G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club

Aidan O'Brien left Chantilly on Sunday having created a legacy performance of training as he did here in the Arc several years ago after Constitution River led home Hawk Mountain and Montreal for a Team Ballydoyle G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club one-two-three. MV Magnier was on hand to pay tribute to the combined expertise of the master of Ballydoyle and Ryan Moore. "In fairness to Aidan, he was pretty confident coming here even though he was worried about the draw for Constitution River," he said. "Ryan gave him a...

Aidan O'Brien has trimmed his team down from eight entries at the beginning of the week and will be represented by a trio of candidates, headed by G2 Futurity and Listed Dee Stakes hero Constitution River (Wootton Bassett), in Sunday's G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club after 16 declarations for the €1.5-million contest were confirmed on Thursday morning. Drawn out wide in stall 15, he will be chaperoned by stablemates Hawk Mountain (Wootton Bassett) and Montreal (Sea The Stars) in the 10 1/2-furlong Chantilly feature. Hawk Mountain is nearby in...

A seemingly wide-open renewal of Chantilly's G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club ultimately produced the most straightforward outcome as Ballydoyle's Camille Pissarro prevailed as the 12-5 favourite. Drawn against the rail, one of the stable's abundance of Wootton Bassett colts only had to follow the pace aided by the yard's Trinity College taking the shortest route. Ryan Moore's only complication came in the closing stages as he needed to thread the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere winner through a gap no more than a horse's width but he had all the...

Declarations for Sunday's €1.5m G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club were confirmed Thursday morning and G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains third Camille Pissarro (Wootton Bassett) will head a field of 18 for the 10 1/2-furlong Chantilly Classic. Last term's G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere hero has been allocated stall one and is joined by Aidan O'Brien-trained stablemate and fellow TDN Rising Star Trinity College (Dubawi), who is drawn in stall three. O'Brien's lone victory in the race was provided by St Mark's Basilica (Siyouni), who departed from stall two en route...

Lining up for Sunday's G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club as the least-experienced, Haras de la Morsangliere's Look De Vega (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}--Lucelle {Ire}, by High Chaparral {Ire}) took the required leap forward on a remarkable stakes debut to become the third member of his sire line to capture this Chantilly Classic. Following a seven-length Fontainebleau success in November with another authoritative win in ParisLongchamp's Prix de Croissy conditions event last month, the Carlos and Yann Lerner-trained , the relative of another winner of the race in its...

While it is true that there is only one Derby, and what a Derby that was on Saturday, 24 hours after the Epsom jamboree there is a Classic of a different kind to help ease the comedown. Chantilly hosts the 184th renewal of the G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club, which is a special if idiosyncratic monument in its own right staged over the rare trip of 10 1/2 furlongs. Therefore offering a contrasting test to the Blue Riband, the old "French Derby" is losing no ground on its counterpart...

by Emma Berry & Heather Anderson Sunday's G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club is an enticing affair, with Group 1 winner Sunway appearing poised to return to his best form. There are several intriguing new shooters, including listed winner Fast Tracker, who will be making his debut in the Wathnan Racing colours. British raider and group winner Ghostwriter, who ran fourth in the 2000 Guineas, will be plying his trade in France for the first time. All in all, most of the field is in with a chance, with the...

Ecuries Serge Stempniak's hitherto undefeated Ace Impact (Ire) (Cracksman {GB}--Absolutly Me {F}, by Anabaa Blue {GB}) posted a third straight win when annexing last month's Listed Prix de Suresnes at Chantilly and returned to that Paris venue for Classic glory in Sunday's €1,500,000 G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club. Preceding his black-type breakthrough with impressive early-season wins at Cagnes-sur-Mer and Bordeaux-Le Bouscat, the 19-2 chance extended trainer Jean-Claude Rouget's record to six wins in the contest after defeating 17-10 favourite Big Rock (Fr) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) by an impressive...

Following a draw conducted live in Epsom's hallowed circle, a final field of 14 has been confirmed for Saturday's G1 Betfred Derby. Ballydoyle number one Auguste Rodin (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) has pulled "lucky" stall 10, still the most beneficial draw in Derby history having housed Shahrastani, Reference Point (GB), Nashwan, Quest For Fame (GB), Generous (Ire), Galileo (Ire), Sir Percy (GB), Ruler of the World (Ire) and Masar (Ire). Chief market rival Military Order (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) will exit from next door in nine, while leading contenders Passenger (Ulysses...

The Qatar Prix du Jockey Club Equestrian Parade, featuring riders and horses from the AFASEC (jockey apprentice school), will pass through the streets of Chantilly from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 3. They will bear the colours of the €1.5-million G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club field, which will take place on Sunday, June 4. The 10-race card will also feature family racecourse events. For more information on the Prix du Jockey Club festivities, please visit the France Galop website.

One hundred years on from the late Aga Khan III's initial foray into European racing, the internationally-renowned and respected operation were celebrating a momentous Classic victory as the Jean-Claude Rouget-trained Vadeni (Fr) (Churchill {Ire}--Vaderana {Fr}, by Monsun {Ger}) dominated Chantilly's G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club. Always travelling easily in the slipstream of the leaders from his favourable inside draw, the May 10 G3 Prix de Guiche winner pounced on the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains hero Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) with 300 metres remaining and a furlong later...

The 2100-metre G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club has a horse for everyone, from multi-generational blue-blooded homebreds, to a $535,000 OBS breezer and everything in between. Godolphin's Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) is aiming for his third Group/Grade 1 victory in a row after wins in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Del Mar last autumn and in the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains in May.   VADENI (FR), Churchill (Ire)--Vaderana (Fr) (Monsun {Ger}) Owner: His Highness The Aga Khan. Breeder: Haras De S A Aga Khan SCEA. Trainer:...