Teona surges into Arc picture as Snowfall fails to fire in Prix Vermeille

Arc trials day may struggle to command top billing against Irish Champions Weekend but there is still an inevitable sense of anticipation when a longtime ante-post favourite for Europe’s greatest race lines up for their final rehearsal.

But in two and a half minutes the place at the top of the pile which Snowfall has held since the first weekend in June was surrendered, with Derby hero Adayar the new 100-30 favourite with Coral to triumph in the big one back at Longchamp next month.

Snowfall, who is now 6-1 with the same firm, will not be the last such horse to fail to live up to advanced billing but there was a sense of disbelief around the tree-lined ring as she came back a well-beaten second after Frankie Dettori had never been able to get close to the impressive Teona.

Prix Vermeille result

Roger Varian confessed to being "in shock" as Teona turned the tables emphatically on her conqueror in both the Musidora and the Oaks.

But nobody should confuse that with any lack of faith in the daughter of Sea The Stars, whom Varian and owner Ali Saeed entered for the Arc on the morning of May 12, hours before she finished third at York. Ballydoyle took a more selective approach with their entries for the Longchamp showpiece than has been the case in previous years and Snowfall was not among the five O'Brien-trained three-year-olds on the list.

Dettori felt the race had not played out to his filly's strengths, with pacemaker La Joconde, partnered by Hollie Doyle, going on at an even pace before apparently slowing at the top of the descent, momentarily stacking Joan Of Arc and Teona up behind her.

"I was probably too far back and I didn’t think Hollie went fast enough for me," said Dettori. "It turned into a bit of a sprint and Ollie [Olivier Peslier] outsprinted me, simple as that."

Asked if he felt Snowfall was the same filly he had sat on at Epsom, a laughing Dettori replied: "Obviously not."

Teona came here off the back of an impressive comeback victory in a Windsor Listed race and if Varian was still worried about any tendency to get lit up, he called on the right man in Peslier to get his filly to relax.

"You could say that if Hollie went faster, it would have suited us even more," said Varian. "I think she's very good, I don't think it's a fluke result.

Teona with Roger Varian and Olivier Peslier after her Vermeill success

"Whether Snowfall ran up to her very best, you could argue that she didn't. But the Oaks was not our race, she couldn't handle the conditions and ours is a very good filly. I've always said that and that's why it's so satisfying that it’s come through today."

Coral go 16-1 about Teona for the Arc, although she also has the alternatives over Arc weekend of the Opera over ten furlongs and the Prix de Royallieu over a mile and three-quarters, both of which are restricted to fillies and mares.

"I think a mile and a half is her trip and obviously I'll speak with her owner Mr Ali Saeed and the team at home. But she's got all those options because we believe in her and I'm so pleased that she’s come good today," said Varian.

"I think we should consider it [the Arc] but I don’t think she'd like an Arc on soft ground. The nice thing is she's in the race and we don’t have to make these decisions for another couple of weeks. She's a filly with a huge future and I hope she might hang around for a year or two yet."

Varian added: "Whether she runs in the Arc this year or not, we'll just have to see how the next fortnight treats us. But we're delighted with her performance today, delighted she's won a Group 1, delighted we've won the Vermeille as a stable, it's a fantastic race to win. We'll enjoy today."

If the Paris sun continues to shine, the enjoyment may not be quite over yet.

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