Wednesday 10th March 2010, Fontainebleau. (www.leblogdeparisturf.com) Fifth on his return at Angers, Leiloken (Lando) made amends by winning the €34,000 Prix d'Avon (3yo Males-2,200m). Quickly to the head of affairs and quite keen, Georges Sandor’s colt resisted the challenge of Royal Menantie (Kendor). “His last performance doesn’t count as the pace was very slow and he pulled a lot”, explained his trainer François-Xavier de Chevigny. “Today he was able to go in front. When the other horse overtook us it gave my horse the chance to get his breath back, and Sébastien Maillot had kept something in reserve. He has been sold to Switzerland so that is where his future lies.”  
Leiloken passed throught the sales ring at Arqana in Octobers 2008, where he was bought back for €25,000 (click here for catalogue page). Leiloken is a son of Leila (Lahint), second in the Prix d'Aumale et du Bois (Gr3). She has also produced Lanturlu (Canyon Creek), followed by two fillies, one by High Yield in 2008 (in training with Rupert Pritchard-Gordon) and the other by Canyon Creek in 2009.

Samoreau – A Media Luz catches the eye

The only filly in the €34,000 Prix Samoreau (3yo Fillies-2,200m) with classic entries, A Media Luz (Johann Quatz) justified her connections ambitions when winning easily, without any encouragement from her jockey’s whip, from Casta Diva (Linamix). “She has developed well over the winter,” explained Joël Rémy, assistant to Yannick Fouin. “

She has a big action but she is not yet at 100%. She should now go for a Listed race.” A Media Luz won on her first start on the same track last November. Yannick Fouin bought this filly outside of the ring at the Arqana October Sales for €10,000 (

click here for catalogue page). Her dam, Immensement (Garde Royale), never ran but is a sister of My Way (Shining Steel), who was Listed placed as a 2 year old.

Grand Maitre – Wangokaye in his element

Wangokaye (Okawango) used all his speed to beat Salut l'Africain (Ski Chief), Calbuco (Kendor) and Psy Chic (Munir) in the €28,000 Prix du Grand Maître (4yo+ - 1,100m Straight). Maxime Guyon sat on the heels of the Calbuco and his mount made the difference in the finish. “He is a very fast horse and I benefited from Calbuco as a leader, who is also very quick”, explained the jockey. “I had the perfect run. The hard ground didn’t suit everyone, as the older horses have more fragile legs.” Wangokaye was bred by Haras du Mâ (Pascale Ménard). His dam River Ballade (Irish River) has also produced Oupoukaye (Midyan), third in the Prix Thomas Bryon (Gr3) and Kenkaye (Kendor), third in the Prix Saraca (Listed). Wangokaye was bought as a yearling at the Arqana Sales in August 2007 for €42,000 by the FIPS Agency (click here for catalogue page).

Tuesday 9th March 2010, Enghien. Konig Air Line (Konig Shuffle) was victorious on his racecourse debut in the €50,000 Prix d’Essai des Poulains Hurdle (3yo Males – 3,100m). Ridden by Jean Luc Beaunez, Herve Billot’s gelding beat Guy Cherel’s Prince Park (Prince Kirk), favourite on his first start, by 5 lengths with the more experienced El Milagro (Leadership) back in third. Konig Air Line sat on the heels of the race leader Totti (Roli Abi) up until the last bend before kicking on to take the lead, after which he was never seriously threatened by any of his rivals. He was an outsider in the race at the price of 36/1. “He has been jumping since last March, so he was well prepared for this race,” announced winning trainer Herve Billot. “I expect him to handle Auteuil just as well as Enghien.”

Twenty seven lengths behind the first three was the much anticipated Division Alpha (Dubai Destination) running in the colours of Pegasus Farms. Guy Cherel’s Calco (Califet) was a faller at only the second hurdle on his hurdling debut.

Konig Air Line is out of Kiriaki (Rick Me), unsuccessful in 11 attempts on the flat, and is her first produce to see a racecourse.

Baroud III – Saphira Mans impressive as ever

The result of the €50,000 Prix des Barouds III Chase (AQPS - 4&5yos – 3,500m) was clear a long way from the finish. Coming round the final bend the five horses left in the running were already in their finishing order. The impressive Saphira Mans (AQ - Fragrant Mix) led the race in its entirety before striding out to beat Mahe (AC – Goldneyev)by four lengths, with Salon de Provence (AQ – Antarctique) a further six lengths back in third. “All of my team have put in a lot of hard work which paid off this afternoon,” said winning trainer Jean-Luc Pelletan. “She is capable of anything this mare; I really like her a lot. I have no idea whatsoever of where she will run next.”

