Imperial Monarch: will bid to give Aidan O'Brien first win in French Derby
PICTURE: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)Monarch aims to land Derby double for O'Brien
Preview: France, Sunday (3.15pm BST)
Chantilly: Prix Du Jockey Club (Group 1) 1m2½f, 3yo, colts and fillies
With Aidan O'Brien and son Joseph currently carrying just about all before them, the master of Ballydoyle bids to put one of the few missing pieces of silverware on his already bulging mantelpiece.
RELATED LINKS
Imperial Monarch is the aptly named colt charged with winning a first Prix Du Jockey Club for O'Brien, whose best effort came when Westphalia was third to Le Havre in 2009.
If successful, O'Brien would match the feat of Roger Charlton and Maurice Zilber in saddling the winners of the Epsom and Chantilly Classics in the same season.
Connections of leading domestic hope French Fifteen (Nicolas Clement/Christophe Peslier) would have been pleased by Camelot's dominant display at Epsom, having got to within a neck of the Derby winner in the Qipco 2,000 Guineas last month.
"He's had a great preparation and we're very pleased with his homework," said Clement on Friday.
While Camelot took the extra half mile in his stride, French Fifteen is by no means guaranteed to get the 1m2½f of the Jockey Club on breeding.
"The big question mark is the stamina but we're hopeful he can do it," continued Clement.
Vying for favouritism among the home defence will be Kesampour (Mikel Delzangles/Christophe Lemaire), who along with outsider Lunayir bids to become the Aga Khan's seventh French Derby winner.
The son of King's Best is a perfect four from four but must race right-handed for the first time.
Nevertheless, his uncomplicated style and a good draw in stall five will give him a leading chance.
John Gosden: trains Gregorian
PICTURE: Mark CranhamBritish hopes rest with a three-pronged party consisting of one-time Guineas fancy Most Improved (Brian Meehan/Kieren Fallon), Dante Stakes runner-up Ektihaam (Roger Varian/Paul Hanagan) and Gregorian (John Gosden/William Buick), who posted a personal best when an unlucky fifth in the French Guineas three weeks ago.
"He ran well from a bad draw in the Poule D'Essai des Poulains," said Gosden. "Any rain would be a help."
In a field of 20, cases can be made for a host of runners but Andre Fabre looks to have two of the more interesting contenders.
Saint Baudolino (Maxime Guyon) may have been fortunate to keep the Prix de Guiche after several cases of contact but, if anything, his rough passage denied the son of Pivotal a more clear-cut success in Chantilly's only Group-class trial.
Albion (Frankie Dettori) only has a neck to find with Kesampour on their running in the Prix Greffulhe.
Dettori will have to sit and suffer from stall 17 but Kirsten Rausing's homebred daughter of dual Champion Stakes heroine Alborada has been ridden from off the pace in the past and if the gaps appear at the right time, he can still be a factor.
Comments