Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe set to be run on testing ground as Longchamp turns soft after Saturday rain

The ground at Longchamp has turned soft in the wake of nine millimetres of rain through the second half of Friday and into Saturday morning. 

Officials had warned that two bands of showers would move the going to either good to soft or soft in GoingStick terms with further showers not due to subside until midday. The penetrometer reading was 3.8 or 'tres souple' at 10am local time, translating to soft ground in UK or Irish terms.  

Although the rain is not due to return once racing gets underway, the going on Saturday and Sunday promises to be testing. 

• Who could thrive and who may be hindered in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe as the ground turns soft? 

Saturday's course is on fresh ground thanks to the rail having been a long way out at recent meetings, while a strip of 15 metres up the straight and seven metres around the rest of the track is being kept for Sunday.

Racing hasn't taken place on the innermost line around the Grande Piste since the Grand Prix de Paris meeting on July 13. 

In terms of the final ground description, much will depend on how much more rain falls on Saturday. 

Recent going for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp

With the exception of Ace Impact's victory in 2023, there have been a sequence of Arc's run on soft or heavy ground, and while conditions don't threaten to get as deep as in the years when Waldgeist (2019) or Torquator Tasso triumphed, it is now advantage horses with proven soft-ground ability. 

Read more:

Who could thrive and who may be hindered in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe as the ground turns soft? 

2025 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp: the runners, the odds, the verdict 

2025 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe pinstickers' guide: runners, tips, key quotes and star ratings from our man in France 

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