Wide Open Field Set for Final G1 of French Season

The presence of the Oct. 23 Prix Royal-Oak (G1) as the final group 1 of the French season is the main reason why Champions Day at Ascot does not have a full slate of five group 1s.

For all that the two races might look to be fishing in the same pool of European stayers, the Longchamp race has become a place to discover future talent in recent years, with four of the last six winners benefiting from a useful eight-pound weight-for-age pull as 3-year-olds.

Godolphin's Kemari  spearheads the younger brigade this year, having found only his deeply progressive stablemate Manobo  too strong over course and distance in the Qatar Prix Chaudenay (G2) over Arc weekend.

"We've been pleased with how Kemari came out of the Prix Chaudenay, which was a step in the right direction following his run at York," said trainer Charlie Appleby. "He has handled these conditions before and we're hoping he can make the first three in what looks a competitive event."

Charlie Appleby's charge needs to have improved for the step up to almost two miles if he is to turn around the Great Voltigeur Stakes (G2) form with Scope , who while he had no answers to Hurricane Lane  and Mojo Star  in the Cazoo St. Leger (G1), still stayed on well to finish sixth.

Scope needs to prove he is as effective on deep ground but if there is a progressive young stayer to emerge from this group, he might easily be it having strolled to a listed success at Ascot three weeks ago.

Twenty years ago Dermot Weld won this prize with a 3-year-old in the shape of Vinnie Roe , and his representative Search For A Song  holds as strong a claim as any among the older horses here.

Last year's Irish St. Leger (G1) heroine is one of only two group 1 winners in the field and could not have been more impressive in routing The Mediterranean  by nine and a half lengths in the Raa Atoll Loughbrown Stakes (G3).

Skazino  and Valia  have dominated several group races in France at around this trip during the course of the season, meeting on three occasions.

Skazino holds a 2-1 advantage and if the pair become engaged in a battle up the Longchamp straight once more then he is arguably the more resolute, although if Christophe Soumillon is able to kid Valia into the race, she has the turn of foot to give Alain de Royer-Dupre victory with his last domestic group 1 runner.

"This is a much better trip for him than the Qatar Prix du Cadran (G1),"  said trainer Cedric Rossi. "He ran very well the other day but he didn't settle in the first part of the race like a true stayer. He paid for it late on but he was very courageous."

Glycon  only recently stepped up from a mile and a quarter to a mile and a half and his breeding suggests this might be a step too far, though trainer Jean-Claude Rouget will surely be trusting to more than just this son of Le Havre 's innate class.

Hughie Morrison also has the Royal-Oak on his CV and sends Ebor runner-up Quickthorn for a first try over further than 1 3/4 miles—his win at Salisbury was one of the most extraordinary of the season after overcoming a catastrophic start—with Oisin Murphy traveling over for the ride.

"It's been a long season but hopefully he can be at his best," said trainer Hughie Morrison. "We just feel that if we don't have a go now, we might miss an opportunity. He had a very hard race at Salisbury and at York before that so we've just freshened him up over the last three weeks."

Back in 2005 Morrison triumphed with the 10-year-old Alcazar and since then a pair of 7-year-olds and four 6-year-olds have returned to the winners' enclosure.

Do not completely disregard the veteran Call The Wind , who was second to Technician  in this race two years ago and is the only other confirmed group 1 performer in the line-up.