Saphira Mans does indeed seem very versatile, this four year old mare has finished second four times on the grass on the flat, won over 2,400m on fibresand and was successful on her only hurdling attempt on her last start in January at Pau. Her dam Friska du Moulin (SF - Royal Charter) was also a winner over fences and on the flat. She has produced two previous winners, Quissisia Mans and Nidea du Moulin, both by Video Rock.

Dolatulo (Le Fou) followed up his previous success on the flat, at Seiches sur le Loir on February 21st, with a win on his hurdling debut in the €50,000 Prix d’Essai des Poulains Hurdle (3yo Males – 3,100m). The mount of David Cottin he was straight to the head of affairs and led the race from start to finish fighting off strong attacks from Clegan (Martaline), second by 6 lengths, and first time out Grandouet (Al Namix), eventual third. The first three home were the three favourites in the betting before the race. “He is a very nice horse”, said winning jockey David Cottin, “I think that this division was stronger than the previous one.”

Monday 8th March 2010, Saint-Cloud. (www.leblogdeparisturf.com)The good looking filly of Lady O'Reilly’s, Sandbar (Oasis Dream), ridden by François-Xavier Bertras, made a victorious return to the track in the €34,000 Prix Gazala (3yo Fillies-2,000m). After having overtaken the leader Sesimbra (Key of Luck), who managed to keep second place, the representative François Rohaut kicked clear to win in impressive fashion. Bred by Petra Bloodstock Ltd, Sandbar is a sister of a filly by Dubai Destination who was sold for €85,000 last October in Deauville (click here for catalogue page).

Youth – Three in a row for Tenacious Spring

Straight to the head of affairs in the €34,000 Prix Youth (3yo Males-2,000m), Tenacious Spring (Tertullian) led the race from pillar to post, being challenged once by only one of his rivals, the Rouget Midnight Game (Montjeu). However the representative of Marc de Chambure kicked clear to rest unbeaten from his three starts. "I let him gallop on in his stride; I didn’t want to fight with him,” analysed winning jockey Christophe Lemaire. “Everything happened like the trainer said it would, and in the straight he lengthened and accelerated nicely. He has a big stride, but still needs to mature."
Trainer Thierry Lemer bought this son of Tertullian for €6,000 (click here for catalogue page). This stallion is out of Allegretta, the dam of Urban Sea.

Sunday, March 7th 2010 – Auteuil. French paperboys have elected Sea the Stars and Questarabad horses of the year 2009 in the Courses&Elevage Magazine contest which results were revealed on Sunday during a huge piss up at Auteuil's Presidential Stand - it would have been the royal one had we kept a King alive. Sea the Stars' trainer John Oxx was at Auteuil to accept the prize on behalf of the big champ's connections, 17 years after the horse's mum Urban Sea was also elected for the same title : "It means that Sea the Stars is as much French as he's Irish," joked John Oxx when receiving the trophy. As for Roger Polani, Questarabad's owner, he said : "I thought that Remember Rose, being the best chaser in France, would get the prize and I am overwhelmed by the news. We have lived an amazing experience for two years, even though I was associated with 1999 Grand steeple winner Mandarino. Questarabad showed today that he could overcome the weight conditions to win again and we are looking forward to another outstanding season."

Sunday, March 7th 2010 – Auteuil. 8yo Doumaja (Cadoudal) had to work all the way to hold off 5yo Mail de Bievre (Cadoudal) in the €150,000 Prix Robert de Clermont-Tonnerre Chase (Gr3 – 4,300m), the first clash for the top French chasers this year. It was a return to top honours for the Guy Cherel-trained veteran as he’d won the €150,000 Prix Morgex Chase (Gr3 – 4,100m) at 4 but met with leg problems since then. Ridden by Cyrille Gombeau, the Guy Cherel-trained, Michel Langot-bred Doumaja never gave way in the last stretch to his younger foe. Mail de Bièvre was second to his generation leader Rubi Ball last time out in the Prix Morgex Chase which is a good omen for the Jacques Ortet-trained 4yo of 2009 champ Rubi Ball.

“He’s always been a good horse and if it wasn’t for his leg problems, he’d shown up with the best chasers for a long time,” said the winning trainer. “He’s had a light meeting at Pau and we shall give him his chance on the way to the Grand Steeple (Gr1 – French Gold Cup).”

