'It's unfair he's not won his Group 1' - can Big Rock gain a top-level triumph in top-class Prix du Moulin?

In a very rare all-French Group 1, there is no danger that that the eight-runner Prix du Moulin de Longchamp will be run at a typical crawl, with the highest-rated horse also one that likes to dominate from the front.

Big Rock knows only one way of running and it is not one which very many of his pursuers have enjoyed attempting to follow through the course of a fruitful season. Only Ace Impact managed to get past him in the Prix du Jockey Club over a 1m2½f trip which found him out, while on his return to a mile in the Prix Jacques le Marois, another horse with a searing turn of foot in Inspiral sped past. The rest of his rivals were left strung out across Normandy.

The question for Aurelien Lemaitre, who is an excellent judge of pace, is how hard to turn the screw early on around the Longchamp turn.

Up the Deauville straight mile, Big Rock clicked off metronomic furlongs of 11.47s, 11.44s, 11.44s and 11.77s from the five to the one pole, and still ran the fourth-fastest split from there to the line.

That was on soft ground and the question for Lemaitre and trainer Christopher Head is whether, with the potential for Sauterne to also race prominently, they try and put everyone in the red zone before the home straight, or whether the turning nature of Longchamp will give Big Rock more of a chance to save a bit for the finish.

Against inferior opposition in the Prix La Force over 1m1f at the track in April and on good ground, he was able to go slower until the exit from the false straight, before producing a proper turn of foot – a far-from-shabby 10.77s and 11.23s for the last two furlongs.

Big Rock and Aurelien Lemaitre after the G3 Prix La Force

Head and Lemaitre will not underestimate the challenge of some of the older brigade, with Facteur Cheval arriving here fresh from giving Paddington plenty to think about in the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood.

He will aim to come late, as will Erevann, whose season was interrupted when missing his intended prep for the Marois, having knocked himself on the eve of the Prix Messidor.

The son of Dubawi and Ervedya is entitled to plenty of respect on the basis of his three-year-old form and has reportedly enjoyed a smooth run since finishing sixth behind Inspiral and Big Rock.

What they say

George Rimaud, racing manager to the Aga Khan, owner of Erevann
It wasn't ideal that he missed his prep for the Marois but he is in very good form and hopefully will be there at the finish. Erevann is a good horse and Jean-Claude Rouget reports that his work has been good.

Erevann and Christophe Soumillon win the Prix Daniel Wildenstein at Longchamp on SaturdayCredit: Edward Whitaker

Yann Barberot, trainer of Fast Raaj
He wasn't straightforward to train in his younger days but he's becoming less difficult with time. He put up a very good performance last time, even if the favourite [Erevann] missed the race and there weren't a lot of runners. I've never had him as well and while we approach the race without any pretensions, he's a fun outsider.

Sebastien Desmontils, racing manager for Hisaaki Saito, owner of Topgear
His work was good at the start of the week and the idea has always been to give him some experience in the first half of the year before trying him at Group 1 level. We want to to see if he's up to this level with a view to next year. The fact that there'll be more pace than was the case last time should help him settle.

Jerome Reynier, trainer of Facteur Cheval
This comes soon enough after the Sussex, but it then gives me more time to prepare him for the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes. The Prix Daniel Wildenstein over Arc weekend is a little tighter. He's probably a little better on soft ground, but with a guaranteed strong pace he should settle well. He got a little bit stuck in traffic at Goodwood and when Maxime [Guyon, jockey] pulled him out, he really picked up very well. There's a very big weight-for-age allowance at that time of the year and, should Paddington turn up in the QEII, it would be a fascinating rematch.

Facteur Cheval (left) chases Paddington in the Qatar Sussex Stakes at Goodwood last monthCredit: Alan Crowhurst

Andre Fabre, trainer of Belbek
He's been well in himself since the Jean Prat, but whether he's good enough is another question. There should be a good pace and he'll come from behind and see if he can grab something.

Christopher Head, trainer of Big Rock
He's gone very well since the Marois and we knew we could train him for this because each time he comes out of a race showing no signs that he's had a run. It's pretty impressive that he can run the way he does each time, putting a strong pace to the race, and it's a little unfair that he hasn't yet won his Group 1. He's a unique horse with a huge cardio-vascular capacity and very resilient. It will be interesting to see him against Facteur Cheval. Virtually the only times our good three-year-olds have been beaten this season has been against older horses, so you have to be conscious of the opposition.

Pierre-Yves Bureau congratulates Maxime Guyon after Kelina's success in the G2 Prix de Sandringham

Patrice Cottier, trainer of Sauterne
She ran very well in the Rothschild and Tony Piccone gave her a wonderful ride. I hope things will go at least as well, although this is a very good field. She has every right to be lining up.

Carlos Laffon-Parias, trainer of Kelina
Maybe the Rothschild was just an off day and it was too bad to be true. It was her first time on a straight track and maybe she didn't adapt to that. She needs to bounce back but she runs well at Longchamp and we'll try to ride her for a place.

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