guillaume d'Ornano, which appears a Group 2 in name only as at least five of the contingent have been at, or have pretensions of going, right to the top. In a race that does not penalise Group 1 winners, Jean-Claude Rouget opts to relaunch Antonio Caro and Gerard Augustin-Normand's Prix du Jockey Club hero Almanzor (GB) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) as Andre Fabre did New Bay (GB) (Dubawi...

Stepping up on her latest success in the Listed Prix de Thiberville over 12 furlongs at Saint-Cloud July 14, Golden Valentine continued her onward march with a clear-cut success in this competitive affair. Relishing the step up to 12 furlongs when scoring in a conditions event at Chantilly May 24, she was a short-head second to Spring Master (GB) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) in the G3 Prix du Lys over that same course and distance June 18 before defying a five-pound penalty when going one better on Bastille Day. Settled last early...

Without a domestic Group 1 win before this, the 2014 G1 Melbourne Cup hero Protectionist put that right with a commanding all-the-way success to place himself back at the top of his native country's pecking order. What else might have been we will never know, for he was ruled out of the G1 Deutsches Derby after winning the Listed Bremer Derby-Trial by four lengths in June 2013 but he showed the same quality as soon as he came back the following season when winning the first of two renewals of...

Catching the eye when a strong-closing third in Goodwood's G1 Sussex S. July 27, Ribchester duly built on that career-best effort to capture a strong renewal of this prize and cap a weekend of note for Godolphin. One of last year's leading juveniles as a result of his form over six furlongs when second in York's G2 Gimcrack S. in August and successful in the G2 Mill Reef S. at Newbury the following month, the bay was lucky to be in the right hands as trainer Richard Fahey avoided over-facing...