Christophe Pieux was disappointed by a fading in fourth Alarm Call (Solar One), a winner of this race in 2008 : “I was going smoothly up until the last turn when I tried to challenge the winner but he suddenly felt tired and I assume he will be better off after this first try.”

One can only wait and see until Remember Rose, Princesse d'Anjou, Mid Dancer and a well healed Oculi come back on the Butte Mortemart to really get excited. These cats were gone on Sunday. It was a good day for mice.

Sunday, March 7th 2010 – Auteuil. Unless something wrong happens to him, Questarabad (AQPS - Astarabad) is a certainty for the major hurdle contests this season in France. The Marcel Rolland-trained AQPS 6yo shrugged off his 70 kilos burden in the €130,000 Prix Juigne Hurdle (Gr3 – 3,600m) to come from last to the fore in the back stretch and then jumped the last two hurdles for fun to score by 4 lengths almost walking with Vitray (Morespeed) second over a handicap like bunch of jumpers.

Rider Regis Schmidlin was awed by his mount : “He’s become so easy to ride, so much better than the others… I was worried about the pace on such a short distance and I just asked him to come by in the backstretch. He was with the leader within two strides and the rest is history. He’s awesome.”

There is not much to say about the others. Rolland horses showed that the Chantilly-based handlers were able to overcome the adverse weather conditions. On even terms, Questarabad is the best hurdler we’ve got over here and that’s about as much we can say so far.

Sunday, March 7th 2010 – Auteuil. A 4+ hurdle contest for beginners, the €58,000 Prix Rohan (L – 3,600m) has always been a preferred aim for talented flat horses switching to the jumps, writes Le Frog. The likes of Latin Mood and Questarabad feature amongst the latest winners of the race. Everybody was zeroing on Longchamp winning son of Montjeu’s Tsar de Russie to take the honours and it looked as if the Marcel Rolland-trained beast was about to reach expectations when jumping the second last along AQPS 4yo Sans Histoire (Blushing Flame). He actually took over the long standing leader between the two last hurdles but the grey halfbred had the last laugh as she edged her thoroughbred rival on the post. Boytard (Tot ou Tard) led the field in third 1,5 length out.

Bred and owned by Nicolas de Lageneste’s Haras de Saint-Voir, Sans Histoire had started her career well over the flat with a promising 5th place at Lyon in November. She’d finished well there after an easy start. This half sister to Mort de Rire (Luchiroverte, his name meaning “Die Laughing” in French), a winner over the chase in Leicester, showed lots of stamina and willingness to score over a more seasoned flat horse. “She had the rail and I like her a lot”, quipped her trainer Thomas Trapenard. Marcel Rolland was rather disappointed by Tsar de Russie, a 5yo horse formerly trained by Elie Lellouche for the Wildensteins. Lellouche bought him back for €25,000 at the 2009 Arqana Arc Sale (click here for his catalogue page). “We bought him privately after the sale,” said Rolland. “He now runs for Serge Brunswick and the Biancos. Brunswick was a co-owner of Coronation Stakes’ winner Shake the Yoke. We thought we could take this one jumping the last as he took the edge over Sans Histoire, but he was wearing blinkers over the flat and it looks like he’s not overly willing… That could be a problem. We will have to work on that with his rider.”

Saturday 6th March 2010, Compiègne. (www.leblogdeparisturf.com) Shining Sea (Anabaa Blue) realised a winning return in the €29,000 Prix d'Amélie (3yo Fillies-1,600m). Lady O'Reilly’s filly finished her 2 year old career with an easy success at Bordeaux. This time she had to work a little harder for the victory in order to fight off the attack of Baroness (Okawango). “She lived up to our expectations, while not yet being at 100%”, announced François-Xavier Bertras when speaking to Equidia. Jean de Roualle, trainer of Baroness, didn’t hide his disappointment: “I thought that with 3 kilos in hand she was sure to win. Maybe she paid in the finish for being keen early on in the race. However it’s only the 7th of March and she only had one piece of work beforehand.”
Shining Sea was bred by Lady O'Reilly. Her dam is a sister of Secret Quest (third placed in the Saint-Alary, Gr1).

Friday 5th March 2010, Deauville.(www.leblogdeparisturf.com) “I achieved five winners on a card once before, but it was a long time ago, at Pau, over jumps. That’s even harder than on the flat,” confided Jean-Claude Rouget after the cosy victory of Bellinissimo (Hawk Wing), carrying his own colours, in the €33,000 Prix de Meydan (4yo+ - 1,900m Fibresand). “Today, I knew that I had a good bunch of horses that were ready to run and I expected to have a good day. But it is a long journey for us to come to Deauville, both for the horses and the lads. These wins make it all worthwhile. I will now aim Bellinissimo at some principal races but we will take out time and let him mature more. He is a horse that I love. He is brave and has a lovely action.” Bellinissimo passed through the ring at the Arc Sale last October where Jean-Claude Rouget bought him back for €45,000 (click here for catalogue page).

