Longchamp 26/10/08

[fintron]

2.50 Longchamp This looks a very interesting race, not least because Yeats has several questions to answer. Aidan O'Brien's five time Group 1 winner was sent off at odds on last time out here in the Prix du Cadran but flopped, finishing 5th behind Bannaby and Orion Star (who reoppose here) amongst others. There is no doubting that Yeats is one of the best stayers around, but like many of O'Brien's runners, he may be experiencing a burn out at the end of what has been an absolutely fantastic season for Ballydoyle. O'Brien admitted after Yeats' last race that he is trained to peak earlier in the season and with doubts about whether he can win outside of the UK and Ireland and whether he acts on the ground (as the majority of his wins have come on a quicker surface and when he did win on soft as a juvenile it was in a weak, three runner race) perhaps it is best to look away from him now. Getaway finished well back in the Arc but may appreciate this step up in trip. He acts on soft ground without question and as a course and distance winner warrants respect. Bannaby should go well again for Christophe Soumillon as he looks to add another Group 1 race to his CV but the one that catches me eye further down the field at a bigger price is Sir Michael Stoute's Allegretto. She picked up a Group 2 with ease on her last appearance at Doncaster, which proved her effectiveness on slow ground and that she is in good heart, and she is infact a previous course and distance winner having won the Prix Royal-Oak Principaute de Monaco last year (had Le Miracle behind). Admittedly, she was 4th behind Yeats in the Gold Cup at Ascot earlier this year, but the RP commented in the aftermath that she stayed on from an impossible position that day to take fourth and with her more certain to be suited by this track, perhaps she may be able to reverse placings this afternoon? As a previous Group 1 winner she has shown she has the class to take this and with conditions to suit and the trainer in good form (Conduit landed a big prize last night at the Breeders Cup meeting) she could be a decent bet at 9/1 (Stan James BOG). Hopefully Ryan Moore will not be jetlagged.:hope

[mattmcandrew]

Re: Longchamp 26/10/08 Bloody hell. California one day, France the next. Hopefully Murtagh got a bit of sleep on the plane :)