Cirrus des Aigles DQ'd From Fourth Dollar Win
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Cirrus des Aigles' highly anticipated return from injury was spoiled Oct. 4 at Longchamp when he was disqualified from first in the QNB Prix Dollar (Fr-II), race he had won three times previously.
Godolphin's Fractional was a close second to the six-time group I winner, finishing just a head behind. He was awarded the victory after being impeded near the finish line when Cirrus des Aigles drifted off the rail and bumped him. Fractional finished 1 1/4 lengths ahead of Hippy, with Calling Out another head back.
Cirrus des Aigles was placed fifth behind Planetaire, who also was interfered with.
The time for the 1,950 meters (nearly 1 1/4 miles) was 2:05.78 on turf rated as good.
A 5-year-old son of Manduro, Fractional came into the Prix Dollar on a three-race win streak for trainer Andre Fabre. He won the La Coupe de Maisons-Laffitte (Fr-III) Sept. 19 in his stakes debut after launching a comeback from an injury that sidelined him in 2012.
With Cirrus des Aigles dictating a slow pace under Christophe Soumillon, Fractional raced in fourth or fifth early for Raphael Marchelli before a smart rally propelled him to second entering the final furlong. He rapidly advanced to press Cirrus des Aigles in the closing stages.
"It's always a bit disappointing to win a race in the stewards' room, especially against a champion like Cirrus des Aigles, but Fractional came into this race in the form of his life and we were very hopeful that he would run well," said Lisa-Jane Graffard for Godolphin.
"This victory justifies our confidence in him. He had a setback and was off the course for a long time—he was injured while being prepared for this race in 2012, so it's quite bittersweet to come back and win it two years later."
Cirrus des Aigles was starting for the first time since pulling up lame after winning the Coronation Cup (Eng-I) by two lengths from Flintshire June 7 at Epsom.
Despite the disqualification, trainer Corinne Barande-Barbe was pleased with the 8-year-old Even Top gelding.
"He has still won the race, and he was off for a long time, so I'm still very happy," she told England's Press Association. "It's his fifth run in the Dollar and it would have been his fourth win (after capturing the race in 2010, 2012, and 2013 and finishing second in 2011). I'm always proud of him."
Cirrus des Aigles will aim of the Oct.18 QIPCO Champion Stakes (Eng-I) at Ascot, a race he won in 2011.
Sheikh Mohammed's Darley-bred Fractional in Ireland from the group I-placed Royal Academy mare Sharp Point. His win marks a third Prix Dollar win for Godolphin following Alhaarth (1997) and Slickly (2000).
The Prix Dollar was one of the group II races on the Saturday card of Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Tiomphe (Fr-I) weekend at Longchamp.
Gerard Augustin-Normand and Elisabeth Vidal's Auvray wore down Vent de Force in the final furlong and won the Qatar Prix Chaudenay for 3-year-olds by a half-length under Gregory Benoist. He covered 3,000 meters (about 1 7/8 miles) in 3:10.86.
The win was the second straight in a group race for the son of Le Havre who captured the Prix de Lutece (Fr-III) Sept. 9 at Longchamp for trainer Elie Lellouche.
Alain and Gerard Wertheimer's 9-5 favorite Solow collared front-runner Veda in the final 200 meters of the Prix Daniel Wildenstein.
With Olivier Peslier riding for trainer Freddie Head, the 4-year-old Singspiel gelding got the mile in 1:36.59 for a third straight win after taking the Aug. 31 Prix Quincey Lucien Barriere (Fr-III) and Aug. 11 allowance. Sommerabend was third, 1 1/2 lengths back.
The Duke of Alburquerque's former Spanish star Frine, a 12-1 outsider, got the better of Mayhem nearing the finish line and won the Qatar Prix de Royallieu for fillies and mares by a short neck.
The 4-year-old High Chaparral filly was transferred to France-based Carlos Laffon-Parias this summer. She won two stakes in Spain while compiling a 3-1-1 record from seven starts there and took the 2013 Prix Fille de l'Aire (Fr-III) at Toulouse last year.
Final time for 2,400 meters (about 1 1/2 miles) was 2:37.29, taking her overall record to 6-1-1 from 12 career starts.
Zarshana, the 2-1 favorite, was a head back in third.