Longchamp stages two of the key European Classics this weekend, with the Poule d’Essai des Poulains and Poule d’Essai des Pouliches taking centre stage.
Better known as the French Guineas, the two Group 1 mile contests bring together the next generation of elite three-year-olds, and this year there is again a strong international feel around both races.
Aidan O’Brien looks set to have a major hand in both features, and after recently ending a five-year Classic wait at Newmarket, the Ballydoyle stable arrives in France with confidence. Paris, Longchamp has been a happy hunting ground for O’Brien in recent seasons, with Henri Matisse winning the Poule d’Essai des Poulains last year.
In the colts’ race, Puerto Rico looms as the main Coolmore runner. He had been a possible Newmarket horse, but the decision to head to France now looks a logical move given what he has already done on French soil.
His juvenile form gives him a strong platform. He won both the Prix Jean Luc Lagardere and the Criterium International in France last autumn, and that experience around the French pattern gives him a different profile to some of his rivals. He is not coming here to learn about the environment. He has already shown he can travel, handle the conditions and perform at the right level.
That matters at Longchamp. The French Guineas can be a different test to Newmarket. It is not just about raw ability. Position, tempo, adaptability and how a young horse handles the occasion all come into play. Puerto Rico has enough racecraft and proven quality to make him a serious player.
He is not the only O’Brien runner still in the mix, with Ballydoyle strongly represented among the remaining entries. The depth of the race is also helped by the possible rematch with some of his French form rivals, including Christopher Head’s Nighttime and Francis Henri Graffard’s Rayif.
The home team will not be short of confidence either. French trained three-year-olds are always dangerous in their own Classic, particularly when they have already been aimed at this race from a long way out. The likes of Nighttime and Rayif bring local knowledge, and they will be trying to turn the tables if they meet Puerto Rico again.
From Britain, Karl Burke’s Hankelow adds another angle. His Autumn Stakes win showed he has the quality to be respected, and Burke has built a reputation for travelling horses with purpose. If Hankelow makes the trip, he gives the race another proper international layer.
The fillies’ race, the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches, looks just as intriguing. Diamond Necklace is the obvious starting point. Her win in the Prix Marcel Boussac at Longchamp last autumn marked her down as a filly of real Classic potential, and she returns to the same track with the chance to confirm herself as one of the leading three-year-old fillies in Europe.
There was a lot to like about that Marcel Boussac performance. She looked professional, she quickened when asked, and she gave the impression there was more to come with maturity. For a filly going into a Classic, that is exactly the type of profile you want.
O’Brien looks likely to have more than one option in the Pouliches, but Diamond Necklace is the one that gives the race its headline. She has already produced a Group 1 performance at the course, and that previous Longchamp success is a major tick.
The challenge is that this does not look a one-dimensional race. There is real depth among the fillies still engaged, especially from Britain and Ireland. Richard Hughes could be represented by America Queen, who was runner up in the Nell Gwyn, while John and Thady Gosden have Fashion People in the picture. Kevin Ryan’s Isle Of Fernandez and Willie McCreery’s Skydance add further depth.
Karl Burke also has Half Sovereign, a filly who has already won in France in the Prix Miesque, so she is another with experience of the local scene. Simon and Ed Crisford’s Zanthos is also entered, although she has another possible option in the Chartwell Stakes at Lingfield.
What makes both French Guineas races so appealing is the clash of form lines. You have the Ballydoyle strength, the French home defence, and the British runners trying to measure up away from home. For punters, that creates a proper puzzle.
The Poulains may revolve around whether Puerto Rico can repeat his French juvenile form against improving colts who have been trained with this one mile Classic in mind. The Pouliches may come down to whether Diamond Necklace can carry her Marcel Boussac brilliance into her three-year-old season.
For O’Brien, it could be another major weekend in France. For the French Classics, it is exactly what they need. Strong home opposition, serious travelling contenders and two Group 1 races that should tell us a lot about where the European Classic generation sits.
By Scott Bailey