Yet the horse was not ridden by stable jockey Ioritz Mendizabal, who was kicked on the thigh in the paddock after the first race and had to be replaced by fellow rider Franck Blondel. The latter scored a four-timer, including the 4 wins he registered with Rouget's rockets. Mendizabal's injury is only superficial and he's due back on the saddle in 8 days.

As for Rouget, he scored twioce a 5-timer : in 1985 with jumpers at Pau, and five years later on the flat at La Teste.

Alderney – Countess Lemonade makes her mark

Countess Lemonade (Storm Cat) is not a filly like any other. If the fact that she is a sister of the champion Duke of Marmalade wasn’t enough to attract attention she managed to go one step further in the parade ring before her debut in the €24,000 Prix d'Alderney (3yo Fillies-1,500m Fibresand). Spooked by her first experience on a racecourse she kicked her jockey Ioritz Mendizabal, who was taken to hospital with an injury to his thigh muscle that required stitches. Dominique Bœuf stepped into the breach. She was deemed by the stewards to have caused interference when she was asked for an effort in the finish in order to overtake stable companion Our Georgia (Pulpit), which resulted in her being demoted to sixth place. Jean-Claude Rouget, whose two other runners had finished second and third, explained: “The three fillies all work together in the mornings. Countess Lemonade is the most babyish of the three, as she was prepared late, and I probably should have waited another 2 or 3 weeks for her first run. I think all three fillies will achieve black type.

Our Georgia, the winner after the inquiry, is a sister of US Ranger, placed second in the July Cup (Gr1).

Saint Valery – Lola Montes puts Blondel to the test

After an average first start on the grass at Cagnes sur Mer, Lola Montes (Mr Greeley) won on her first attempt on fibresand in the €24,000 Prix de Saint-Valéry (3yo Fillies-1,500m Fibresand). In a race that was led by Pearl Argyle (Oasis Dream), who was still some lengths ahead coming off the final bend, Jean-Claude Rouget’s representative produced a nice turn of foot to win by two lengths from Pearl Argyle with Pax Mina (Keltos) back in third. “She is a difficult filly, and I was not sure that she would win, explained her trainer. “She even dropped Franck Blondel on the way to the start. She is better on the fibresand than she was on the soft ground at Cagnes. But she is still quite backward and immature, and will improve from this run.” Lola Montes was bought at Arqana in August 2008 for €60,000 (click here for catalogue page).

Bacqueville – Dibir doesn’t dissapoint

Dibir (Shamardal) continued the winning streak of Jean-Claude Rouget when succesful in the €24,000 Prix de Bacqueville (3yo Males-1,500m Fibresand). Having tracked Singapore Sky (Sagacity) who led the way, the mount of Franck Blondel made the difference in the straight without having to exert himself. Dibir is a son of Diasilixa (Linamix), winner of the Prix Royaumont (Gr3), who has already produced Dixie Girl (Green Desert), also a winner on the fibresand at Deauville. Diasilixa is a sister of Diamond Mix (Prix Greffulhe, Gr2, and third in the Grand Prix de Paris, Gr1).

Aurigny – And Acapulco Gold makes five

Already a winner of an Afasec race (unofficial educational races for young apprentices having their first rides), Acapulco Gold (Azamour) was successful once more in the €24,000 Prix d'Aurigny (3yo Males-1,500m Fibresand). Quickly away under Franck Blondel, he led the field at a moderate pace and was the first to kick for home. Jean-Claude Rouget, who was also third with Smart Game (Smart Strike), said after the race; “I think that it was the way the race was run that gave him the advantage. Maybe if Smart Game had been in front he would have been the winner. However Smart Game did carry his tail quite high du ring the race so we will check to see if he has a back problem.”

Acapulco Gold was bought at the Breeze Ups in May 2009, for €160,000 (click here for catalogue page). He was presented by the same consignor, Mocklershill, as Dubawi Junior (Dubawi), an impressive winner at Cagnes (before injury), who was the top price of the sale. His dam, El Rabab (Roberto), has already produced Muntej (Muhtarram), Gr2 winner in Canada, and Filfilah, dam of Baqah (Prix de Sandringham, Gr2).