The Arc must wait for splendid warm-up of Ascot, Newmarket and Redcar

Ever since Roman times, special meals have started with, well, a starter: a delicacy designed to stimulate the appetite and get you excited about what is to come, without filling you up and leaving you too jaded to enjoy the forthcoming treats.

And this weekend offers European racing's greatest banquet of all. Sunday's Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is the continent's richest and most prestigious race and it is accompanied by top-class events over 5f and 7f, plus the host country's two most important juvenile tests.

Joyously, most of that will be broadcast on its main channel by ITV, who serve up a tempting appetiser for ITV4 viewers today with Group or Listed contests from three different tracks on a programme in which all eight races have fields big enough for each-way betting on the first three places – not often the case this season.