There can hardly be a more in-form trainer-jockey pairing at present than Mark Johnston and Frankie Dettori and they combine lethally at Deauville on Sunday to bring the force of Raffle Prize (Ire) (Slade Power {Ire}) to bear on the colts in the G1 Darley Prix Morny. Emulating the stable's former celebrity Attraction (GB) (Efisio {GB}) by pulling off the June 19 G2 Queen Mary S.-July 12 G2 Duchess of Cambridge S. double in authoritative style at Newmarket last time, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum's chestnut sets a high standard in the first meaningful clash between the sexes in the 2-year-old division.
“This is obviously a very tough race and there is no getting away from it,” Johnston said. “They are tough races up at Group 1 level. That is what we are up against and we will see how she goes, but she is fine and in great shape. I think she is versatile regarding trip as she has got the speed, but also that bit of stamina. The owner was a little bit concerned about the ground over there. She has won over five and six furlongs and from good-to-soft to good-to-firm, so we are quite happy with all conditions. Hopefully that is the sign of a good horse.”
Dettori knows what to expect from one of Raffle Prize's chief opponents in Sheikh Duaij Al Khalifa's A'Ali (Ire) (Society Rock {Ire}), having steered him to success in Royal Ascot's June 20 G2 Norfolk S.–one leg of his Gold Cup-day four-timer–and the G2 Prix Robert Papin over 5 1/2 furlongs here July 21. In a high-class renewal, Clive Cox saddles AlMohamediya Racing's Aug. 1 G2 Richmond S. winner Golden Horde (Ire) (Lethal Force {Ire}), Andre Fabre pitches in Godolphin's unbeaten impressive July 28 G3 Prix de Cabourg scorer Earthlight (Ire) (Shamardal) and Aidan O'Brien is represented by Arizona (Ire) (No Nay Never). Not seen since beating the subsequent Richmond runner-up Threat (Ire) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}) and Golden Horde as well as several other smart types in the G2 Coventry S. at Royal Ascot June 18, Susan Magnier's colour-bearer may need this reintroduction more than most.
Aidan O'Brien said, “He's in good form, everything is right and we've been very happy with him since Ascot. Hopefully the ground won't get too soft, but he's ready to go again now.”
Another with soft-ground concerns is Earthlight, who alongside Pinatubo (Ire) is the second exciting unbeaten son of Shamardal that Godolphin have among their 2-year-old legions this term. Any more deepening in the surface could see him ruled out, however. “Earthlight is in fantastic form and we are really happy with him. He is a very exciting horse, but a decision will be made at the last minute whether he runs or not,” the operation's Lisa-Jane Graffard explained. “It depends completely on the ground conditions and Andre Fabre will make a decision before racing based on the horse's best interests. We don't want it to be heavy for Earthlight as he has a lovely action and appears to be a horse that prefers better ground.”
Clive Cox said of Golden Horde, “They've had a fair drop of rain, which is unexplored territory for us, but I'm very happy and he is in great form. I'm thrilled with the way he has come back since his success in the Richmond. Hopefully he is quite a nice horse going forward and we are quite excited. He has got a bit of size and scope about him and he is not just about this year, he is a horse to look forward to next year.”
If Raffle Prize collects, Frankie fever could be at concert-pitch if TDN Rising Star Coronet (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) then follows up in the 10-furlong G1 Darley Prix Jean Romanet. Finally achieving the top-level success her record demanded and deserved in the June 30 G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud, Denford Stud's homebred drops back from a mile and a half for the first time since taking York's G2 Middleton S. last May. “We're just hopeful, the pressure is off now she's won a Group 1 which was the whole reason she was kept in training as a f5-year-old,” Denford Stud's farm manager Richard Evans commented. “She's done that now. We had a few options, we could have gone to York, but we felt France was a better option.”
Again Ballydoyle are present with I Can Fly (GB) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), who is trying this trip for the first time following a third placing in the G1 Sussex S. at Goodwood July 31. She looked to be coming back to her peak there, while Godolphin's 2018 G1 Nassau S. and G1 Prix de l'Opera heroine and TDN Rising Star Wild Illusion (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) is looking for a return to her best following a below-par fourth in the G1 Pretty Polly S. at The Curragh June 28. Charlie Appleby is getting all the right signals from her and said, “Wild Illusion found the going a little too quick at The Curragh but should find conditions at Deauville more to her liking. We feel that she appreciates some ease in ground these days, while she won two Group 1 races over this distance last season. Everything should be in her favour and she will be a major player if she can return to the level of form she showed during her 3-year-old campaign.”
Frankie also rides a fascinating runner in the G2 Darley Prix de Pomone over 12 1/2 furlongs in the Ed Vaughan-trained Dame Malliot (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}). If to be believed, and there is not reason not to at present, her emphatic five-length success in Newmarket's Listed Aphrodite S. puts her near the top of the tree among the season's middle-distance fillies. Slamming the G2 Ribblesdale S. third Sparkle Roll (Fr) (Kingman {GB}) and the re-opposing subsequent Listed Chalice S. scorer Love So Deep (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in that July 20 12-furlong contest, Anthony Oppenheimer's homebred has a class edge over her rivals but lacks experience of this type of test.
Impressive in Haydock's G3 Pinnacle S., Yvonne Jacques's Klassique (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) was subsequently third to Enbihaar (Ire) (Redoute's Choice {Aus}) in the G2 Lancashire Oaks over that same course and 12-furlong trip July 6 and is probably best of the older brigade, while Ballydoyle's July 25 Listed Vinnie Roe S. winner South Sea Pearl (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) was third to Enbihaar in the G2 Lillie Langtry S. over 14 furlongs at Goodwood last time Aug. 3 and should be more at home over this more conventional track.
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