G1 Prix de l'Opera

Via Sistina to Seek Romanet Riches at Deauville

Rebecca Hillen's G1 Pretty Polly S. winner Via Sistina (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) will head to France for her next start in the G1 Prix Jean Romanet at Deauville. She most recently finished third in the G1 Tattersalls Falmouth S. at Newmarket on July 14. "Via Sistina is in great shape," Boughey said. "It was a little frustrating watching the [G1] Nassau [last week at Goodwood] without having her in it in that [soft] ground, but it was never really the plan after we went to the Falmouth and she's...

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An Arc Of Questions

   After the early retreat of Desert Crown (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) and mixed signals from the Classic generation in general this summer, Sunday's G1 Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe will provide more answers if not perhaps the categoric truth about how the generations compare on Sunday. In a fascinating renewal replete with conundrums, the best of the remaining 3-year-olds in action Luxembourg (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), Onesto (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), Vadeni (Fr) (Churchill {Ire}) and Westover (GB) (Frankel {GB}) pit their wits against the matured might of Titleholder (Jpn) (Duramente...

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Breeders' Cup Winner Tarnawa Retired

Three-time Group 1 winner Tarnawa (Ire) (Shamardal--Tarana {Ire}, by Cape Cross {Ire}) has been retired and will become a broodmare for her owner/breeder, His Highness The Aga Khan. "Happy retirement to the brilliant Tarnawa, winner of three Group 1 races: Prix Vermeille, Prix de l'Opera, Breeders' Cup Turf," The Aga Khan Studs tweeted on Thursday. "We look forward to her new career as a broodmare." Trained by Dermot Weld, the daughter of the dual stakes winner and G3 Curragh Cup third Tarana was stakes-placed at two and won a trio...

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Millionaire Penja Leads Arc Sale

A Group 3 winner and Group 2-placed, 3-year-old filly Penja (Fr) (Camelot {GB}) (lot 11) brought star quality to Saturday night's Arqana Arc Sale at Saint-Cloud Racecourse, and she duly topped proceedings at €1.2 million when Stuart Boman of Blandford Bloodstock prevailed over a remote bidder on Arqana's online platform. Boman noted Penja had been bought for German owner Jurgen Satori. "We're very happy with the purchase," Boman said. "She's an exceptional filly with a fantastic acceleration. We had to fight to get her but she's worth it. We're delighted."...

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Targets Aplenty For Lady Bowthorpe

Fresh and well after her maiden Group 1 victory in the Nassau S. at the Qatar Goodwood Festival on Thursday, William Jarvis trainee Lady Bowthorpe (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) is eyeing a pair of top flight races in France. The first target for the 5-year-old mare is the G1 Prix Jean Romanet on Aug. 22, and, if the bay continues to thrive, the G1 Prix de l'Opera on Arc day would come next. "I haven't been back [to the yard] myself, but I've had reports that everything is good with her...

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Enable Faces History; O'Brien Arc Runners Scratched

She is here. She made it. Relax, breathe easier. All the personnel linked by her journey from Juddmonte foal to Clarehaven thoroughbred icon have their work complete. There is only Frankie now in the human chain that connects to the wondermare whose very name evokes positivity and entitlement. At 4:05pm Parisian time, Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) brings closure to her epic odyssey against a suitably dramatic climatic backdrop. As if she has summoned the trinity of gods of the wind, the rain and the clouds to frame her historic bid...

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FOX Sports to Broadcast Arc

FOX Sports will present live coverage and analysis of Sunday's G1 Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, the New York Racing Association announced Friday. Sunday's broadcast will air on FS1 from 9:30-11 a.m. ET, with the Arc featuring 6-year-old mare Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) for a record third win in the race. Coverage will also include the G1 Prix de l'Opera Longines for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up at 1 1/4 miles on the turf. Both races are part of the Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" Challenge Series,...

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Audarya Camp Mulling Options

Group 1 winner Audarya (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) will make her next start in either the G2 Moyglare 'Jewels' Blandford S. at The Curragh on Sept. 13 or the G1 Prix de l'Opera on Oct. 4, trainer James Fanshawe has revealed. The winner of the Aug. 23 G1 Darley Prix Jean Romanet last out, Audarya was second in a Saint-Cloud listed affair as a 2-year-old in September of 2019. "She is in the Blandford on Sept. 13, but that might come a bit quick and she would have a penalty...

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Opera Possible Target for Alpine Star

The Niarchos Family's G1 Coronation S. heroine Alpine Star (Ire) (Sea The Moon {Ger}) could step forward in the Oct. 4 G1 Prix de l'Opera. Last seen finished a good second in the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville on Sunday, the 3-year-old filly's plans are yet fluid, but she has exited that Deauville test well. "The Prix de l'Opera is a definite possibility for Alpine Star," said Alan Cooper, racing manager for owners, the Niarchos Family. "She got home ok and we'll need a few days to come...

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